St. Patrick's Day: How Tampa Celebrates Amid Pandemic

TAMPA, FL — The traditional festivals, including dying the Hillsborough River green, that mark St. Patrick's Day in Tampa have been canceled as the coronavirus pandemic approaches the one-year mark. However, Tampa is still finding ways to celebrate its Irish heritage on Wednesday, March 17.

St. Patrick's Day celebrations in America date back to 1631, according to National Geographic. Originally declared a feast day, over time the holiday increasingly became associated with the Irish American tradition.

Here are some celebrations planned in and around Tampa on March 17:

Bulla Gastrobar, 930 S. Howard Ave., Tampa is hosting a St. Patrick’s Day Lucky Hour March 17 from 3 to 7 p.m. with bottled beer and pint drafts for $3, house martinis and house specialty cocktails for $7, and sangria and house liquors for $6.

There will be a St. Patrick's Day Bar Crawl starting from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. featuring seven bars including District Tavern, American Social, Maloney's Irish Pub, La La's Sangria, Yeoman's Cask & Lion, GenX Tavern and Park & Rec. Check-in locations are Park & Rec Tampa, 290 S. Meridian Ave., and American Social, 601 S. Harbour Island Blvd. It includes five free welcome drinks, bar games and food and drink specials. Tickets are $15 to $20. Click here.

Sal Y Mar, 3650 Midtown Drive, the new rooftop bar that crowns the dual-branded Aloft and Element Hotel in Midtown Tampa, is offering a St. Patrick's Day Pairing Dinner on March 17 at 6:30 p.m. For $85, guests will enjoy a five-course dinner featuring Chef Stephanie Bisogne's unique take on Irish cuisine while enjoying sips from Tullamore Dew Irish Whiskey paired perfectly with each course. The meal will include house-made Irish soda bread; winter kale salad with toasted hazelnuts, roasted root vegetables and crumbled goat cheese olive oil & balsamic reduction drizzle; butter-poached scallops with leeks and sweet peas; Shamrock Sliders panini pressed corned beef and cabbage; skillet-roasted lamb lollies with brown sugar-glazed tricolored carrots over traditional Irish colcannon; and Barmbrack traditional Irish sweet fruit bread. Click here for reservations.

Whiskey North, 1921 N. Dale Mabry Highway, will host a St. Patrick's Day Bash featuring DJ Blackhaze and DJ Rudeboy HK, drinks, wings and hookahs from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Click here for tickets.

Get shamrocked at American Social Tampa, 601 S. Harbour Island Blvd., Tampa. American Social will host a Luck of the Irish Dock Party from 3 to 11 p.m. with an open bar and sounds by DJ Casper and Barry Carew. There will be $8 Jameson cocktails, $8 Jameson shots and $4 green beer. Sip on a $10 frozen Irish Coffee, made with a blend of Jameson Cold Brew, Kahlua and coffee ice cream.Click here for tickets.

The Boston Irish band, the Gobshites, along with Four Green Fields Irish Pub's own Sean Doyle will entertain patrons at Four Green Field Irish Pub's Curtis Hixon Park location, 702 N. Ashley Drive, Tampa, with live music starting at noon, traditional Irish fare and outdoor seating in the beer garden.

Standhill Public Tampa Heights, 309 W. Palm Ave., Tampa, will host a St. Patrick's Day celebration from 7 to 10 p.m. with live music, Guinness swag, corned beef and cabbage and pints all day.

MacDinton's Irish Pub, 405 S. Howard Ave., Tampa, will open at noon for a celebration featuring green beers, live music from 4 p.m. to closing, and bagpipers at 6 and 9 p.m.

Maloney's Local Irish Pub, 9540 W. Linebaugh Ave., Westchase, will host a celebration with live music by Pat McGroin from 1 to 4 p.m., Daniel B. from 6 to 10 p.m. and DJ Tone from 10 p.m. to closing. There will be green beer and traditional Irish fare.

The James Joyce Irish Pub & Eatery, 1724 E. 8th Ave., Tampa, will host a St. Patrick's Day celebration from 11 a.m. March 17 to 2 a.m. March 18 with Irish fare, drink specials, green beer and music.

Irish 31 Hyde Park, 1611 W. Swann Ave., Tampa, Irish 31 Westshore, 214 Westshore Plaza, Tampa, and Irish 31 Westchase, 10102 Montague St., Tampa, will host their Paddyfest 2021 with 31 Pot O' Gold whiskey and Magners cocktails, Tito's Leprechaun Lemonade, Guinness, corned beer and cabbage and fresh cod battered in Black & Tan beer, giveaways and live music.

Soho Saloon, 419 S. Howard Ave., Tampa, will host a St. Patrick's Day celebration starting at noon with drink specials and more.

The Patio Tampa, 421 S. MacDill Ave., Tampa, will celebrate St. Patrick's Day with drink specials and Irish fanfare.

Pete's Place, 4145 Henderson Blvd., Tampa, will celebrate with live music by Jimmy Dingle and Daniel Liguori, green beer and shot specials from 6 to 9 p.m.

Pete's Place North, 8603 N. Dale Mabry Highway, Tampa, will celebrate from 6 to 10 p.m. with music by The Little Big Show, green beer and shot specials.

Brewlands Bar & Billiards Carrollwood, 4802 Gunn Highway, Suite 108, Tampa, will celebrate with $2 beer pints, $3 Leprechaun Mimosas, $3.50 Tully/Jameson U Call It, $4 Emerald Sunrises, $4 Tully/Jameson picklebacks, $5 Irish Car Bombs and $6.50 Irish Mules.

The Hole in The Wall Bar Tampa, 1735 W. Hillsborough Ave., Tampa, will celebrate St. Patrick's Day with live music by Tee Blue at 8 p.m., a wet T-shirt contest at 10 p.m. and drink specials throughout the day.

Uncle Fats 2, 124 W. Fletcher Ave., Tampa, will celebrate St. Patrick's Day with an open mic night from 7 to 10 p.m. and wing and pitcher specials.

Molly Malone's Irish Pub, 304 E. Davis Blvd., Suite E, Tampa, will celebrate the day with live music by Brendan Nolan, Irish food and Guinness and Jameson specials starting at 11 a.m.

World of Beer, 9524 W. Linebaugh Ave., Tampa, will host a St. Patrick’s Day party until 3 a.m. featuring $4 seltzers, $5 Tullamore Dew shots, $5 Irish drafts and mixed drafts.

Did we miss your event? Send details to editor D'Ann White at dann.white@patch.com.