It’s that time of year again: time for green beer, shamrocks and kissing strangers who claim to be Irish – and a whole host of venues get in on the celebration. Whether you’re in Tampa or St. Pete this weekend, you can embarrass yourself at MacDinton’s and Paddy Burkes, respectively, at a Leprechaun Pub Crawl, where you’ll get free green beer at each stop. Be forewarned: you’ll save a few bucks (which equals more booze) if you come in costume, so suck it up, channel your favorite marshmallow cereal mascot and thank your lucky charms for free booze. MacDinton’s makes a weekend of it with hair-of-the-dog Sunday specials on Guinness Harp, Smithwicks and Jameson cocktails. If you want to imbibe while riding instead of crawling, check out the Rough Riders St. Patrick’s Day Trolley Hop. Your destinations may not be traditionally Irish (unless you consider Bennigan’s a boon) but this I promise: a good Irishman wouldn’t turn down a proper pint, no matter where it came from. You’ll stop at Teatro on Seventh, Gaspar’s Grotto, Tampa Bay Brewing Company, Rock ‘N Sports and more. They couldn’t resist – they’re also giving you a frickin’ St. Patrick’s Day Parade of more than
This article appears in Mar 10-16, 2010.