GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM
St. Patrick's Day celebrants Mike Wood, left, Richard Roberts, Susan Song and Tracy Levay enjoy a round of beer at the block party on Monday.
St. Pat’s block party
pours it on
16th Annual
St. Patrick's Day
Celebration
LOUD MUSIC, ice cold beer and some ono kine grinds -- all the important aspects of a raging party were present and accounted for earlier this week at the 16th Annual St. Patrick's Day Celebration.
As the Barfly hiked down Merchant Street towards Nuuanu Avenue Monday night, I could already tell things would be getting kind of nuts. Passed out on the steps of a downtown office building was someone who had obviously been at the block party for a while; the guy had at least a half-dozen cheap plastic shot glasses hanging around his neck, and one of those flashing green lights strobed nonstop as he snoozed on the hard concrete.
Folks were a bit more energetic once I got to the block party itself; three stages of entertainment were in full swing, Guinness was flowing like water and the area's two Irish pubs (Murphy's and O'Toole's) were packed to capacity. While there were a lot of people milling about, it was nice to see that Murphy's owner Don Murphy had planned the block party so things were spread out throughout the area.
It was also nice to see a wide selection of food available during this year's St. Patrick's Day Celebration. The Fish and Chips ($6.50) that I tried was excellent, as was my share of the 5,000 oysters ($1.50 each) that were prepared for the party. Other items on the menu that night included Irish Stew ($6.50), sausage sandwiches ($6) and Mrs. Murphy's Whiskey Cake ($3). Murphy also showed his charitable side by dedicating $1 from every pound of corned beef that was sold throughout the day to help a group of Special Olympics athletes represent Hawaii in Ireland later this year.
Beer prices, on the other hand, were a little steep for the Barfly's taste. I had no problem paying $5 for my Black and Tan, but the size of the cups served and the expertise of some bartenders left me disappointed. For five bucks I would expect a 16-ounce cup at an event like this -- St. Patrick's Day isn't a cocktail party, you know. And what was up with some bartenders rushing to pour a serving of Guinness? You're supposed to let the brew settle and breathe a bit while you serve it, yet some of these guys rushed the process to the point where foam ran down the sides of the cups they served. Bad form, I say.
Cruising in the street with a beer in hand, things got more festive when the Barfly saw his first bare breast of the night. A woman in her mid-20s with a green foam top hat stood a few feet away, bargaining for green beads. Then, to a roar of approval from some guys standing nearby, the deal was consummated -- up went her shirt, and the girl got her booty. The Barfly ended up seeing more women flashing on St. Patrick's Day than he did at Mardi Gras earlier this month, that's for sure.
It was an evening of shamrock-shaped glasses and pins that proudly proclaimed, "Kiss Me I'm Irish," a night of good food and good beer. If you didn't make it to this year's St. Patrick's Day Celebration, make plans to attend in 2004. And remember -- Guinness is good for you!
Barfly appears every Friday in Star-Bulletin Weekend.
E-mail Jason Genegabus at jason@starbulletin.com with suggestions of neighborhood bars to visit.
