Tag: Ireland

From Green Beer to River Parades: Celebrating St. Patrick’s Day in San Antonio

La Panadería’s limited edition green conchas, available at all locations until Monday March 17. Photo: La Panadería, used with permission.

St. Patrick’s Day, celebrated on March 17, is a vibrant holiday in the United States, honoring Irish heritage and culture. Cities across the country hold parades, with New York City and Chicago hosting some of the largest. People wear green, decorate with shamrocks, and enjoy Irish music, dance, and food. Many bars and restaurants serve traditional Irish fare like corned beef and cabbage, along with green beer. While rooted in Irish Catholic traditions, St. Patrick’s Day has evolved into a widely celebrated cultural event embracing fun and festivity.

In San Antonio, festivities include the city’s Dyeing the River Green and St. Patrick’s River Parades on Saturday March 15. There’s also San Antonio’s official St. Patrick’s Day Bar Crawl on Monday March 17, 2025.

Two restaurants on the River Walk are ready to join in on the festivities with their own Irish classics.

Four Brothers Southern Provisions, located inside the historic Omni La Mansión del Rio, is known for its fresh Latin approach to traditional Texan cuisine. Now, they’re aiming to maintain their flair for fusion by putting a San Antonio spin on the holiday’s cultural favorites.

Available this weekend, visitors can choose between the Iced Irish Espresso Martini, a whiskey-based rendition that’s been mixed with sweet Baileys Original Irish Cream Liqueur and a boldly rich espresso roast, and the Spiced Irishman, a multifaceted whiskey and club soda that adds elements of flavor by topping off with hot honey syrup and tangy lemon juice. Don’t forget to snack on a few (or all) of Four Brothers’ Leprechaun Loaded Potato Skins, a hearty and comforting shareable that incorporates corned beef, cabbage, and Guinness Beer Cheese with its slow-baked spud base. 

Located across the River Walk is the high-energy upscale eatery, Ostra. Connected to the award-winning Mokara Hotel & Spa, guests are invited to enjoy the destination’s limited-time St. Patrick’s Day offerings. Known for their crafted cocktails and fresh seafood, Ostra has partnered with Jameson Irish Whiskey to create three specialty items, only available this weekend.

For something fruity and refreshing, order the Jameson Orange Mule, a simple yet delicious drink made with Jameson Orange, ginger beer, and lime juice. For those in the mood for something crisp and tart, try the Celtic Spritz. The cocktail combines Jameson Triple Irish Whiskey, elderflower liqueur, limoncello, and sparkling water and is sure to help cool visitors off from the upcoming weekend heat. And because you can’t visit Ostra without experiencing their acclaimed Oyster Bar, pair either cocktail with a few savory chargrilled oysters, served with Jameson Whiskey Butter and warm-baked bread.

While the River Walk has plenty of options for the holiday celebrations, bar hoppers beginning to create the weekend’s itinerary should plan to add these two spots as necessary stops. (Four Brothers Southern Provisions, Ostra, 2025)

To celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, The Newstand, the now local favorite, has joined the holiday festivities by creating their own themed menu creations. Known for their unique and delicious offerings, The Newstand has done it again with the “Bella Loca Latte” and the “Grinch” cookie. 

The Bella Loca Latte is an iced matcha latte that mixes together creamy pistachio milk (DF/GF) before being topped off with a lightly sweetened matcha cold foam and a festively opportunistic green straw. And since it’s criminal to visit The Newstand without selecting one of their house-made pastries, make your order a greenified duo with a sweet treat. Named the Grinch, this matcha cookie is soft, chewy, and subtly sweet. Topped with a thin layer of matcha icing, pistachio crumbles, and sea salt flakes, it might be big enough to share, but you might not even want to.

These seasonal favorites are only available for the month of March. For customers aiming to potentially save a little green, they can purchase both together and receive 10% off their order. (The Newstand, 2025)

In celebration of St. Patrick’s Day (3/17), La Panadería is adding a festive twist to their beloved conchas with a special Green Concha, available now through Monday, March 17. This vibrant concha features a green exterior, filled with a rich and creamy pistachio ganache that’s sure to delight your taste buds. 

Perfect for celebrating the season or adding a touch of color to your treat selection, this limited-time concha is priced at just $3.75 and can be purchased at any La Panadería location. (La Panadería, 2025)

Discover Ireland’s Quirky Side: ‘Weird Ireland’ by Brinsley McNamara

‘Weird Ireland: An Unofficial Guide to the Island’ is the new book by Brinsley McNamara. Photo: Barnes & Noble

Travel guides are essential tools for explorers seeking to navigate unfamiliar destinations. They provide detailed insights into local attractions, history, culture, cuisine, and practical travel tips. Whether in print or digital form, these guides help travelers plan their itineraries by highlighting hidden gems and off-the-beaten-path locations, ensuring that visitors experience a destination beyond the typical tourist spots.

For readers who love learning more about specific destinations, including lesser known, but just as fascinating, locations and oddities, consider the new book by Brinsley McNamara that’s all about Ireland’s more eccentric points of interest.

Brinsley McNamara is a writer, video maker and adventurer. He is the protagonist of the Weird Ireland social media channel where he wanders around the Emerald Isles looking for weird and fascinating stuff to document and quests to complete. He plans on clearing Ireland before moving onto elsewhere. Brinsley hails from County Westmeath, a place immortalized in the book “The Valley of the Squinting Windows” by Brinsley McNamara, who also hailed from the same spot. “Weird Ireland: An Unofficial Guide to the Island” is his first book. (Mobius & Laurence King Publishing, 2025)

A hill in County Down that cars roll up?
A bridge in County Mayo that plays music?
A chair that can cure madness in County Louth?
Giant monster sightings on the lakes and seas of Ireland?
The sensational summer of the moving Mary statue in County Cork?
Even Irish ice pop lore?

From the social media phenomenon Weird Ireland comes a journey through strange and fascinating stories from across the island, as Brinsley McNamara shares his oddity obsession in the distinctive voice fans have come to love – witty, precise, and straight up weird.

UFOS and fairy forts, whispering arches and matchmaking festivals, relics and Sheela na Gigs, standing stones and moving statues, lake monsters and healing rocks, it’s all featured in this strictly off-the-beaten-track journey into the bizarre.

Featuring illustrations by acclaimed Dublin illustrator Eoin Whelehan, this is a book to be cherished by all seekers of the strange, rare and peculiar.