Not all Ohio University students spent Sunday recovering from Mill Fest — many took to the bars in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day.
Uptown establishments offered food and drink specials and hosted live performances from bands throughout the day to entice green-clad revelers to forgo their hangovers and go to the bars.
Jackie O’s Pub and Brewery, 24 W. Union St., booked Irish bands and dancers for the entirety of the afternoon and into the evening, Manager Joe Kunkel said.
Though the bar wasn’t offering any drink specials, Kunkel said prices weren’t deterring people from buying drinks.
“We have had Guinness on both sides of our place and plenty of Jameson to get the party started,” Kunkel said.
Kunkel added that he thought St. Patrick’s Day’s proximity to Mill Fest deterred people from going to the bars on Sunday, resulting in a calmer St. Patrick’s Day than in years past.
“I’d say the crowd is about average,” Kunkel said. “We’ve had busier St. Patrick’s Days. With today being a Sunday, a lot of people probably went out last night.”
Attendance at The Crystal, 34 N. Court St., was significantly lower than average, despite drink specials, manager Scott Russell said.
“Wednesday’s Green Beer Day and Saturday’s Mill Fest kind of overrided the whole holiday,” Russell said. “I feel like everyone is just really hungover.”
Sunday was the first St. Patrick’s Day for Greg Christo-Baker, bartender at Red Brick Sports Pub, 14 N. Court St., who said that he was disappointed with the turnout.
“We aren’t open on most Sundays, but for a normal Sunday crowd, I think it’s a little light,” Christo-Baker said. “There should be more people out.”
After Mill Fest, though, most students were too tired to go uptown, said Courtney Kaiser, a senior studying journalism.
“I live on Mill Street, so it was a struggle to get up and out today,” Kaiser said. “(My friend) made me.”
With Green Beer Day, Milliron Fest, Mill Fest and St. Patrick’s Day all falling within a week, students have the ability to pick and choose which days they want to drink, Kaiser said.
“I had class on (Green Beer Day), so it’s nice that St. Patrick’s Day fell on a weekend this year,” she said.
sh335311@ohiou.edu
