The Best St. Patrick's Day 2019 Parties in Miami

When people think of the Irish, Miami isn’t one of the first cities that comes to mind. Not even close. The Magic City is better known for croquetas than corned beef. More people here are named Carlos than Conor. And you’re likelier to see someone sporting a shirt with a marijuana leaf than a four-leaf clover. But when St. Paddy's Day rolls around, none of that matters. As the saying goes: We’re all Irish on St. Patrick’s Day.

Miamians celebrate the holiday the same way everyone else honors it — by throwing on their greenest apparel and, in many cases, getting drunk. Here’s a look at some of the places where the 305 will be shamrock-ing out St. Patrick’s Day weekend.
1. St. Paddy's Brickell. Choose from four parties in one location, each with its own Irish-related theme. There's the Forbidden Treasures party, the End of the Rainbow party, and the not-to-be-taken-literally Get Lucky Room. For $20 to $75, you can drink specialty cocktails, pick up green swag, and snap pics in the Instagrammable photo experience in the Irish Pub VIP area. Feel free to bring Rover to the Mary Brickell Village celebration Sunday, March 17, because there'll be specialty treats for dogs such as Puppy Brews and Puppychinos. 2 p.m. Saturday, March 16, and Sunday, March 17, at the Shops at Mary Brickell Village, 901 S. Miami Ave., Miami; 305-461-2700; stpaddysbrickell.com. General admission is free, and VIP costs $20 to $75.
2. St. Patrick's Day Party at Fritz & Franz Bierhaus. The Coral Gables German beer house is once again going green with its seventh annual St. Patrick's Day party. Count on green beer, specialty Irish cocktails and performances on the plaza by The Jeff Prine Group, Take Sixx and The 18 Wheelers. In keeping with the St. Pat's theme, the four-day fest will serve Irish dishes such as pastrami and corned beef sandwiches, Dublin sliders and — as if you needed more beer in your system that weekend — Cork City Fried Chicken, which apparently is chicken marinated in Guinness. The festivities kick off Thursday, March 14 with the Pause for a Cause fundraiser. 6 to 10 p.m. Thursday, March 14, through Saturday, March 16, and noon to 8 p.m. Sunday, March 17, at Fritz & Franz Bierhaus, 60 Merrick Way, Coral Gables; 305-774-1883; bierhaus.cc. Admission is free.
3. St. Pat's Wynwood. Green beer is about as Irish as a box of Lucky Charms cereal, but the U.S.-created tradition has become the norm on St. Patrick’s Day. Hey, we’re not mad at it. If you also like your St. Patrick’s suds to be extra festive, Wynwood’s fourth annual St. Pat’s party has you covered. The two-day shindig will have green beer on tap and party packs available for purchase that come with drink tickets and green swag. The celebration will also include DJs, games, food trucks and an artisan market. Make sure to take a photo in the pot of gold ball pit for posterity because, let's be honest, your memory's going to take a beating. Noon Saturday, March 16, and Sunday, March 17, at Wynwood Marketplace, 2250 NW Second Ave., Miami; stpatswynwood.com. Admission is free and party packs cost $15 to $30.
4. Fort Lauderdale St. Patrick's Day Parade and Festival. St. Patrick's Day isn't just for the 21-and-over crowd. Families can get in on the fun too — well, a different kind of fun. The lil' leprechauns are welcome at Fort Lauderdale's annual St. Pat's celebration, which kicks off Friday, March 15 with live bands and line dancing at the Irish Party in the Park in Huizenga Park. The St. Pat's shenanigans continue Saturday, March 16, with the four-mile Shamrock Run and kids version, a downtown parade with 100-plus floats at noon and all-day festival with mechanical rides, face painting and cover band U2 by UV. Irish Party in the Park is 4 to 7 p.m. Friday, March 15; Shamrock Run is 7 a.m. Saturday, March 16, (shamrock-run.com); and the festival is 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, March 16, at Huizenga Plaza; 32 E. Las Olas Blvd., Fort Lauderdale; The parade is noon Saturday, March 16, and travels west along Las Olas Blvd., starting from SE Fifth Ave., Fort Lauderdale; 954-314-8699; stpatsftl.com. Admission is free.
5. St. Patrick's Day Bar Crawl. St. Patrick's can make for a long night. A change of scenery might do you good every so often. Why not bar-hop through Brickell with this fourth annual bar crawl, which includes one free drink and drink specials at five bars (Blackbird Ordinary, American Social, RedBar Brickell, Baru Latinbar, and Batch Gastropub)? No need to follow the pack, as this bar crawl is free-roaming. Stroll — or should we say stumble? — into each participating bar whenever you please. Also included: Festive swag such as hats, beads, and glasses. 6 p.m. Saturday, March 16, and Sunday, March 17, starting at Blackbird Ordinary, 729 SW First Ave., Miami; 786-389-1092; miamibarcrawls.com. Tickets cost $15 to $20.
6. Paddy’s Pub Day at Churchill’s Pub. The Little Haiti rock bar transforms into Paddy’s Pub in a nod to the It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia watering hole. Expect It’s Always Sunny-related hijinks such as a Dick Towel raffle, a D.E.N.N.I.S. system lecture and a dance contest at 8 p.m. where the last one dancing gets — no, not the bar, in this case — but $100. Not sure what any of that means? Churchill’s will show episodes of the FXX comedy throughout the night, which should help get you up to speed. There’s something for non-fans too, with drag shows featuring Opulence and Grace St. Clair and live music, courtesy of Analog, Johnny Two Chords, and Deuxpooch, among others. Wolf Down Pizza will provide the eats. 5 p.m. Sunday, March 17, at Churchill's Pub, 5501 NE Second Ave., Miami; 305-757-1807; churchillspub.com. Admission is free.