Everyone Is Irish on St. Paddy's Day (at the Right Bar)

Whether you’re craving corned beef or like the sound of pipes with a cold one, the 90049 and surrounding areas have you covered.

This joint looks more like Mexico than the Emerald Isle, but the staff offers some great specials to help you get your Irish on.

• Day Specials: Happy hour drink specials from 4 p.m.- 8 p.m., and again from 10 p.m.- 12 a.m, where all cocktails are 2 for 1. There will also be .99 cent “Coronitas” until they run out, and shamrock and leprechaun shots starting at 12 p.m.

• Why Here?: If Irish patriotism and cuisine aren't so much your thing, this bar will do just the trick, and you’ll still feel like you celebrated enough to make any leprechaun proud. Who says nachos and shamrock shots don’t pair well?

• Hours: 11:30 a.m.- 12 a.m.

• Parking: Valet parking is available after 5 p.m., for $4.50. Street parking is available.

• Tips: Be patient with larger crowds. This is definitely your spot if Irish cuisine doesn’t tickle your fancy.

Sonny McLean’s Irish Pub

Featuring one of the most extensive beer and wine selections on the Westside, Sonny McLean’s in neighboring Santa Monica may be of the hottest pubs for St Paddy’s. Opening two hours early to jumpstart the festivities, this is one Irish hangout you won’t want to skip if you’re looking for an authentic experience.

• Day Specials: Fifty kegs of beer will be on hand outside on the Astroturf-lined parking lot, five Irish bands will be pumping out songs and winning the limerick contest can get you a $50 gift certificate.

• Why Here?: “It’s the epitome of a pub, we have great food, great customers, great music, great Guinness, and we have such a reputation for it,” manager Sean Juergens told Patch.

• Hours: 9 a.m.- 2 a.m.

• Parking: Street parking.

• Tips: Juergens recommends you, “Arrive early and be patient, because the line gets long around noon, and everyone makes a stop here."

O'Brien's Irish Pub & Restaurant

Since opening in 1994, this  pub has established itself as one of the coziest and warmest neighborhood hangouts west of the 405. Traditional Irish dishes accompanied by festive drinks makes O’Brien’s a good place to consider.

•  Day Specials: Green beer, draft Guinness, and Irish coffees.  There will also be a set menu featuring Irish stew, shepherd's pie, corned beef and cabbage, bangers and mash and fish and chips. If you arrive before 11 a.m., you can try an authentic Irish breakfast.

•  Why Here?: Respect owner William O’Sullivan’s  warning about “ordering a lemon drop or mojito” and “asking the owner if he is Australian,” and you can expect “to have the time of your life on St. Patrick’s Day at O’Briens.”

• Hours: 8 a.m.- 2 a.m. 

• Parking: Free in the small lot in back, but mostly street parking.

• Tips: Arrive early, and as O’Sullivan gently puts it, “Do not complain about why it is so crowded, as there are probably only five Irish pubs on the Westside and a lot of people who want to be in them.” Also, the kitchen will be closing after dinner is served, so arrive accordingly if you plan on eating.

Ye Olde King’s Head

Known as a “home away from home” for local Brits and visitors, this classic pub offers a taste of England.

On St. Patrick’s Day, the bar will pay tribute to their neighbors to the west and serve up an Irish food and drink menu. Ye Olde King’s Head will also feature a DJ and a bagpiper to really get patrons in the St. Paddy’s Day spirit.

• Day Specials: Green beer, Irish beers, and other specialty drinks. Also, Irish smoked salmon, leek and potato soup, corned beef and cabbage, and Irish stew served throughout the day. Breakfast will be available for early birds arriving at 9 a.m. A bagpiper will be passing by throughout the day and DJ Danny will be spinning tunes from 4 p.m. – 2 a.m.

• Why Here?: Lisa J. Powers, operating manager at Ye Olde King’s Head, thinks the bar is unique on St. Patrick's Day because of “the tremendous atmosphere, where DJ Danny and the bagpiper will get the crowd going,” as the party continues throughout the day and into the night.

• Hours: 9 a.m.- 2 a.m.

• Parking: Across the street or at the Santa Monica structures on 2nd Street, but Powers advocates you “leave the car at home.”

• Tips:  Arrive early, as the bar tends to fill up by happy hour and space becomes limited.

This upscale, well-lit dining space is perfect if you’re less into chugging green beer  and more into fine cuisine. Perfect for a date, or an evening out with friends, this intimate restaurant  will be serving up a special menu on St. Patrick’s Day that will enable you to get your fix away from the Westside’s more enthusiastic bar hoppers.

• Day Specials: Some drink and dinner specials, featuring items such as corned beef and cabbage and shepherd’s pie.

• Why Here?: “Our corned beef and cabbage and shepherd’s pie”  set this  establishment apart, says representative Cynthia Longley.

• Hours: 8 a.m.- 9:30 p.m.

• Parking: Valet is available in the evening, and two-hour validated parking during the day.

• Tips: Make a reservation.

--

Don't drink and drive!

100 Los Angeles County law enforcement agencies will deploy
additional driving under the influence roving saturation patrols to arrest
drunken drivers. Authorities are advising St. Patrick's Day partygoers to
designate a sober driver before drinking and if there is someone you know who
is about to drive while impaired, take their keys and help them make other
arrangements to get to where they are going safely.

--