Metro's Green Line Leads to St. Patrick's Day Celebration

In the spirit of the Emerald Isle, Carolina Kitchen, a traditional soul food eatery at University Town Center, celebrated St. Patrick’s Day with Irish-inspired menu choices and of course, green beer.

“Everybody is Irish on St Patrick’s Day,” said Cathy Nelson, managing partner of Carolina Kitchen.  Revelers had a choice of an expanded menu with “Beer Battered Corn Beef Bites” and “Guinness BBQ Wings” to celebrate along with “Lucky’s Green Sangria” drinks to wash down the holiday fare. Some of the new specialty items were a big hit with customers and will remain on the menu, including the “Fish and Chips” appetizer, Nelson said.

The wait staff traded in their regular uniforms for glittery green neckties, beads and shamrock pins.  Throughout the day, radio station WKYS with DJ Easy Street, hosted a live broadcast from the Hyattsville location to set the mood for the annual event.

Angela Bell of Hyattsville got into the green spirit as she sampled the Kitchen’s “Green Dublin Martini.”

“I love the atmosphere here,” she said. “Most of my family is here with me.”

Candy Murray felt the luck of the Irish when she won concert tickets at the celebration to see singers John Legend and Sade in June. Murray was relaxing with her mother, Deborah Murray, of Hyattsville. 

“I never win anything,” she said. “This is a first for me.”

One member of the wait staff, Jeanette O’Toole Shuette, of Laurel and of Irish descent, said she might continue to observe the holiday after her shift.

“I might go out if I am not too exhausted,” she said.

 Shuette said she has tried and enjoyed the St. Patrick’s Day foods at the Carolina Kitchen. “Maybe next year I can get them to serve Shepherd’s Pie”.