Living Downtown on St. Patty's Day

Living in downtown Cleveland has many perks. A great social network, walking to work, a reverse commute, fitness centers, walkable bars, and the list goes on.... One perk, being able to walk to and from the bars, is seldom appreciated more than it is on St. Patty's Day.

On March 17th, hundreds of thousands of Cleveland+ residents proceed to downtown Cleveland to watch a two hour parade and then party like they're in Ireland. For just under 10,000 of those attendees, they end their evening walking (or stumbling) home to their apartment, loft, or condo.

Enter, Christopher O'Grady: a young man of 25 years who works in the health care field and lives downtown. He enjoys playing the bagpipes, watching football, and occasionally partaking in a Guinness or two.

St. Patrick's Day is Brother O'Grady's holiday and he begins it as any good son of Ireland would- in church. After the services at St. John's Cathedral (which were less expansive this year due to the overlap with Holy Week) O'Grady struts to the first sign he sees for corned beef sandwiches- Flannery's. After partaking in some authentic irish fare, he strolls through the Grand Arcade to Superior Avenue where he watches the parade with his family and close friends. Two hours and a few minutes later, the real fun begins.

Christopher celebrates his holiday at the Clevelander, Panini's, House of Blues (for live Irish music), and Flannery's before he takes a brief refreshing walk to the Warehouse District to finish his evening. Riding the bull at Tequila Ranch and stopping by the Map Room (a downtown residents favorite) is the perfect way to wind down the party.

At 11:45pm Christopher sees a line of taxi cabs from St. Clair and West 6th wrapped all the way around Lakeside Avenue to West 9th St. He and his friends chuckle as they see people quivering outside waiting for a cab in below freezing temperatures. Our neighbor finishes his drink, tips out the bartender, and shuffles past the line of taxis to his loft on West 9th St. Yes, our Irish friend is the host for a nine person slumber party so that nobody has to drive home after this long day of friends and fun. A great way to end a great bar-hopping St. Patrick's Day as a downtown resident.

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