Ireland

Photographs: Beth Levendis; New York GAA

“We’re proud of New York because we built so much of it,” says Breandán O’Caollaí, deputy consul general for Ireland. And never is that more evident than on St. Patrick’s Day (Tuesday 17), when thousands of Irish transplants take to the streets for the annual parade. Here’s your guide to finding Irish culture on and off Fifth Avenue.

EAT LIKE THE IRISH

• On Tuesday, upscale grocery The Butcher Block (43-46 41st St between Queens Blvd and 43rd Ave,Sunnyside, Queens; 718-784-1078) will sell boiled bacon and cabbage, a traditional St. Paddy’s Day dinner, although it carries Irish staples year-round. Homesick expats shop here for McCambridge brown bread ($3.99), Cadbury Flake candy bars ($1) and Barry’s teas ($4.99). “The biggest thing is the tea,” says co-owner Noel Gaynor. “We like it much stronger.”

• Given how the Irish dig their drink, it’s no surprise they invented the ultimate hangover breakfast: black-and-white pudding, rashers, eggs, fried tomato, mushrooms, baked beans and soda bread. Homey gastropub St. Dymphna’s (118 St. Marks Pl between First Ave and Ave A, 212-254-6636) serves this grease feast ($11) daily, as well as classics like shepherd’s pie ($10). Unlike its midtown rivals, St. Dymphna’s doesn’t wear its Irishness on its sleeve: The owners refuse to display even one four-leaf clover.

HANG WITH THE IRISH

• Clubs of the Gaelic Athletic Association, Ireland’s national sports organization, spread as the Irish migrated around the world. The New York chapter dates back to 1914 and includes 1,000 adult players in 26 clubs. Americans quickly pick up Gaelic football, a rugby-soccer relative, but only the native Irish play hurling, a difficult game similar to lacrosse. “It’s a part of our culture,” says Larry McCarthy, chairman of the New York GAA (ny-gaa.org). The season starts in April with four games—three football and one hurling—every Sunday in the Bronx’s Gaelic Park.

• Paddy Reilly’s Music Bar (519 Second Ave at 29th St, 212-686-1210), named for the popular balladeer behind it, hosts bands six nights a week; co-owner Steve Duggan also says it’s the “first and only all-Guinness draft bar in the world.” The traditional seisiún, or jam session, on Thursday nights gathers fiddles, pipes and bodhrans (drums) for jaunty tunes around a faux fireplace, just like in the old country. Also look for live music from noon to 4am on St. Patrick’s Day.

EXPERIENCE IRISH CULTURE

• If Paddy Reilly’s sets your feet tapping, learn the right Riverdance-style steps in a class at the Irish Arts Center (553 W 51st St between Tenth and Eleventh Aves; 212-757-3318, irishartscenter.org), which also offers fiddle and Irish language lessons. Check out the breadth of the center’s programs at a free open house on Sunday 15; festivities include a tin-whistle workshop, a Celtic harp performance and an exhibit of Irish landscapes. It also kicks off a run of The Cambria, about Frederick Douglass’s flight to Ireland, with a conversation between playwright Donal O’Kelly and film director Terry George on Tuesday 17 at 7pm.

• Language and storytelling are central to Irish culture. The Irish Repertory Theatre (132 W 22nd St between Sixth and Seventh Aves; 212-727-2737, irishrep.org) has been bringing the country’s distinct cadence to New York for 20 years, staging both classic and contemporary plays. An all-Irish cast performs in Brian Friel’s family drama Aristocrats, through March 29.

TALK LIKE THE IRISH

• To ask your newfound Irish pals what’s up, say “What’s the craic?” Wish them a Happy St. Patrick’s Day with a “Beannachtaí na Féile Pádraig!” Once you’re good and lacquered, you can announce it to the world by saying you’re “in the horrors, rat-arsed, buckled, off me head, fluthered or pissed.”

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