With so many Irish pubs around Long Beach, it may be difficult to know where to start when looking for a St. Patrick’s Day celebration that suits you best. Don’t leave the excitement of your evening to the luck o’ the Irish – check out this quick list of Long Beach St. Patrick’s Day hot spots, and an authentic beer bread recipe for those celebrating at home!

Compiled by Jillana Miller

Clancy’s Irish Pub & Restaurant
803 E. Broadway
Long Beach, Ca 90802
562.437.1837

In 2008 Clancy’s was voted 2008 karaoke venue of the year. Celebrate St. Patrick’s day with singing, laughing, performing and competing with Clancy’s famous KJ Terrific Tom.

KC Branaghan’s Irish Pub
5734 East 2nd Street
Long Beach Ca, 90803
562.434.3600

Enjoy authentic Irish eats at KC Branaghan’s this St. Patrick’s Day for value prices. From 8:00am-1:00pm this pub will be serving up blood pudding and Irish Soda bread. The pub will also feature a classic Irish lunch menu until closing time. Lads and Ladies can enjoy comforting potato leek soup, fish and chips, corn beef and cabbage and shepherd’s pies!

Gallagher’s Pub & Grill
2751 E. Broadway
Long Beach Ca, 90803

From 4pm-7pm Gallagher’s will be offering a happy hour that includes domestic pitchers for $8 premium pitchers for $10 and an array of inexpensive appetizers. This pub will also provide fantastic background noise with the band, “The American Wake,” all throughout the day. This scene will be adorned with the presence of Jameson Girls frolicking about the pub. Admission is free until the bar reaches capacity which will likely be around 2:00 or 3:00pm.

Auld Dubliner
71 S. Pine Ave.
Long Beach Ca, 90802

From 2-6pm Auld Dubliner will have live music by various artists and from 9 until closing time the band, “Inish Free,” will be performing.

Quinn’s Irish Pub
200 Nieto Ave Ste A
Long Beach, CA 90803
(562) 434-2606

Quinn’s really getting in touch with their roots with live bagpipers. Here you can also find specials on green beer and corn beef tacos.

Shillelagh
2742 E. 4th St.
Long Beach, Ca 90814

This infamous local pub will be serving up a special St. Patrick’s Day dinner. The menu will include, corn beef and cabbage, lamb shanks, cottage pie, fillet mignon, smoked salmon with fettucini and chocolate chip and mint ice cream.

5734 East 2nd Street, Long Beach, CA 90803 Pub (562) 434-3600

St. Patrick’s Day beer bread; Loafing around at its best

St. Patrick’s Day is here, and along with the tradition of wearing green and drinking lots of beer, many Americans partake in a traditional Irish meal. A St. Patrick’s Day table typically consists of corn beef and cabbage and possibly even some soda bread. Beyond this hearty traditional meal, we pay little culinary homage to the Irish Spirit in the U.S. Such a meager Irish menu begs the request of fun innovative Irish-minded eats. Where to start? Beer is a good place. While a cold pint is lovely, cooking with beer is a fun, adventurous and delicious way to embrace in Irish culture. Making beer bread is a super simple concept with endless flavor possibilities. Consider a warm piece of Dubliner cheddar, pale ale and chive bread with a cold pint.

To begin baking with brew follow the easy recipe and guide below:

Dubliner cheese, pale ale and chive bread

Ingredients

1 1⁄2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon dried dill
1 cup Irish Dubliner Cheese, grated
12 ounces cold pale ale
Nonstick spray or olive oil

Method of preparation

Begin by preheating the oven to 375 degrees F. Coat the inside of a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan or a 9 by 9 inch square pan with the nonstick spray and set aside.

Whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, dill and chives in a large mixing bowl. Add in the cheese and stir in the beer just to combine. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan.

Bake on the middle rack of the oven until the bread reaches an internal temperature for about 30-40 minutes.

Remove from the oven and cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Transfer the loaf to a cooling rack for 10 to 15 minutes before slicing and serving.

Jillana Miller is a Long Beach City College student and lbpost.com contributor.