Where To Go On St. Patrick’s Day: Getting Irish In The Capital District

Before I even begin, let me say that there are a lot of great places to go and party this St. Patrick's Day and if you know of a great place I missed, please put it in the comments. I am merely listing some of the great Irish-owned or themed places that that I have enjoyed over the years or that friends have recommended to me (I took a poll of my Facebook friends). With that said, let's get ready to party!

COLONIE AND WGNA

The first place I have to mention is where WGNA will be on St. Patrick's Day from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Bethany and I will be going to O'Tooles in Colonie. O'Tooles is a staple in Colonie and is a great Irish American Pub with just about anything an Irishman like me wants: great beer, friendly staff, great food and gambling! Yes, you can even bet the ponies while you are there.

Remember, Bethany and I will be there to celebrate with you officially from 1 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. but unofficially I have a feeling I may be there a bit before and after the allotted time. So come hang with me!

ALBANY

OK, but what if you are in downtown Albany? Well there a lot of awesome places to celebrate there as well, and of course McGeary's Irish Pub has to be one of the oldest traditions for St. Paddy's day in the downtown area. To be honest, I can't remember a time McGeary's wasn't around and wasn't a great place to get your Irish up. Lots of history and great staff and management here.

Another Great place in Albany for St. Patrick's Day is Graney's Stout. I should be up-front completely here and mention that Graney is a friend, even if he is a Cowboy fan. He may not be the best at picking NFL teams but I don't know anyone else I'd invest in with more confidence when it comes to creating a great bar and in "Stout" he did just that.

SCHENECTADY

Schenectady is also the site of some great Irish food and drinks and one of the things I love about it is the two restaurants that I have enjoyed in the past are close enough to walk between them.

The first I have to mention is Pinhead Susan's. This is a great Irish-owned pub and restaurant in historic downtown Schenectady. Pinhead Susan's has a great Irish feel, plenty of room and a great and fun staff. It's a great family-owned business that makes you feel like you are part of the family too.

One of the places that got a whole lot of attention from my Facebook friends when I asked where the bast places to go for St. Paddy's Day was was another great Schenectady place called Katie O'Byrne's. According to their website, Katie O' Byrne's was named after one of the local owners, John P. Maloney's, grandmother. John and four other Irish American's opened the pun and restaurant in honor of all things Irish!

TROY

Troy also offers some great places to celebrate the holiday and really you can't go wrong with so many of them. One of the places that was mentioned on my Facebook page was the Irish Ale Pub and another place recommended to me by a friend was Ryan's Wake. I have not been to either of these places before but I have to say that most agree the food at Ryan's Wake is great and the atmosphere is relaxed.

I have gotten the most feedback for Troy about  is a place called, Finnbar's Pub. Finnbar's Pub boasts a great atmosphere "from scratch cooking" and 32 beers on tap. They also have great patio seating which, weather permitting, I believe may already be open for the season. Let's hope for a nice day on Thursday!

SARATOGA

Saratoga, and Saratoga County got the most response from my poll and it seems there are a lot of great Irish places to get a beer and some corned beef. I added Satatoga County in here because a couple of the places are not actually in Saratoga but still were very popular. One of these is Power's Inn and Pub in Clifton Park. Power's is a true favorite in southern Saratoga county and the locals swear by it's Irish authenticity and enjoy the food offerings

Another place mentioned outside of the actual Saratoga city limit was Carney's Tavern in Ballston Lake. At Carney's you will find a fun atmosphere, friendly staff and there is never a shortage of corned beef or Guinness.

In Saratoga itself, The Sarotaga City Tavern will also be rolling out the goods this St. Patrick's Day according to one of the comments on my Facebook page, "The Saratoga City Tavern! Starts with Breakfast then on to festivities to end with a Corned Beef and Cabbage dinner!!! Good music and good beer !"

Finally I have to end with what I think may be the first Irish pub I have ever been to and have loved it ever since. The Parting Glass in Saratoga was once ranked one of the top Irish bars in the country according to one of the comments I got, I have not verified this fact myself but I can say I wouldn't doubt it. You just can't help but feel Irish when you are at The Parting Glass. Maybe it's the music, food and spirits or maybe its a room completely dedicated to darts. I'm not sure but I know on St. Patrick's Day you can't go wrong there.