Sham-Rock Out: 20 ways to celebrate St. Paddy's in Boston this weekend

Published Mar 14 2012, 04:00 PM by Alexandra Cavallo

It's baaaack. That special time of year (rivaled only, perhaps, by Red Sox opening day) when all of Boston is united in pursuit of one common goal: drunken debauchery. It's St. Patrick's Day, of course. In spirit of that boozy solidarity, we've rounded up 20 of the many, many ways to celebrate all weekend long. Green beer optional.

Dropkick Murphys | Well, ‘course there's always the annual Dropkick hometown stand at the HoB, but you know that shit is all kinds of sold out. If you got tix, though, rock on | House of Blues, 15 Lansdowne St, Boston | March 15-16 @ 8 pm | sold out | ticketmaster.com

THURSDAY

Erin Go Beehive | With Irish food including "corned beef & ‘cabbage' flatbread" and Finnan haddie smoked fish & chips, traditional music by the Ivy Leaf, themed cocktails, and more | Beehive, 541 Tremont St, Boston | 5 pm | no cover; food a la a carte | beehiveboston.com

St. Patrick's Day Bash to Support the Troops | Sponsored by Hugs for Heroes, with Irish dancing performances, music, themed drinks, raffle with prizes including Celtic tix, signed Red Sox baseballs, and more | Paddy O's, 33 Union St, Boston | 6 pm | $25; includes free beer from 6-9 pm | hugsforheroes.com

FRIDAY

9th Annual Win a Trip To Ireland & The Bushmills Distillery Party | Party with a chance to win the trip, sponsored by Bushmills and Guiness, with music by the Bare Knuckle Boxers and the Galway Guild | Ned Devine's, Faneuil Hall Marketplace, Boston | 5 pm | no cover; registration required | winatriptoireland.eventbrite.com

SATURDAY

"My Bloody St. Patrick's Day" | "We won't be wearing green, we won't be drinking green drinks and we won't be playing Dropkick Murphys or U2. We will be dressed fresh, we will be drinking Budweiser, taking shots of Jack Daniels and we will be playing Punk and Post Punk and New Wave and Now Wave and probably some other random bangers," says they. So there you have it. Don't come to Good Life tonight if you're looking to guzzle green beer | Good Life, 28 Kingston St, Boston | 9 pm | $5 | goodlifebar.com

Traditional Irish Fare at Grafton Street | Load up on Irish eats including corned beef & cabbage, Guinness beef stew, rustic shepherd's pie, braised lamb and mash, and more. And, of course, all the Guinness you can drink | Grafton Street Pub & Grill, 1230 Mass Ave, Cambridge | 11 am-10 pm | no cover; food a la carte | graftonstreetcambridge.com

St. Paddy's at the Black Rose | Well, since this place is pretty Irish-ed out every other day of the year, you can imagine how festive it's gonna get tonight. Live music and dancing all day and night with Celtic Clan | The Black Rose, 160 State St, Boston | noon-close | no cover | blackroseboston.com

Live music at the Midway Cafe | They've got a solid line-up of music to drink to this St. Patrick's Day, kicking it off early with the Swaggerin' Growlers, Brunt of It, Opposition Rising and more. Later in the evening, Erin Harpe & the Delta Swingers and more take the stage | Grafton Street Pub & Grill, 1230 Mass Ave, Cambridge| 2 pm | no cover | midwaycafe.com

St. Patrick's Day 2012 at Phoenix Landing | They're kicking it off early with rugby on the TVs starting at 8 am. Speir Morh starts playing traditional Irish music around 3:30 and DJ Vinny keeps the party going into the wee hours of the night starting around 8 pm. Special Irish menu all day long | Phoenix Landing, 512 Mass Ave, Cambridge | 8 am-close | no cover | phoenixlandingbar.com

St. Paddy's at Sally O'Brien's | You know Sally's is going to have some traditional Irish fun going on. Live music all day with Tom Hagerty and Bucky's Kilt, Josh MacLederman & the [Irish] CSARs, One Thin Dime, and more. Special menu all day | Sally O'Brien's, 335 Somerville Ave, Somerville | noon- close | $10 | sallyobriensbar.com

St. Patrick's Day at Bukowski's | As per usual, Bukowski's (Cambridge location) is throwing one of their anti-celebration celebrations. It's all about the drinking...they're starting with brunch and Bloodies and moving on to beers and Irish food into the night. And: "No Irish Car Bombs or green beer, you fucking amateurs" | Bukowskis, 1281, Cambridge St, Cambridge | all day | no cover | bukowskistavern.net

Shake Your Shamrocks BP St. Patty's Day Bash | With all-day Irish eats including corned beef & cabbage, Irish beer buckets, green beer on tap, music by the menu Irish American Police Officers Association of Pipes and Drums, and more | Battery Park & Lounge, 33 Batterymarch St, Boston | 11 am-close | no cover | 617.350.7275

SUNDAY

St. Paddy's Day Road Race | It's a race to the drunkest at the end of the weekend...with music by the Molly Misfits, Marc Pinansky, and Rumors of a Strange Universe | Precinct, 70 Union Square, Somerville | no cover | precinctbar.com

Annual South Boston St. Patrick's Day Parade | You know the drill: the country's 2nd largest parade/day-drinking fest returns to Southie | Kicks off on West Broadway | 1 pm | southbostonparade.org

Or...you could just spend all weekend carousing around with drunk bros in green shirts literally anywhere in Southie. No, literally anywhere. In any bar, on [almost] anyone's front stoop, in an alley. Anywhere. There will be reveling, rest assured