According to WalletHub; St. Patrick’s Day ranks third among the most popular drinking days of the year (after New Year’s Eve and Mardi Gras). To celebrate the holiday, some local restaurants are temporarily adding St. Patrick’s Day themed food and drinks to their menus. Others are offering different ways for citizens to enjoy the holiday responsibly.

“A Shamrock Shake is a nice milkshake with mint syrup and vanilla ice cream from McDonald’s,” senior Lauren Megdanoff said. “It’s a tradition between my sister, Samantha, and I that started when we were kids, we would get them almost religiously whenever we went. Now, every time our family goes to McDonald’s, within the season they’re out, we have to get one.”

The Megdanoffs also take advantage of a last-in-season skiing opportunity in Boyne Highlands around St. Patrick’s Day.

“The last weekend of skiing are Crazy Days,” sophomore Samantha Megdanoff said. “People come dressed up in costumes, drink, party and do different activities that are offered. One popular race starts on a small hill where you can build up speed and try to jump over a pond at the end. A lot of people fall in, but we always try to watch it.”

There are also local charity events and restaurant specials around town that are only around during the St. Patrick’s Day holiday. One such seasonal occurrence is the Laundry’s Corned Beef Boiled Dinner.

“For 15 years, I’ve made the corned beef special for St. Patrick’s Day, which was inspired by the Irish community I grew up around,” said executive chef Jody Brunori. “We start making them at 10:30 in the morning until we close at night, and they sell all day long. This year, we started doing carry out, so customers can pick it up on Monday and Tuesday, they can take it home, put it in their oven, and have a meal ready for their families.”

Eating at the Laundry during any holiday season is a tradition rising in popularity, especially because of the buffets they host for various holidays throughout the year.

“We kind of sell in some traditions for other people,” Brunori said. “It creates a feel-good environment; you don’t have to dirty up your house, you could invite 15 friends or family [members]—it’s a good tradition.”

For more information on the Laundry’s special, go to https://lunchandbeyond.com, or call (810) 629-8852.

Another seasonal event in town is the St. Patrick’s Day Pub Crawl hosted by the Warda Foundation. This event, complete with a Hop on-Hop off continuous Party Bus, provides a safe way for party-goers to travel to and from the event, while still being able to fully partake in the holiday festivities.

“This year is the second year we have hosted this annual event,” Warda Foundation president Jason Warda said. “The Pub Crawl is in conjunction with five different bars around town–The Barn, Corner Bar & Grill, The Fenton Pub, The FirePlace, and The Ponemah Lakeside Lodge.Then, the Fenton Bar Hopper will routinely transport guests from bar to bar where they can eat, drink, listen to live music, and participate in raffles; allowing them to hop off and hop back on at any point throughout the night. At the end of the night, they will be safely taken back home by our taxi service.”

As the owner of The Barn, The Fenton Pub, and The Ponemah Lakeside Lodge, Warda sees the importance of providing a safe means of transportation for his customers.

“The Warda Foundation was created three years ago and is a family-run, non-profit organization that hosts community and service events promoting drinking and not driving and giving back to the community,” Warda said. “All funds from the Pub Crawl go directly back to the Warda Foundation so we can continue to host other events throughout the year. One major event funds go to is Project Santa, one of our service events that provide gifts for underprivileged children during the Holiday season.”

Citizens of the Fenton area can partake in the events offered by these businesses and organizations, plus others that offer a way to celebrate the St. Patrick’s Day holiday, but more importantly, citizens can promote awareness causes and give back to the community all the while.