Saturday, March 15, marks Greater Lafayette’s second annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade and for many marks a day of celebrating Irish heritage. The parade will start at Riehle Plaza in downtown Lafayette at 11 AM and will cross the pedestrian bridge into West Lafayette. A “best Irish” contest will be held at 10:45. Participants and spectators over the age of 21 can warm up beforehand with an Irish coffee at Tippecanoe County’s oldest Irish pub, Nine Irish Brothers, which opens at 9 AM.

O’Bryan’s Nine Irish Brothers, located on Howard Avenue in the Levee, serves traditional Irish fare, Guinness by the pint, and features live music and the friendly, up-beat atmosphere typical of Irish pubs world-wide. “We’re providing something you can’t find anywhere else,” says owner Jerry O’Bryan, “our pub is as close to being in Ireland as you can get.”

In celebration of St. Patrick’s Day, Nine Irish Brothers will be opening early at 9 AM on Saturday, March 15 and on Monday, March 17, and will be a 21 and over venue both days. On Saturday, the pub will feature live music in a heated outdoor tent starting at 1 PM. A upbeat traditional Irish band, the McCabes, will be the opening act, to be followed by the Pub Uglies, a raucous band featuring Irish singalongs at 4:30 PM, and Mother Grove, one of the nation’s premier Celtic rock bands, at 9 PM. On Monday, March 17, the Indianapolis-based Hogeye Navvy will start at 9 PM; Hogeye Navvy, an ever-popular Irish band, features pub songs, singalongs, and sea shanties. “You won’t find a better lineup of entertainment anywhere else in Indiana,” says O’Bryan.

Patrons are advised to avoid parking in the Levee Plaza lots but rather to use the Wabash Landing parking garage or the pub’s valet service.

Websites:

Nine Irish Brothers: www.nineirishbrothers.com

The McCabes: www.mccabesband.com

The Pub Uglies: web.mac.com/rcollins1701/iWeb/Pub%20Uglies/Main.html

Mother Grove: www.mothergrove.com

Hogeye Navvy: www.hogeyenavvy.com