Preparing for St. Patrick’s Day in KC
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - St. Patrick’s Day is a big day for businesses in Westport and the surrounding area.
Brownes Irish Marketplace has been watching the parade grow since its inception back in 1974. Brownes draws its lineage back much, much further.
“One hundred and thirty-eight years – we’re the oldest Irish business outside of Ireland,” Kerry Browne said. “My great grandparents started it in 1887 in their front house.”
Browne’s isn’t too far away from the parade, and similar to Westport, they host a part before and after the floats roll down Broadway between 33rd and 43rd Streets.
“Everybody’s welcome. You don’t have to be Irish. That’s the beauty of it. We welcome everybody,” Browne said about St. Patrick’s Day. “It’s a way of celebrating our heritage, but we welcome other people to be a part of that heritage.”
The sales from the holiday in Westport are similar to what could come in during a Superbowl or a World Series game, and what sets this holiday apart from recent years will be the warm weather.
“We’re expecting a huge turnout, it’s supposed to be beautiful, Savanna Lee with Char Bar said. “The last two years have been really not great with weather.”
Char Bar is adding a special burnt end pastrami reuben on pumpernickel bread to their menu, plus offering drink specials.
It’s also a day that can potentially help Westport turn a corner as far as perception, according to Beer Kitchen Assistant General Manager Augie Bennington.
“It really important for us to really show that Westport is a safe space, and there’s tons of people within this neighborhood that put their heart and souls in,” Bennington said. “From the business owners, all the servers, all the bartenders, to the cooks.”
As far as sales go, St. Patrick’s Day is one of the biggest days for Westport, but contrary to popular belief no restaurant listed green beer on their menu.
“We can do it, but Guinness is the preferred one tomorrow,” Shane Snider of the Green Room said.
He added that the Green Room will be preparing a special Irish stew for the holiday.
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