Celebrate St. Paddy’s Day At One Of These Traditional Irish Pubs

St. Patrick’s Day is nearly upon us, and for those who are of Irish descent or just fancy themsleves part o’ the clan, celebrating in a traditional Irish pub is the way to go. Enjoy traditional Irish Music, corned beef and cabbage, pints of Guinness and great craic.

(For the uninitiated, “craic” is a commonly used term in Irish slang often used to describe a lively, fun social atmosphere.)

Here are four Fox Valley venues that will have you pining for the olde sod in no time.

Ballydoyle Irish Pub & Restaurant
Located in downtown Aurora, Ballydoyle Irish Pub & Restaurant is the OG of Irish pubs in the Fox Valley, and their St. Patrick’s Day celebrations are second to none.

As usual, this year’s festivities begin and end with “Kegs and Eggs” starting bright and early at 8am. Throughout the day, live Irish music, beer and whiskey flights, and Irish dancers will be in store, including the great McNulty Irish Dancers. The special St. Patrick’s Day menu will be wall-to-wall Irish, and drinks will be flowing.

Balydoyle Irish Pub & Restaurant is located at 28 West New York Street in Aurora.

McNally’s Irish Pub
It’s like Ireland, only closer.

Imagine a place where everyone is welcomed and makes you feel right at home. Look no further than McNally’s Traditional Irish Pub. A pillar in the community, McNally’s has served St. Charles for 25 years. Looking for authentic Irish ambiance on St. Paddy’s Day? Our management team was born & raised in Ireland. That’s just part of the reason we’re “Like Ireland…only closer!”

Known for Fish n’ Chips, Corned Beef & Cabbage and Bangers & Mash, McNallys is also the perfect place in town to get a pint of Guinness and amazing Irish Whiskeys. If you are looking for true authentic food and a traditional atmosphere this St. Patrick’s Day, or any day, McNally’s is a must stop.

McNally’s Irish Pub is located at 109 West Main Street in St. Charles.

Quigley’s Irish Pub
To ensure that Quigley’s Irish Pub would have great craic, the pub was designed, built, and shipped over from Ireland. The wood is Iroko Teak and the custom glasswork was hand etched and colored. The antique fireplace and bookcases in the smoking room have been brought over from Dublin along with original Irish prints, which accent the walls. The screens that break up the bar into sections provide areas for groups to have their own space for conversation. The entire pub is intentionally broken up into small areas for the same reason.

The two booths in the Victorian room are called “Snugs.” In Ireland, “Snugs” had doors and were the only place where women were allowed to drink. Women are now welcomed in all areas of the pubs in Ireland, but the “Snugs” gained such popularity, that they remain in use till this day.

The pub resides in the historic Jefferson Hill building, which was built in 1845, three years before the potato famine began in Ireland. The original hand hewn beams and stone foundation can be seen in the cottage room. The cottage room is the former billiard room of Naperville Mayor Kendall, whose family lived in the house in the early 1900’s. You can also get a glimpse of the original back of the house if you look up behind the bar and through the glass ceiling.

The staff at Quigley’s Irish pub is doing their best to provide you with good craic, so sit back and enjoy the food, beer, music and people.

Quigley’s Irish Pub is located at 43 East Jefferson Avenue in Naperville.

Rosie O’Hare’s Public House
There are no strangers at Rosie O’Hare’s Public House, only friends you haven’t yet met.

Located in a small residential area along the mighty Fox River in East Dundee, Rosie O’Hare’s Public House (or simply “Rosie’s,” as the locals have it) is the perfect little Irish Pub where you can get the freshest Guinness pint in town along with a great meal provided by longtime chef, Jon Snell. Th pub goes through several kegs a week along with other Irish beers on tap like Harp and Smithwicks. With 16 draught tappers, the offering also includes other local favorites brews.

Rosie O’Hare’s is not your usual Irish Pub as it has a wood burning meat Smoker to smoke the award-winning corned beef and other meats on the menu like pulled pork and turkey along with Smoked Prime Rib served on Saturday nights only.

The bar, which dates back to the mid-1800s, has a colorful history as a general store, a motel and a halfway house/stagecoach stop since it’s located approximately halfway between Chicago and Rockford. There are legends of Abraham Lincoln stopping by on the campaign trail and Frank Capone, Al’s brother, trying to control the bar during the era of bootlegging.

Stop on by and say hello and grab a pint if you’re in the area. Slainte!

Rosie O’Hare’s Public House is located at 702 Water Street in east Dundee.