Why Pubs Order More Potatoes for St. Patrick’s Day
Did you know that pubs, restaurants, and bars stock up on potatoes for St. Patrick’s?
Yes, the Irish, and others, do like potatoes. But the strategic ordering of this food staple for St. Patrick’s Day has nothing to do with an expected new influx of Irish clients for this day—all of whom want to eat potatoes. It has to do with the sad reality that St. Patrick’s Day has become not just a day of drinking but of celebrating drunkenness.
A day of intoxication
Just look at the marketing found on T-shirts, hoodies, beer coasters, and painted on bar walls:
The potatoes we spoke about, this is careful preparation by restauranteurs for their clientele who are set on utilizing a common hangover prevention strategy, soaking up the booze, by eating French fries, stuffed potato skins, even mac and cheese.
Why? To quote the Chicago Tribune Orders of macaroni and cheese skyrocketed the most, leaping up 231 percent in orders in the hours following the city's overconsumption of green beer and Jameson. Hash browns rose 214 percent because not even a hangover can sway us from our Irish devotion. Go us.
Biscuits and gravy were up 141 percent because we're all dying anyway so why not speed the process up with some high-fat, high-sodium sauce to coat your arteries? Potato pancakes rose 138 percent ... because, you know, potatoes are a necessity after a St. Patrick's Day revelry.
Intoxication has consequences
Weight gain
All those carbs have to go somewhere.
High-Risk sexual encounters
Again, let’s look at the messaging…No other day invites such frequent and intimate contact with strangers, who are frequently intoxicated, as is demonstrated by the sayings such as:
Keeping yourself safe by going home with someone you know, and want to be with, are decisions that are clouded by alcohol use, and severely challenged by being intoxicated.
Getting a ride (from someone you know or can trust) is best. Why? Norms are changing and not for the better. Women in general are drinking more and teenage girls are currently drinking more than their male peers. When women are under the influence, they may be less able to detect the possibility of sexual assault and seek safety.
Buzzed driving is drunk driving
I can almost hear you saying you know this one….
80 percent of all drunk-driving deaths involve drivers who are nearly twice the legal limit
Drunk walking…
But this one may be new to consider.
Consider if you’ll be safe to walk home. 30% of the pedestrians killed in traffic crashes had blood alcohol concentrations at or above .08.
Hmmmmm
Yes, you do deserve a good time
How can you have a good time and be safe?
This is a time to use your resilience, yes those inner resources, to determine what is best for you, and make a plan, that works for you!
Consider, enjoying the experience of staying sober and having fun. Maybe even make this a personal challenge to see if you can do it, noticing what it takes, in you, to keep to this plan.
I‘m not saying be alone. No, don’t isolate, find a Sober St. Patrick’s Day Celebration in your community. Or if you can, come to join us at Sober St. Patrick’s Day Foundation in New York City. Register for free and come march with us in the parade.
Make this a year where the Irish toast to your health, Slainte, serves as a reminder to stay healthy—keeping yourself and those you love, safe!
Wishing you Erin go Bragh–long live Ireland—and you!
Excerpted from Psychology Today 3.15.21 O’Gorman, P. On St. Patrick’s Day, Be Truly Radical—Celebrate Sobriety: Why During an Addiction Epidemic Within A Pandemic, Choosing Sobriety is Smart.
Yes, the Irish, and others, do like potatoes. But the strategic ordering of this food staple for St. Patrick’s Day has nothing to do with an expected new influx of Irish clients for this day—all of whom want to eat potatoes. It has to do with the sad reality that St. Patrick’s Day has become not just a day of drinking but of celebrating drunkenness.
A day of intoxication
Just look at the marketing found on T-shirts, hoodies, beer coasters, and painted on bar walls:
- Eat, drink and be Irish
- You can’t drink all day if you don’t start in the morning
- I don’t get drunk, I get awesome
- Let’s get ready to stumble
- Drink until you start seeing the leprechauns
- God created whiskey to keep the Irish from conquering the world.
The potatoes we spoke about, this is careful preparation by restauranteurs for their clientele who are set on utilizing a common hangover prevention strategy, soaking up the booze, by eating French fries, stuffed potato skins, even mac and cheese.
Why? To quote the Chicago Tribune Orders of macaroni and cheese skyrocketed the most, leaping up 231 percent in orders in the hours following the city's overconsumption of green beer and Jameson. Hash browns rose 214 percent because not even a hangover can sway us from our Irish devotion. Go us.
Biscuits and gravy were up 141 percent because we're all dying anyway so why not speed the process up with some high-fat, high-sodium sauce to coat your arteries? Potato pancakes rose 138 percent ... because, you know, potatoes are a necessity after a St. Patrick's Day revelry.
Intoxication has consequences
Weight gain
All those carbs have to go somewhere.
High-Risk sexual encounters
Again, let’s look at the messaging…No other day invites such frequent and intimate contact with strangers, who are frequently intoxicated, as is demonstrated by the sayings such as:
- Kiss Me I’m Irish
- Rub Me for Luck
- Let the Shenanigans Begin
- No Pinchy, Pinchy
- Get Lucky Here
Keeping yourself safe by going home with someone you know, and want to be with, are decisions that are clouded by alcohol use, and severely challenged by being intoxicated.
Getting a ride (from someone you know or can trust) is best. Why? Norms are changing and not for the better. Women in general are drinking more and teenage girls are currently drinking more than their male peers. When women are under the influence, they may be less able to detect the possibility of sexual assault and seek safety.
Buzzed driving is drunk driving
I can almost hear you saying you know this one….
80 percent of all drunk-driving deaths involve drivers who are nearly twice the legal limit
Drunk walking…
But this one may be new to consider.
Consider if you’ll be safe to walk home. 30% of the pedestrians killed in traffic crashes had blood alcohol concentrations at or above .08.
Hmmmmm
Yes, you do deserve a good time
How can you have a good time and be safe?
This is a time to use your resilience, yes those inner resources, to determine what is best for you, and make a plan, that works for you!
Consider, enjoying the experience of staying sober and having fun. Maybe even make this a personal challenge to see if you can do it, noticing what it takes, in you, to keep to this plan.
I‘m not saying be alone. No, don’t isolate, find a Sober St. Patrick’s Day Celebration in your community. Or if you can, come to join us at Sober St. Patrick’s Day Foundation in New York City. Register for free and come march with us in the parade.
Make this a year where the Irish toast to your health, Slainte, serves as a reminder to stay healthy—keeping yourself and those you love, safe!
Wishing you Erin go Bragh–long live Ireland—and you!
Excerpted from Psychology Today 3.15.21 O’Gorman, P. On St. Patrick’s Day, Be Truly Radical—Celebrate Sobriety: Why During an Addiction Epidemic Within A Pandemic, Choosing Sobriety is Smart.
Statistics that highlight the link between St. Patrick's Day and alcohol in the US
According to a survey of 8,415 adults by the National Retail Federation:
- 61% of American adults plan to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in 2023
- They plan to spend about $43.84 per household
- For a total of about $6.9 billion across the US
- These three values are all higher than at anytime since they began surveying consumers in about St. Patrick’s Day in 2007
- Sales data suggest that St Patrick’s day was the highest grossing day for bars and restaurants in 2018.
- One of every three adults reported visiting a bar or restaurant on St. Patrick’s Day that year, coming in just behind New Year’s Eve, Super Bowl, and Valentine’s Day.
- In 2018, pubs and bars saw a 57% increase in customers on St. Patrick’s day compared to the prior weekend, compared to only a 7% increase in visits to restaurants.
- In 2018, March was the strongest month for Irish Whiskey, up 22% from the previous four-week period and up 6% ($190 million) from the year before.
- Sales of beer in 2018 during the brunch hours (9-11am) surged by 1,465% compared to sales of beer during brunch the prior weekend.
- In 2019, 57 people were killed in drunk-driving crashes over the St. Patrick’s Day period (6pm March 16 to 6am March 18)
- That’s one person every 38 minutes
- In 2020, even as the pandemic unfolded, 37 people were killed in drunk-driving crashes over the St. Patrick’s Day holiday period (6pm March 16 to 6am March 18)
- That’s about one person per hour