The Thirst: Naperville's Irish Bars

Every now and then, we all feel the urge to get our beaks wet. But where in town is the best place to tie one on without getting absolutely blotto?

Patch takes a look at the local whistle wetters and the libations that we love when getting good and properly "shnickered." 

In this edition of The Thirst, we take a look at Irish bars (and some not so Irish bars) in Naperville and see what they're up to for St. Patrick's Day.

Quigley's may be as close as a Naperville resident can get to the Emerald Isle without leaving town. Then again, maybe we should say it's as close as the Emerald Isle can get to Naperville—the bar was designed in Ireland and then shipped over piece by piece.

The results, frankly, are stunning, and the bar looks like it would be just at home on any modern Dublin street. Is Quigley's celebrating St. Patrick's Day? It's almost never not celebrating it: No matter the time of year, there's something a bit green happening here, from Irish coffee contests to pictures with leprechauns to live, often Irish music. Check out their Web site for a funny, locally produced commercial.

St. Pat's plans: Two Irish bands (the first one starting at 3 p.m.) as well as corned beef and Irish breakfast all day.

Is Tommy Nevin's Pub excited for St. Patrick's Day? A countdown timer on their Web site literally was counting the seconds until the day began. One of three local locations of Tommy Nevin's, or TNP as regulars tend to call it, the Naperville bar is located in a strip mall, imbuing a bit of a Disney-like feel to the place from the outside.

 Inside, it's another example of how gorgeous a bar can be: A granite fireplace is surrounded by tall bookshelves, and curtained "snugs," or private booths, line the walls, making it easy for two lubricated lovers to share a pint of the Black Stuff and perhaps a stolen kiss.

St. Pat's plans: The craic (Celtic term for 'party,' pronounced "crack") began at 11 a.m. Thursday with a performance by the Sullivan Irish Dancers, and the live music continues all day, with the last performance starting at 9 p.m.

Danny's isn't gong to win any beauty contests. The bar is pretty solidly roadhouse chic, with cafeteria style tables, wood paneling and vinyl booths, and their Web site doesn't shy away from mixing Comic Sans with about seven other different fonts.

The great thing, however, is that Danny's doesn't even care. This great local watering hole is working-class, sports-bar Irish, and the incredible prices, delicious comfort food and unpretentious environs are all about good times and good times only. In fact, this place parties three times as hard for St. Patrick's Day...

St. Pat's plans:  ...by which we mean that Danny's St. Pat's party lasts for three days: March 16-18. During those days the bar will play host to Irish pipers, serve up corned beef and cabbage for $13, and, of course, serve green beer.

This bar has been around since the mid 1960s. The mural on the side of the building should be a familiar site to Naperville residents, with its eye-catching false perspective properties. Inside, the pub looks like your average mom and pop sports bar with an Irish twist. Old stools line the bar, and team logos and shamrocks dot the walls with equal frequency.

The food menu is full of comfort food classics, and extremely reasonably priced with every single item priced at less than $7. 

St. Pat's plans: There won't be much happening in the way of music here but green beer, corned beef, potato soup and some prize giveaways are definitely in the works, the staff says.

It's hard not to like the Crosstown. This unassuming bar is helmed by Jim Nichols, a blogger and self-proclaimed "rambling pub owner," who strives for originality. The personality behind the Crosstown says that the pub's motto is "Taste the wings ... feel the rivalry!" Nichols explains that every bar and restaurant claims the best wings or burgers or pizza (hence the rivalry), but that his food's taste speaks for itself.

Always on the lookout for ways to innovate, Nichols has developed truly original takes on chicken wings, like his much vaunted peanut butter and jelly wing, combining Asian nut flavors with a raspberry dipping sauce. As for the bar itself, there is a relentless list of daily specials, making Crosstown an affordable choice no matter when you go.

St. Pat's plans: Normal beer and wings daily specials, green beer.