Lamb stew and soda bread can mean only one thing.....it’s St Patrick’s Day
Residents will get to share in on ‘a wee bit of the Irish luck’ this weekend — thanks to music, food and beer offerings in honour of St Patrick’s Day.Heritage Court at the Fairmont Hamilton Princess will be the spot for traditional Irish fare, including a lamb stew and soda bread for $25 plus gratuities, today, tomorrow and Sunday.Chef de cuisine Trent Mayhew said the kitchen staff would prepare the Irish stew with a generous portion of lamb, fresh vegetables like onions, carrots, celery, leaks, garlic and potatoes, along with some thyme and Guinness draught beer. The ingredients are then boiled and simmered slowly for up to two hours. The beer gives the dish its thickness and a bold flavour said Mr Mayhew.Irish stew has been a regional tradition from as early as 1800. Mr Mayhew said he even feasted on the dish as a youngster growing up in Buckinghamshire, South East England.“I remember having lamb stew back home and it would be one little bit of meat to every spoonful of vegetables, but that was in the old days when people couldn’t afford much lamb.“This stew will be a healthy serving of lamb brimming to the top of the bowl,” he said.It will be paired with freshly baked soda bread, which is traditionally made with flour, baking soda, salt and buttermilk.The hotel’s St Patrick’s Day offerings also include special prices on Guinness beer and Bushmills Irish whiskey.Irish music will play throughout the weekend; singing duo Robert & Jaime will play tomorrow night from 9pm.St Patrick’s Day is a cultural and religious holiday celebrated every year on March 17.Named after Saint Patrick, the most commonly recognised of the patron saints of Ireland, it was made an official feast day in the early 17th Century.In its early days it served as a way to celebrate the arrival of Christianity in Ireland, but it has gradually become a secular celebration of Irish culture.These days it’s typically celebrated with heavily populated parades, concerts and festivals, in some cases drawing up to one million visitors wearing green attire or shamrocks.For more information on Hamilton Princess’ St Patrick’s Day celebrations, phone 295-3000.
Many people don’t know much about St Patrick’s Day other than it being a designated day to wear green and drink beer.
Here’s some facts about the Irish celebration to help you get through any themed events, pub crawls or dinner parties this weekend.
* Saint Patrick wasn’t Irish. He was born into a wealthy Christian family in Britain around 390AD.
* He wasn’t always spiritual. He was kidnapped and taken to live in Ireland for seven years, during which time he got into a religious conversation that reignited his belief in God.
* St Patrick spent the rest of his days trying to convert the Irish to Christianity, but had his fair share of obstacles including being beaten by thugs and harassed by royalty. He was largely forgotten about after he died.
* Gradually though, myths started spreading through the land about him; he was only named the patron saint of Ireland centuries later.
* Today scores of people show up to St Patrick’s Day events wearing green shamrocks. The symbol became famous as legend suggests St Patrick used the three leaves of a shamrock to share about the holy trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
* According to the 2003 US Census, approximately 34 million Americans have Irish ancestry. This is close to nine times the current population of Ireland, which has 4.5 million people.
* If you can’t make it to the celebrations in the capital of Ireland, you might try and visit places like Dublin, California or Dublin, Ohio. They make up two of the six towns in the US with Irish names. Others include: Mount Gay-Shamrock, West Virginia; Shamrock Lakes, Indiana; Shamrock, Oklahoma and Shamrock, Texas.
* The highest number of leaves found on a clover has been 14, according to the Guinness Book of World Records. Now that’s a lot of good luck!
* Irish legend says that each leaf of the clover means something. The first is for hope, the second for faith, the third for love and the fourth for luck.
