St. Patrick’s Day is right around the corner, and you’re in luck! Our leprechaun pals helped us put together the ultimate list of kid-friendly St. Patrick’s Day party ideas.
So, put on that green shirt, cut out some paper shamrocks, and check out our roundup of delicious St. Patrick’s Day food ideas and fun Irish games. Let the shenanigans begin!
St. Patrick’s Day Food Ideas
Wondering what to eat on St. Patrick’s Day that your guests are sure to love? Try these crowd-pleasing St. Patrick’s food ideas.
- Traditional Irish food: Serve classic Irish dishes like corned beef and cabbage, shepherd’s pie, Irish stew, potato soup, and Irish soda bread. These warm and hearty dishes are a must for celebrating St. Patrick’s Day.
- Kid-friendly options: For kids who aren’t keen on traditional Irish foods, have some children-friendly options on hand, like chicken fingers and fries. Add a themed touch on the side with green food ideas like green bagels, green veggies with ranch dressing for dipping, or fruit cups with green grapes and sliced kiwi.
St. Patrick’s Day Party Ideas for the Dessert Table
No Irish themed party is complete without dessert. If you’re wondering what to bring to a St. Patrick’s Day party, try one of these creative sweet treats:
- Shamrock Cookies: Roll out sugar cookie dough and out shamrocks with a shamrock-shaped cookie cutter. Decorate with green frosting and sprinkles to turn them into festive desserts for your Irish themed party.
- Leprechaun Hat Cupcakes: Bake chocolate cupcakes and frost them with green icing. Place a chocolate-covered cookie upside down on top of each cupcake to resemble a leprechaun’s hat. Add a buckle with yellow fondant or icing. These adorable treats are a great way to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day for kids.
- Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Bar: We love St. Patrick’s Day party ideas that allow guests to customize their own treats. Create a station with mint chocolate chip ice cream and fun toppings like rainbow sprinkles (for that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow effect), along with whipped cream, chocolate syrup, and more. Be sure to have gluten-free snacks on hand as a topping option for guests who may have allergies. Welch’s® Fruit Snacks are the perfect allergen-friendly choice!
- Green Velvet Cake: When dreaming up St. Patrick’s Day party ideas, we’re always looking for ways to turn classic desserts into green food ideas. Put a twist on classic red velvet cake by turning it green. Use green food coloring in the cake batter and cream cheese frosting. Decorate with shamrock-shaped sprinkles or green sugar crystals.
- Irish Apple Cake: Not all St. Patrick’s Day desserts have to be green food ideas. If you’re looking for how to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with a dessert that’s more tied to Irish culture, try this one. Bake a traditional Irish apple cake flavored with cinnamon and nutmeg. Serve slices warm with a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Yum!
St. Patrick’s Day Games
When it comes to celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, it goes without saying that your party should include festive St. Patrick’s Day games to drive home the theme and amp up the fun factor. Here are some of our favorite ways to keep the party going:
- Pin the Hat on the Leprechaun: It’s easy to turn classic party games into Irish games with a small twist. In this version of Pin the Tail on the Donkey, create a large poster of a leprechaun without a hat and cut out a hat shape from green construction paper. Blindfold guests and have them try to pin the hat onto the leprechaun while being spun around.
- Shamrock Scavenger Hunt: If you’re looking for simple St. Patrick’s Day activities to entertain your littlest guests, try this festive version of a scavenger hunt. Hide green paper shamrocks around the party and have kids go on a hunt to find as many as they can. For older guests, raise the stakes by hiding shamrocks in every color of the rainbow and have teams assemble them in rainbow color order to win a prize.
- Treasure Hunt: Next on our list of Irish games, we have another hunt-based activity. Fill green goodie bags with kid-friendly items like stickers, rubber stamps, bracelets, and snacks that everyone is sure to love, like Welch’s® Fruit Snacks. Provide guests with clues or a treasure map and have them find the goodies hidden throughout your house or yard.
- Pot of Gold Coin Toss: Another one of our favorite St Patrick’s Day party ideas is a Pot of Gold Coin Toss. Set up a large pot or plastic bucket as your pot of gold. Give players coins and have them take turns trying to toss the coins into the pot of gold. The player with the highest score after a certain number of tosses wins and gets to keep the coins. Ka-ching!
- Green Balloon Game. Our next Irish-themed party game is simple yet fun. Fill green balloons with mini prizes, such as friendship bracelets or small wrapped candies before you blow up the balloons. Play some Irish music and scatter balloons around the party space. When the music stops, guests can pop the nearest balloon to access their goodies.
A Few Final St. Patrick’s Day Party Ideas
Now that you’ve got your food, desserts, and games down, here are some fun touches to add to your party:
- Decorate your party space with green and white with balloons, streamers, tablecloths, and banners.
- Set up a photo booth with a green background and fun props like leprechaun hats and pots of gold.
- Use green plates, cups, and other paper goods, or look for paper goods featuring shamrocks and leprechauns.
- Play Irish music or put a video of Irish step dancing on your TV as background entertainment.
- Last but not least, ask your guests to wear green!
We hope we gave you some fun ideas for how to throw a St. Patrick’s Day party. For St. Patrick’s Day or any day, bring a burst of fun to your party menu with delicious Welch’s® Fruit Snacks. Have fun celebrating St. Patrick’s Day and may the luck of the Irish be with you!
