Plan Your Best St. Patrick’s Day

Festive parades, exciting events and traditional bites—embrace everything Irish this month in Monmouth.

The day to celebrate all things Irish, of course, is March 17, St. Patrick’s Day. And Monmouth has lots of reasons to celebrate it—did you know we have the state’s largest number of residents claiming Irish heritage? (About 132,000, according to the U.S. Census.) We also host what’s considered New Jersey’s largest St. Patrick’s Day parade—that’s the one in Belmar-Lake Como. (Be sure to check out our Q&A with its grand marshal.)

Want to join one of the celebrations? Here are some offerings all around the county:

Parades

• March 8, Asbury Park St. Patrick’s Day Parade
• March 8, Rumson St. Patrick’s Day Parade
• March 15, Freehold Borough Arts Council St. Patrick’s Day Parade
• March 21, Highlands St. Patrick’s Parade
• March 21, Keyport St. Patrick’s Day Parade
• March 28 (rescheduled from March 1), Belmar-Lake Como St. Patrick’s Day Parade
• March 28, Keansburg St. Patrick’s Day Parade

The fun goes beyond parades. You can also check out these St. Patrick’s Day-themed festivities:

March 7

• Lace up your sneakers for the Highlands Business Partnership’s Annual Guinness Run, where you can enjoy complimentary beer with participation. It begins at 1 p.m.
• Over in Long Branch, enjoy Pier Village’s Shamrocks by the Shore event, which kicks off at 1 p.m. with live music, kids’ crafts, shopping deals and special bites.

March 8

• After the AP parade, head over to Asbury Lanes for a special show by Brian Kirk and the Jerks. It starts at 1:30 p.m.

March 12

• At 8 p.m., Downtown Freehold hosts a Irish Week Pub Crawl featuring several beloved local eateries and lots of brews.

March 14

• Don a kilt and get running at the Lake Como Bar Anticipation Kilt Run/Walk, which begins at 10 a.m. Stick around after the run for a buffet and live music.
• You also can run in your regular attire at the Shamrock-and-Roll 5K in Fort Monmouth, benefitting Asbury Park’s Rodeo For Recreation fund to support youth summer camps and recreation programs. It starts at 10 a.m.

March 15

• The Irish Tenors come to Red Bank’s County Basie Center for the Arts for a show filled with the rolling hills of Ireland. The show starts at 7 p.m.

March 17

• Take your pup to Pier Village in Long Branch from 10 a.m. on for St. Patrick’s Day Paw-ty at Doggie Sweets, filled with photo ops, treats and good cheer.

Of course, you can savor the flavors of Ireland 365 days of the year. These five locales are recent Readers’ Choice contest honorees for Best Irish Pub and are worth a try. (Don’t forget to vote for your favorite in the 2026 poll!)

• Brothers Daley
  *1124 Ocean Ave., Sea Bright, 732.230.6056
• Dublin House
  *30 Monmouth St., Red Bank, 732.747.6699
• Kelly’s Tavern
  *43 Rte. 35, Neptune City,732.775.9517
• Kim Marie’s Eat N Drink Away
  *1411 Kingsley St., Asbury Park, 732.774.6666
• St. Stephen Green
  *2031 Rte. 71, Spring Lake, 732.449.2626

How are you celebrating St. Patrick’s in Monmouth? Tell us all about it in Instagram @monmouthmagazine.