It will be Long Ireland for the day. And the weather should be the better kind of Irish. On Sunday, October 19, the Long Island Irish Fest returns to Nassau County for its fifth celebration.
“There are a number of great Irish Festivals in the New York area, but none were on Long Island,” said Joe McDonald, the chairman of the festival and President of the Nassau County Ancient Order of Hibernians.
“What we did was take what others were doing and put it in a better location.”
That location would be Plattduetsche Park, a large German Biergarten in Franklin Square. The location is designed for festivals as they host a number of German themed festivals throughout the year.
“For us, we are all about promoting culture and heritage,” said Matt Buck, the general manager of the Plattduetsche. “When we met with the organizers of this event, we saw that their goals matched ours.”
On the day, the location serves a “Hiberno-Duetsche” selection with not only Irish favorites like shepherd’s pies and corned beef sandwiches but also traditional German selections such as Bratwursts and giant pretzels.
The event has attracted around 3000 people attending each year and is headlined by Irish rock rebel band Shilelagh Law and international recording artist Andy Cooney and his Band.
“Our headliners are always no-brainers,” McDonald said.
“Both bands have a large local following who come out for a great day.”
Supporting those acts are bands from upstate and New England, Including Slainte, The Band from Boston, My Druthers from Connecticut, the T. McCann Band from Kingston, NY and Susan and Gerard from Westchester.
Local band Harper’s Ferry from Mineola rounds out the lineup.
“We try to mix it up every single year, to keep the music fresh,” McDonald said. “We hope this year gives everyone a variety of Irish Music to enjoy.”
AOH Pipe Bands Tara Pipes and Drums from Massapequa and Glor na Gael from Lynbrook will be featured for demonstrations as will step dancers from the Donny Golden School and the Hagen School.
A Catholic Mass is celebrated at 11 a.m. and the festival starts at noon and runs to 9 p.m.
Tickets are on-sale online for $25 dollars before the festival at www.longislandirishfest.com and at the gate for $30 the day of the festival. All the money raised goes to Irish organizations and charities.
