Overpass businesses prepare for St. Patrick’s Day parade’s return

The St. Patrick’s Day Wearin’ of The Green Parade will roll through the Garden District of Baton Rouge, Saturday, March 19, after a two-year hiatus, and, as usual, the businesses under the Perkins overpass stand to benefit greatly.

Area restaurants and bars record some of their highest sales during the parade weekend and are eagerly preparing once again for the surge.

Zippy’s usually gets about a week’s worth of business in one day during the parade, owner Neal Hendrick says, and not even SEC home game weekends compare to the sales he sees during parade weekend.

When there weren’t parades in 2020 and 2021, Kalurah Street Grill saw about one-fifth the business during those weekends than it did for parade weekends in 2018 and 2019, general manager Gillian Sunderhaus says.

Now, the restaurants are preparing for an even bigger year than 2019. Kalurah Street Grill plans to open its private area as a bar to accommodate more guests.

“St. Patrick’s Day 2018 was one of the biggest years for us,” Sunderhaus says, “and we’re preparing for a weekend like 2018.”

Hendrick has been busy getting his newer employees ready for the busy weekend and says working in the overpass area on St. Patrick’s Day weekend for the first time will be a baptism by fire.

This will be BLDG5’s first St. Patrick’s Day, and owner Brumby Broussard is giving his employees the Saturday off to enjoy the festivities. However, he expects an increase in business on Friday and is preparing to sell to-go drink kits the week before to capitalize on the influx of visitors to the area.

“It’s crazy that it’s been two years,” Hendrick says, “It’s surreal that it’s been that long. We’re excited, and it’s going to be packed.”

This story originally appeared in a March 9 issue of Daily Report. To keep up with Baton Rouge business and politics, subscribe to the free Daily Report e-newsletter here.