News Photo by Julie Riddle Customer John Mytko offers a toast with a green beer at Latitudes Tavern in Alpena on Wednesday.

ALPENA — Whether in business by the luck of the Irish or the support of loyal patrons, many Northeast Michigan restaurants and bars celebrated simply being open on St. Patrick’s Day, one year after being ordered closed as the coronavirus advanced into Michigan in March 2020.

By executive order of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, restaurants and bars — along with movie theaters, performance venues, fitness centers, casinos — were closed to indoor activity at 3 p.m. the day before St. Patrick’s Day one year ago, upsetting plans by revelers and restaurants to celebrate the holiday with corned beef, green beers, and togetherness.

This year, togetherness was the order of the day as patrons sat where they couldn’t sit a year ago, having a beer with friends and looking forward to better days ahead.

Black Sheep Pub bustled with the after-work crowd at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday. Like many local eateries, the business offered takeout and delivery meals during the lean months of the past year.

The Guinness was flowing on Wednesday, according to owner Kris Conger. A stream of customers kept her staff hopping, and the corned beef dinner was popular.

News Photo by Julie Riddle BJ Galloway, left, and Dick Dubey celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with a heap of Irish food at the Sandbar and Grill on Long Lake on Wednesday.

“I’ll double from last year,” Conger said. “Because we’re open, and people can drink.”

Patron Ernie Butterfield already ate corned beef twice before landing at the Black Sheep and didn’t have room for more, but he was glad for the chance to have a drink with friends.

The stimulus checks recently landing in some bank accounts probably didn’t hurt restaurants’ crowd size, Butterfield said, as bursts of laughter erupted at another table.

A quieter crowd enjoyed burgers and giant onion rings at The Nest on Chisholm Street.

The past twelve months haven’t been easy, but the small restaurant is “surviving,” said owner Craig Pilichowski.

Customers have kept the restaurant alive through a year of openings and closings and restrictions that’s been tough on many businesses.

“Warm weather is coming, spring is coming, the patio is coming,” Pilichowski said. “We’ll be ok.”

With a tiny bar, the restaurant doesn’t get wild on St. Patrick’s Day, said Pilichowski, who is both a restaurateur and a podiatrist.

“It’s only twice that I’ve had to look at a customer’s feet,” the owner said. “And they were drinking.”

Restaurant regulars Caleb Drane and Claire LaFleur forgot it was St. Patrick’s Day when they decided to visit The Nest on Wednesday, but their U.S. Air Force uniforms served as the requisite green attire for the day.

They’ve ordered from the restaurant all year, Drane said, hoping their meals helped keep it in business.

At the Sandbar and Grill on Long Lake, a waitress carried heaping piles of corned beef, cabbage, and potatoes past cheerful customers at the bar.

Business was steady all day, and a pre-holiday party Saturday brought in another hearty crowd for corned beef.

For restaurants, this year’s holiday was a far cry from the stresses of last St. Patrick’s Day, Manager Becky Showalter said.

“I try to see everything positive,” Showalter said. “I think things are starting to come back around. I’m hopeful, anyway.”

Diner Dick Dubey, nearly dwarfed by a mound of Irish food in front of him, remembers getting the upsetting news that restaurants were being forced to close to indoor dining. He knows some businesses in town didn’t make it through the challenging year.

He’s hopeful the future will be brighter, though, and glad to be able to spend this St. Patrick’s Day eating out, even if it means social distancing.

“This is six feet, in case you can’t tell,” said BJ Galloway, sitting next to Dubey and feeling lucky to be able to dine out on his 77th birthday.

At Latitudes Tavern in Alpena, John Mytko raised a green beer in a luck-of-the-Irish toast.

Enjoying a maskless outing with friends, all of whom have had their COVID-19 vaccinations, Mytko said the people he knows are starting to feel safe being around others, including in a restaurant filled with the hum of St. Patty’s Day conversation.

“I’d like to go back to the old normal,” said Mytko’s wife, Bev Mytko, ready to be able to give people hugs after a long year of staying home. “And we’re tired of cooking. That’s why we’re eating out.”