WANT TO GO?
WHAT: Blue Beer Day 2016
WHEN: March 9, 7 a.m.- 2:30 a.m.
WHERE: Milano's Pizza, Subs and Taps, 1820 Brown St.
COST: Free admission
MORE INFO: Milanossubs.com | Facebook | Twitter
Any Flyers fan knows that the big beer event in March isn't St. Patrick's Day: It's Blue Beer Day.
Milano's Atlantic Subs will once again be hosting a daylong celebration at 1820 Brown St., and you can expect the same bustling party atmosphere that made the event a huge hit even before social media could spread the word.
Larry Adkisson, general manager for Milano's Brown Street location, was one of three employees who developed the idea for Blue Beer Day nine years ago.
“We wanted to kick off the spring, and since everybody does St. Patrick’s Day, we wanted to do something a little bit different that tied in with March Madness, with UD and the Flyers, with basketball, everything that we love," he said. "And we came up with Blue Beer Day.”
It started off as a daylong event with blue beer flowing and specially made T-shirts, and has maintained the key components over the years that have made it a beloved tradition: It's always the Wednesday before St. Patrick's Day (though this year, since March 17 falls on a Thursday, they pushed it up a week to space out the events). It always begins at 7 a.m. with a Kegs and Eggs-style breakfast, with door prizes throughout the day, photo booths and an evening DJ set. And it's been growing every year.
“When we first started, there was no social media; it was all word of mouth, and we were just promoting it ourselves," Adkisson said. "Opening up early was kind of a hook back then.”
Come in the morning to break bread and enjoy a pint, drop in throughout the day to enjoy the free photo booths or come in late to dance the night away: Milano's will be a party no matter what time you stop by. And as always, the restaurant encourages you to live-tweet your time there, this year using the hashtag "#MilanosBBD2016".
Three years ago, they started a morning water pong tournament that quickly grew so popular, Milano's actually had to put a cap on the number of teams for this years, limiting it to 16 two-man teams battling it out before Milano's opens for regular service at 11 a.m. Liftoff Entertainment will provide a free photo booth from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m., and again from 11 p.m. to 1 a.m., and Trivia with a Twist will be spinning the tunes from 3 p.m. until close at 2:30 a.m.
Also new this year is a treat for your wallet: the blue Budweiser beer will be available at Milano's Beer of the Month price: $3 for a 22 oz. pour. If for some reason you come to Milano's on Blue Beer Day and don't want to indulge in a dyed brew, they'll also have their regularly rotating craft selection and their regular menu available all day. Now you'll definitely have enough cash to buy the latest T-shirt swag, on sale through Wednesday for $10.
What better way to get through Hump Day than showing your support for the Dayton Flyers, enjoy Milano's Atlantic Subs, and take part in a tradition that's 100 percent Dayton? We encourage you to celebrate responsibly, but that doesn't mean it won't be plenty of fun.
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