St. Patrick’s Day gave the on-premise a welcome boost, but it wasn’t completely sunny for the bev-alc industry, according to the latest report by CGA, the on-premise arm of market research firm NIQ.
On-premise sales velocity over St. Patrick’s Day weekend increased +7% versus 2024, with a +11% increase in check values outweighing a -3% decline in traffic.
Note, St. Patrick’s Day fell on a Sunday in 2024 and a Monday in 2025, so CGA analyzed data for the full weekend for a “clearer picture” of year-over-year (YoY) trends.
Sales velocity increased +12% at “eating outlets,” again driven by an increase in average check value. Fine dining establishments recorded the largest boost, with velocity increasing +14% YoY.
Meanwhile, drink-led outlets recorded a -6% decline in sales velocity, with the largest declines recorded by sports bars and neighborhood bars.
All five states observed by CGA (Florida, Illinois, New York, California and Texas) improved St. Patrick’s Day weekend trends versus 2024, led by Florida, which increased sales velocity +21%. The Sunshine State recorded double-digit growth in all its key markets, including Miami (+29%), Tampa (+22%) and Orlando (+20%).
St. Patrick’s Day itself (Monday, March 17) was the “most valuable” Monday so far in 2025, with sales velocity increasing +17% versus an average Monday this year. The uplift was driven by increases in traffic (+13%) and average check value (+3%).
The Sunday before St. Patrick’s Day recorded a +10% velocity increase versus an average Sunday in 2025, with a +6% increase in check value and +4% increase in traffic.
Drink-led outlets (+17%) and food-led outlets (+16%) both recorded double-digit sales velocity increases on the Monday versus an average Monday. The largest increases were recorded by casual dining establishments (sales velocity +20%) and fine dining (+18%).
Illinois recorded the largest uptick in sales velocity versus an average Monday (+66%), boosted by a +188% increase in Chicago. The city recorded a +14% YoY increase in sales velocity over the course of the weekend.
As previously reported, the off-premise was not as fortunate during St. Patrick’s Day weekend. Recent scan data from market research firm Circana showed that the Monday holiday provided some improvement in bev-alc sales – particularly beer – but not enough to push the industry into the black.
The on-premise boost continued past St. Patrick’s Day with the start of the NCAA women’s and men’s basketball tournaments, or March Madness, on March 20, according to CGA. On-premise outlets recorded a +12% increase in sales velocity versus an average Thursday in 2025, making the day “the most valuable Thursday in 2025 to date.”
Thursday also improved sales from the start of the 2024 tournament (Thursday, March 21), with sales velocity increasing +11%, due to a +7% increase in average check value and +4% increase in ticket count.
Food-led outlets led YoY velocity increases (+12%), while drink-led outlets recorded a +4% increase. Similar to St. Patrick’s Day trends, casual (+10%) and fine dining (+8%) establishments led YoY growth, while drink-led establishments struggled, led by sports bars and neighborhood bars (each -3%).
CGA’s data adds more context to a recent report from on-premise data firm BeerBoard, which reported a -6.6% YoY decline in draft beer volume for the first weekend of the tournament, versus the first weekend of 2024’s tournament.
In the latest week (data ending March 22), on-premise sales velocity increased +6% YoY, CGA reported. The recent growth was driven by a +10% YoY increase in check value, outweighing a -3% decrease in ticket count. In the last 12 weeks, sales velocity has increased +13%.
All five key states recorded YoY sales velocity increases in the latest week, led by Florida and Illinois (both +19%), followed by New York (+17%), Texas (+6%) and California (+3%).