If three is a magic number, then three jazz musicians must have magical qualities. 

Join us on our Jazz Thursdays for Jazz Trio Nights through September.

Be sure to check out our up-to-date full Live Music Calendar here.

Jazz Trio Nights will include:

July 6th: Vaughn Stoffey (Guitar) / Tony Marino (Bass) / Dan Nadeau (Drums)

July 13th: Ron Oswanski (Hammond B3 Organ) / Adam Niewood (Saxophones) / Bill Goodwin (Drums) 

July 20th: Dan Wilkins (Tenor Saxophone) / Joe Michaels (Bass) / Adam Niewood (Drums)

July 27th: Bill Washer (Guitar) / Dave Leonhardt (Organ) / Gary Rissmiller (Drums)

August 3rd: Adam Niewood (Sax) / Joe Michaels (Bass) / Bill Goodwin (Drums)

August 10th: Ron Oswanski (Hammond B3 Organ) / Adam Niewood (Saxophones) / Ian Froman (Drums)

August 17th: The Bill Washer Trio

August 24th: Ron Oswanski (Hammond B3 Organ) / Adam Niewood (Saxophones) / TBA (Drums)

August 31st: The Jon Ballantyne Trio

September 7th: Ron Oswanski (Hammond B3 Organ) / Adam Niewood (Saxophones) / Ian Froman (Drums)

September 14th: The Bill Washer Trio

September 21st: The Jon Ballantyne Trio 

September 28th: Ron Oswanski (Hammond B3 Organ) / Vic Juris (Guitar) / Adam Niewood (Drums)

By Larry Porter
 
In 1988 my brothers and I, young men in our mid twenties, purchased what was then the Central Bar on the corner of 7th and Northampton streets in downtown Easton. We had just finished rehabilitating a building on the 200 block of Northampton Street and were looking for our next project.

The Central Bar was for sale, liquor license included, and we decided to go for it. By all rights the building probably should have been condemned. The bar had been closed for a year, there had been a fire upstairs, and there was a ramshackle addition off the rear of the original structure of dubious nature and construction.

​The place was literally falling down... the roofline sagged, inside the pipes were rotten, the plaster was falling off the walls, and the rear addition was ready to cave in. What were we thinking?

Well, that was 27 years ago and anyone who's lived in Easton for a while knows the outcome. My brothers and I worked for almost 2 years on that building, replacing and repairing just about every inch, until the grand opening of Porters' Pub on May 16, 1990. Porters' opened with Guinness Stout, Bass Ale, and Harp Irish Lager on tap in an era before imports were commonplace and micro brews were sexy.

"People told us we were crazy for opening an upscale establishment in a neighborhood like that" recalls my brother Jeff. "And when we decided not to have the popular mass produced domestics on tap they said we'd never make it... be closed within a year". But we had a vision and stuck to our guns. Maybe we had the courage of our conviction or maybe we were just too young and naive to think we could fail. 

During construction Ken realized the whole rear addition was substandard and had to be torn down. When I say substandard I mean it was downright dangerous… holes in the floor, leaking roof, randomly spaced joists and studs… you get the idea. What we were left with was the original structure dating back to 1834.

We restored the 2 residences upstairs… one 2 bedroom townhouse with original interior stone walls and the other a very roomy 3 bedroom, 2 bath townhome. We jacked the building up to repair the sagging roofline, replaced the roof, clad the exterior in cedar siding, installed new windows, furnaces, bathrooms, kitchens, plumbing, gas, electric services, refinished the floors and sheetrocked and painted the entire structure. Ken did the bulk of the demolition and framing work early on,

​Jeff would come home from college on weekends to lend a hand when he could, and I was working a full time and helping on my days off. I eventually quit my job and lived off my savings for about 7 months to help finish the project and get the Pub open. I remember working sun up till sundown and being filthy, grimy and smelly after a hard days work. Then we’d head up Northampton Street to the old Mt. Vernon Hotel and sit at the bar drinking 7oz bottles of Schmidt’s for 35¢. Ah, the good ol’ days.  

When it came time to put a roof on the kitchen we needed some serious steel beams to support the weight of the concrete deck that also served as the patio and entrance area for the upstairs residential units. I had a beat up old Ford King Cab that I had purchased for $100. It wasn’t pretty but it did the job. So we drove up to Easton Iron & Metal scrap yard and picked out a likely bunch of I-beams and proceeded to load them into the truck. The beams rested on the dashboard inside the cab, went out through the opened rear window of the King Cab and rested on the rear tailgate.

​I tied a red handkerchief to the protruding end and off we went. Thank god I didn’t have to make any quick stops… those I-beams would have easily gone right through the windshield….looking back it’s probably not the smartest thing I ever did. Anyway, after several trips we had enough beams to build our support structure. Our neighbor Elliot who owns Jacobs Produce gave us a hand with his bucket truck and we hoisted them into place. He also did all the cutting and welding for us and never asked us for a penny. I remember working quite a few late nights after the produce market closed before being able to head down to the Mt Vernon for our nightly treat. Needless to say Jacob’s Produce has been our only produce supplier in our 20 years of being in business. 

About a year into the project we had only one small problem…no more money! The upstairs was finished and occupied, but the bar downstairs was an empty gutted shell. Our dad was helping us buy lumber with credit cards at that point. I went from bank to bank until Merchants agreed to lend us enough to finish the project and get the Pub open. We have fond memories of the hard work that went into the place, having lots of fun along the way. We had lots of fun with passers bye too. Folks curious about the project would stop in daily and ask “When are you opening?” to which they received the reply

​“We’ll be open in 2 weeks” no matter if we were 2 days or 2 months away from completion. We opened Porters’ Pub in 1990 as a Publick house in the true sense of the word. It’s a local place where the regulars all know each other and the bartenders have your favorite drink ready when you sit down. Conversation and friendly debate is encouraged and the small TV is turned on only by request in anticipation of a particular event. Though we have all worked hard on our business over the years, covering every position from bartender, cook, dishwasher, bookkeeper, waiter and host, we also realize the importance of a friendly well trained staff. Our staff is what makes the Pub so great and without them we wouldn’t be here today. 

After several years the Pub was running smoothly and we each eventually headed off to our own careers. Jeff started several successful businesses; a property management business, a beverage distributorship and a water conservation business. I worked as a network engineer for a fortune 100 company and Ken started his own successful general contracting business and continued specializing in restoration and rehabilitation. As a family we’ve been really lucky to have the Pub. It’s helped keep us together over the years and has given us a shared sense of pride and accomplishment. 
 
I guess we all got our strong sense of tradition and history from our mom and dad, but there’s no doubt we all have it. All three of us would much rather restore a building than tear it down and replace it, even though it’s usually cheaper to build new. There’s something inherently valuable in preserving our past. The beautiful architecture evident throughout the city is what drew us here in the first place. We did a number of smaller projects together in the years after the Pub opened but I guess we started getting itchy again around 2003 and were looking for another real restoration project to dig into. You know the old saying “be careful what you wish for”.

The old Washington School building behind the Pub on 7th Street came up for sale and we couldn’t resist. It was built in 1854 as the first publicly funded schoolhouse in the City of Easton and had been sitting vacant for 30 or 40 years. It’s now a beautifully restored fully occupied building with 5 spacious 2 bedroom apartments, hardwood floors, huge windows, 13 foot ceilings and a restored façade. But that’s another story…

Photo courtesy of DismalAbysmal on Twitter

Porters' Pub already has some wonderful live music events throughout the week, as well as open mics and Irish Jams. The one thing Porters' didn't have, however, was Karaoke.

Until now.

Porters' Pub will kick off its first ever Karaoke night on Monday 6/26. We hope to make it a regular thing, so get ready to belt out your best rendition of "Don't Stop Believing" by Journey.

Come and sing with the staff from 9 p.m. to midnight. Ryan will be your singing bartender and Alysa and Olympia will be your singing servers!

And, don't worry, we're going to make Karaoke a ton of fun, even if some of our fans on Twitter are a bit worried :) We'll see you there!

There's no better place to bring dad for Father's Day than brunch or dinner  at Porters' Pub. 

Besides, dear ol' dad can take a nap after brunch or watch the news in his favorite easy chair after dinner.

Take a look at our special menu for June 18, 2017:

Brunch
PA Proud Belly Buster: 3 eggs any style local scrapple 2 pancakes breakfast potatoes and bacon 13.

Steak and Eggs: Koehler and sones farm 12 oz T-bone with 2 eggs and breakfast potatoes   19,

Weyerbacher Sunday Morning Stout Doughnuts: Stout-glazed doughnuts from Easton Baking Co. 2 for 3, 

Dinner
PA Proud Tomahawk: Koehler and sons farm 32 oz bone in ribeye steak grilled with stout-glazed oyster mushrooms over pan roasted pot and vegetables.  47.

The summer music scene in Easton is going to be its best yet. We're proud to be a part of Live at the Falls, which will take place on the second Fridays of each month, May through September, at Scott Park. 

Kick off a new music series with Uncle Rocco, falafal and garlic chicken wraps (yes, THOSE garlic chicken wraps) by Sumac Catering and Events, and libations by Porters' Pub and Fegley's Bethlehem Brew Works.

Each month throughout the summer, more than 1,000 music and beer enthusiasts will come out for live music, craft beer, and awesome food on Easton's river front at Scott Park. New in 2017, LIVE AT THE FALLS celebrates the beauty of Easton’s waterfront parks with an event full of great tunes, great food and drink, and guaranteed great times!

Generously sponsored by Unity Bank, VM Development, and Shangy's...THE BEER AUTHORITY.

​Get more information and RSVP here.

Join us for the annual Porters' Pub Cinco de Mayo Bones Tournament on Friday, May 5 beginning at 9 p.m. 

What's Bones? Well...

"The bones dice game is a game which is very similar to yahtzee, the dice game popularized by Milton-Bradley the board game production company. The game involves 6 standard six-sided dice, a pen and paper to note down the combination in the throw.

The goal of the game is to reach the score of 10,000 (5,000 for the Porters' Pub Tournament). Each throw has a corresponding score. A straight goes for 2,500. A 5 of a kind goes for 2,000. A 4 of a kind goes for 1,500. A three of a kind goes for 1,000. ones go for 100. While five gives get 50.

Who plays first is determined by the highest number of throw made prior to the game. To be able to start getting points, one must roll 500 in order to get on the board. IN order to continue with a turn, one must be able to roll a five, a one or a three of a kind from any of the six dice.

Once one player is on the board, one can now control when to end their turn. However, it is important that every roll garners a corresponding point because when there is no point in the roll, the player then gets to end the turn." Source: Dicegame.com

If you're a pro or just beginning, it's fun to get on the game we love. We'll see you Friday!

Get creative this Easter season as we present the Porters' Pub Easter Egg Coloring Contest on Saturday, April 15. 

We'll provide the eggs and art supplies, you'll supply the imagination and fun. See if your design is one of the top three chosen by our super awesome judges.

Coloring begins at 8 p.m., judging and live music by Matt Dellecker at 10 p.m.

Our best egg colorers will receive Baskets of Cheer and, if you know us, you'll definitely be happy with that. 

Sunday Easter Brunch begins at 11 a.m. on April 16. You won't be disappointed. Bring the family. 

St. Patrick's Day 2017 has come and gone, but the memories made at Porters' Pub this past weekend still remain!

Here are some of our favorite pictures (and videos) from everyone during the weekend!

Lehigh Valley Beer Week is making its triumphant return February 18 through 25 and we're all going to be better for it.

Take a look at the events Porters' Pub is hosting or will be a part of. See you there!

​Join us for this very special a la carte vintage beer pairing dinner. Each course comes with a 6oz beer and a complimentary food course. Order one course or all three. 2013 Pere Jacques dubbel, 2014 Madam Rose Flemish Red, 2016 Halia Peach Farmhouse Ale and some 2013 Bourbon County Stout ON TAP! Come anytime after 5pm and try whatever you like. Lots of swag and a free drawing for a special Grand Prize giveaway! See you there.

​Sunday Brunch is always cause for celebration at Porters’, but this one is extra special. Stoudt’s Brewing is celebrating 30 years and our special guest is none other than Carol Stoudt herself. She didn’t earn the title “Queen of Hops” for nothing. Carol Stoudt, owner of Stoudt’s Brewing Company, went from kindergarten teacher to master brewer in 1987 and became the First Lady of Brewing in the US since prohibition!!!

​ON TAP – a firkin of Fat Dog Imperial Oatmeal Stout infused Porters Publick House Roast Coffee, “PA Pearl” a 30th Anniversary limited release Helles Bock, “The Quaffer” a delicious session IPA and a Wee Heavy Scotch Ale aged in Rum Barrels. YUM. Lots of swag to give away and a Free Grand Prize drawing to win a Tour of the Brewery and Dinner for Two!

It’s going to be a fun night of Madness, Mayhem and Muahahaha. ON TAP – Delirium Tremens, Delirium Red, Delirium Noel and Delirium Nocturnum. Free DT glass to first 50 in the door. Food pairings and more. Alex Gomez of Wetten Imports will be helping us give away all things pink elephant!

​We invited 5 Lehigh Valley Breweries to submit their finest IPA, and YOU are the big winner! Blind taste test… guess which beer is which and be entered into a Grand Prize Beer Basket drawing! At the same time you’ll be voting for your favorite IPA to determine the winning brewery. Stop in anytime. SØLE, Hijinx, Saucony Creek, Fegley’s and Funk. Vote early and vote often!!!

​We supply the pint glasses and paint pens, you supply the artistic talent!!! The folks from Weyerbacher will be on hand giving away glasses and lots of cool Weyerbacher swag. Grand prize giveaways for best artwork… Beer Basket of Bombers, signed tin tackers and a Private brewery tour & free growler fill. Weyerbacher Insanity aged in Dad’s Hat barrels, Blithering Idiot barleywine and Sunday Morning Stout on tap.

​Live music by Small Axe starts at 10pm.

​Don your finest Mardi Gras attire and join the traveling N’awlins Dixie Jazz Band!

​Crawl between Porters’ Pub and 2RB. Porter’s will feature crawfish Étouffée, Gumbo, our famous Seventh Street Jambalaya and Chef Derek will be smokin’ & grillin’ on site… Mesquite Wings with a spicy housemade BBQ Chimichurri. YUM.

​Porters’ Sunday Brunch and Weyerbacher Sunday Morning Stout on tap… what a perfect way to end a perfect week!

We may even have some Blithering Idiot and Dad’s Hat Insanity on tap from Saturday night. 😉