Possibly THE WORST bar in Easton
The Porter brothers purchased a dilapidated building on the corner of 7th and Northampton in 1988. There wasn't much going on in Easton back then and most people said we were crazy (to invest in Easton).
The "Central Bar" was closed when we purchased it but we probably could have just re-opened up with a few minor fixes here and there. It was a shot and beer place that specialized in affordable alcohol for a local clientele.
A good friend, Bud Oddsen, counselled us on our investment, "a bar is a lifestyle business and will require a great deal of work and involvement". Ha! What an understatement. But to this day it has been, without a doubt, a fantastic, worthwhile journey.
After extensive renovations to the building we opened May 16, 1990. I will never forget the phone call from my brother Ken while I was just finishing college. It was 2:30 AM at the end of our first day in business. "Jeff, we just closed out the register; we have 62 DOLLARS!"
After a daunting uphill climb, and a lot of borrowed money, the risk we took on an old, beat-up building in Easton, began to look more like a sure thing.
The "Central Bar" was closed when we purchased it but we probably could have just re-opened up with a few minor fixes here and there. It was a shot and beer place that specialized in affordable alcohol for a local clientele.
A good friend, Bud Oddsen, counselled us on our investment, "a bar is a lifestyle business and will require a great deal of work and involvement". Ha! What an understatement. But to this day it has been, without a doubt, a fantastic, worthwhile journey.
After extensive renovations to the building we opened May 16, 1990. I will never forget the phone call from my brother Ken while I was just finishing college. It was 2:30 AM at the end of our first day in business. "Jeff, we just closed out the register; we have 62 DOLLARS!"
After a daunting uphill climb, and a lot of borrowed money, the risk we took on an old, beat-up building in Easton, began to look more like a sure thing.
The building dates back to 1843 and has had various incarnations over the years as a stagecoach stop, a clothing store, a hardware store and several restaurants.
Much of the original signboard and facade details were long since gone, but there was enough left to recreate and restore to what we believe was close to the original appearance.
Underneath layers of aluminum and vinyl siding we got down to the old clapboard. Unfortunately it couldn't be saved but we replaced it all with brand new cedar clapboard siding at the urging of our local preservation advocate, Tom Jones. He was a good influence, guiding us toward restoration, preservation and value in historic architecture. We should be good to go for another hundred years or so.
Much of the original signboard and facade details were long since gone, but there was enough left to recreate and restore to what we believe was close to the original appearance.
Underneath layers of aluminum and vinyl siding we got down to the old clapboard. Unfortunately it couldn't be saved but we replaced it all with brand new cedar clapboard siding at the urging of our local preservation advocate, Tom Jones. He was a good influence, guiding us toward restoration, preservation and value in historic architecture. We should be good to go for another hundred years or so.
Framing the Pub area and bar was probably the BEST part of re-shaping the gutted interior.
We imagined people having fun, listening to local musicians, meeting, engaging, and connecting.
We re-used what we could, which wasn't much, to save money. The mirrors behind the bar, the "Mental Ward" sign and, of course, the stone and brick walls. Even the 25 year old bar tap cooler, but hey, it still worked!
Over the years, we have met SO many great people, which is by far the best part of owning this little corner Pub. The people who have worked here, the patrons, friends and family, musicians, artists, vendors ... And the great times we've had.
Yes. I would do it all over again. Without question.
We imagined people having fun, listening to local musicians, meeting, engaging, and connecting.
We re-used what we could, which wasn't much, to save money. The mirrors behind the bar, the "Mental Ward" sign and, of course, the stone and brick walls. Even the 25 year old bar tap cooler, but hey, it still worked!
Over the years, we have met SO many great people, which is by far the best part of owning this little corner Pub. The people who have worked here, the patrons, friends and family, musicians, artists, vendors ... And the great times we've had.
Yes. I would do it all over again. Without question.
A letter we received from a customer and friend. Part of his letter was printed in the Elucidator.
"Editor:
I moved to Easton about 4 years ago after living in several other cities around the country. I tell friends who have not been here that Easton is a scruffy little town, where “scruffy” is a term of endearment. And I explain it is scruffy because most of the old buildings in Easton were not replaced, and were not well maintained. But the fact that the old architecture survives makes Easton a unique town in the US.
It is instructive to consider why a town that has not lost its architectural heritage is unique in this country. I think it is due to the national character that follows from our faith in progress. This aspect of our character was noted by perhaps the greatest observer of the American condition, Alexis de Tocqueville, who toured the US in 1831. So if better building methods will be available in the future, it is not necessary to build structures with the expectation that they will last beyond a lifetime, we don’t maintain them to last, and we knock them down when they show a bit of wear. I think this aspect of our national character is harmful for our society and culture. A positive effect of maintaining an architectural legacy is that a perception of history is sustained in the people because the reminders of the past are a part of everyday life. Furthermore, the American infatuation with the automobile has certainly hastened the demise of the older, human scale architecture. Thus, the nonhuman scale is that designed for automobiles. It is required that businesses provide parking, and large roads are built with tax dollars that in effect are subsidies for large businesses. Walking to attend to daily errands in most places in the US is virtually impossible because of distance and impassable roads. Our lives have lost much of the human regard for place because most of America looks alike, as the new construction is most likely to be for national chains. And because we get in our cars to shop at those large chain stores where we never know the shopkeepers, much of the daily social intercourse between people has been lost in our society.
But Easton is different and that is why I like it. The old architecture and the human scale, along with the natural beauty of rivers and hills make it a wonderful place for an urban hike (in spite of the blight running through it called US 22 that is a monument to the evil practice of eminent domain). Local historians must provide the story of how and why the architecture has survived over the decades. But I understand part of the story of the slow but steady rejuvenation of many of the buildings here over the last 15 years. This part of the story concerns my favorite place in Easton, the southwest corner of Northampton and 7th streets where Porters’ Pub is located.
Some of you may remember the old Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney movies of the 30s where a group of kids decide to raise money buy putting on a show. The next scene would depict an extravagant musical production. It beggared belief that a group of kids put on a show like that. I imagine the scene being much the same when the Porter brothers decided to undertake the project of restoring an old building, in a bad neighborhood of an economically depressed city, while furthermore starting a viable restaurant in that location, when most new restaurants fail even in good locations. Larry and Ken were in their early twenties and Jeff was still a teenager. It is still difficult to believe that such a young group was able to make a business like this succeed.
From the moment I first saw and then entered Porters’ I felt it would be the place for me in Easton. The building dates from 1833, and is restored to reflect its age. The interior maintains the traditional ambiance with stone and brick walls, a wood floor, and is highlighted by a mahogany bar that beckons the thirsty traveler for a libation and a conversation. Another striking and unique feature of the interior is what at first glance appears to be a pewter ceiling, but in reality are the over 2000 mugs owned by patrons who have earned a mug by drinking 60 beers from around the world and from distinctive micro brews across the US.
The Porters, with their pub, and other buildings in Easton, have led the drive to restore instead of destroy the architectural legacy of Easton. The dictionary defines an institution as a significant practice, relationship, or organization in a society or culture. The pub opened in 1990; in the restaurant business this is an institution. There is another venerable pub in an old building in Easton that I know, and I think Bachman’s Public House is nice, but it would be infinitely better if one could actually drink a beer there.
I believe a necessary, and most important condition for a great pub is an active owner who gives the place its personality. The Porter brothers each give a unique aspect to the personality of the bar, the staff and the clientele. But Ken’s wife Stacey, who is a manager, is most influential in infusing the atmosphere with just plain fun, while maintaining the standards of a well-run restaurant. I suppose I should mention that the menu spans the range from pub food to fine dining. I have found the food always good and sometimes excellent.
Perhaps my favorite pastime at the pub, in all of Easton, is to sit outside in my little corner of Europe, drinking Yeungling, and reading. O.K., it is a stretch to call the three small tables on Northampton St. anything like Europe. In fact it seems a rough neighborhood to some, but as a true theater of life, along with the rough comes the nice, the interesting, and the humorous; it is Easton.
Ira Katz"
"Editor:
I moved to Easton about 4 years ago after living in several other cities around the country. I tell friends who have not been here that Easton is a scruffy little town, where “scruffy” is a term of endearment. And I explain it is scruffy because most of the old buildings in Easton were not replaced, and were not well maintained. But the fact that the old architecture survives makes Easton a unique town in the US.
It is instructive to consider why a town that has not lost its architectural heritage is unique in this country. I think it is due to the national character that follows from our faith in progress. This aspect of our character was noted by perhaps the greatest observer of the American condition, Alexis de Tocqueville, who toured the US in 1831. So if better building methods will be available in the future, it is not necessary to build structures with the expectation that they will last beyond a lifetime, we don’t maintain them to last, and we knock them down when they show a bit of wear. I think this aspect of our national character is harmful for our society and culture. A positive effect of maintaining an architectural legacy is that a perception of history is sustained in the people because the reminders of the past are a part of everyday life. Furthermore, the American infatuation with the automobile has certainly hastened the demise of the older, human scale architecture. Thus, the nonhuman scale is that designed for automobiles. It is required that businesses provide parking, and large roads are built with tax dollars that in effect are subsidies for large businesses. Walking to attend to daily errands in most places in the US is virtually impossible because of distance and impassable roads. Our lives have lost much of the human regard for place because most of America looks alike, as the new construction is most likely to be for national chains. And because we get in our cars to shop at those large chain stores where we never know the shopkeepers, much of the daily social intercourse between people has been lost in our society.
But Easton is different and that is why I like it. The old architecture and the human scale, along with the natural beauty of rivers and hills make it a wonderful place for an urban hike (in spite of the blight running through it called US 22 that is a monument to the evil practice of eminent domain). Local historians must provide the story of how and why the architecture has survived over the decades. But I understand part of the story of the slow but steady rejuvenation of many of the buildings here over the last 15 years. This part of the story concerns my favorite place in Easton, the southwest corner of Northampton and 7th streets where Porters’ Pub is located.
Some of you may remember the old Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney movies of the 30s where a group of kids decide to raise money buy putting on a show. The next scene would depict an extravagant musical production. It beggared belief that a group of kids put on a show like that. I imagine the scene being much the same when the Porter brothers decided to undertake the project of restoring an old building, in a bad neighborhood of an economically depressed city, while furthermore starting a viable restaurant in that location, when most new restaurants fail even in good locations. Larry and Ken were in their early twenties and Jeff was still a teenager. It is still difficult to believe that such a young group was able to make a business like this succeed.
From the moment I first saw and then entered Porters’ I felt it would be the place for me in Easton. The building dates from 1833, and is restored to reflect its age. The interior maintains the traditional ambiance with stone and brick walls, a wood floor, and is highlighted by a mahogany bar that beckons the thirsty traveler for a libation and a conversation. Another striking and unique feature of the interior is what at first glance appears to be a pewter ceiling, but in reality are the over 2000 mugs owned by patrons who have earned a mug by drinking 60 beers from around the world and from distinctive micro brews across the US.
The Porters, with their pub, and other buildings in Easton, have led the drive to restore instead of destroy the architectural legacy of Easton. The dictionary defines an institution as a significant practice, relationship, or organization in a society or culture. The pub opened in 1990; in the restaurant business this is an institution. There is another venerable pub in an old building in Easton that I know, and I think Bachman’s Public House is nice, but it would be infinitely better if one could actually drink a beer there.
I believe a necessary, and most important condition for a great pub is an active owner who gives the place its personality. The Porter brothers each give a unique aspect to the personality of the bar, the staff and the clientele. But Ken’s wife Stacey, who is a manager, is most influential in infusing the atmosphere with just plain fun, while maintaining the standards of a well-run restaurant. I suppose I should mention that the menu spans the range from pub food to fine dining. I have found the food always good and sometimes excellent.
Perhaps my favorite pastime at the pub, in all of Easton, is to sit outside in my little corner of Europe, drinking Yeungling, and reading. O.K., it is a stretch to call the three small tables on Northampton St. anything like Europe. In fact it seems a rough neighborhood to some, but as a true theater of life, along with the rough comes the nice, the interesting, and the humorous; it is Easton.
Ira Katz"
