The Cherry Street Tavern
The Cherry Street Tavern is a bar and restaurant at 22nd and Cherry Streets in the Logan Square neighborhood of Philadelphia. It is notable as a local landmark that has operated in the same location since the early 1900s.[1] The bar was bought by local football legend John "Tex" Flannery in 1972. [2] He sold it to brothers Bill and Bob Loughery in 1990.[3][4] Bill had started working for Tex full-time at the tavern in 1976. [5]
Small business | |
Industry | Restaurant |
Founded | 1905, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA |
Headquarters | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA |
Products | Food and beverage to order, to be consumed on the premises. |
Number of employees | 8 (worldwide) |
History
The tavern was first licensed as a bar in 1905. During Prohibition, the bar itself was removed from the building and replaced with a barber's chair, and the tavern was transformed into a barber shop, although men went there for more than a haircut. At the time, women had to enter the tavern through the "ladies' entrance," a rear door leading into a back room, as only men were allowed into the bar room.
A disused urinal trough runs along the base of the bar. At one time, patrons could drink, eat, and urinate in the same place.[1]
In a 1981 profile of Tex Flannery entitled "No School's like Old School", The Philadelphia Daily News described the Cherry Street Tavern as "cave-dark, cave-cool, cave-quiet", and said that it had no jukebox.[6]
Before it was the Cherry Street Tavern, the establishment was Dever's Bar. [7] In February, 1971, the bartender of Dever's was arrested for selling New Jersey Lottery tickets at face value at the bar. [8]At the time, there was no lottery in Pennsylvania.
The Philadelphia Inquirer called the bar "John J. Devers' taproom at 22d and Cherry sts." in a May 1, 1940, piece describing the late-night attempted theft and ultimate destruction of "25 quart bottles of bottled-in-bond liquor". [9]
Along with the regular clientele, the Cherry Street Tavern has attracted some celebrity customers, including basketball Hall-of-Famer Larry Bird, former heavyweight champion boxer Joe Frazier, actor Lee Majors (The Six Million Dollar Man), Philadelphia Flyers hockey player Scott Hartnell, and former Philadelphia Phillies' center fielder Garry Maddox.
For the 2002 film Bitters and Blue Ruin, the Cherry Street Tavern served both as one of the sites for the filmmakers' weekly writing meetings and also as a shooting location. [10]
See also
References
- McGinnis, Tim (2007-11-21). "Fly, Turkeys, Fly".
- Henninger, Danya (25 January 2016). "Cherry Street Tavern: 'Just a neighborhood taproom in Center City'". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
- Silary, Ted (2007-11-05). "Legendary coach mixed wins with metaphors". Philadelphia Daily News.
- Owens, John (30 April 2019). "A Neighborhood Institution". Medium. Retrieved 11 August 2020.
- Hans, Jennifer (8 July 2005). "Hot Nights Cool Bars: Cherry Street Tavern". Courier-Post. p. 22SC.
- Hochman, Stan (26 February 1981). "No School's Like Old School". The Philadelphia Daily News. p. 60.
- Birch, Tanya (2015). Vintage Philadelphia: A Guide to the City's Shops, Bars, Delis, & More. Guilford, Connecticut: Globe Pequot. pp. 25–28. ISBN 9781493012619.
- "Phila. Cracks Down on N.J. Lottery Sales". Courier-Post. 26 February 1971. p. 24.
- "Bar Thieves' Haul Crashes in Gutter". The Philadelphia Inquirer. 1 May 1940. p. 23.
- Squadrito, Cheryl (9 December 2001). "Cheap Thrills: Using Inexpensive Technology and Local Talent, Young Filmmakers Have Completed a Movie for the Underwhelming Cost of $25,000". Courier-Post. p. F1.