• Cheers to McGillin’s: Philly’s Oldest Tavern (PREORDER)

Available now for preorder. Expected delivery: October 2025

McGillin’s Olde Ale House is the oldest continuously operating tavern in Philadelphia and one of the oldest in the country.

The historic tavern’s colorful history includes romances, celebrities, ghosts, and a tale of survival through the Civil War, two world wars, Prohibition, a fire, and two pandemics.

Opening in 1860 (the year Abraham Lincoln was elected) McGillin's is an iconic Philadelphia institution.

This book solidifies the owners' mission to carefully preserve McGillin's unique legacy by chronicling the most enduring tales of McGillin's from the late 1800s through today. Cheers to McGillin’s contains many never-before-published photos, along with plenty of great food and drink recipes from its bar and kitchen.

Whether in happy times—first dates, marriages, anniversaries, Eagles games—or tragic moments like 9/11 or the bombing of Pearl Harbor, McGillin's has been there to celebrate and mourn, sharing common experiences with Philadelphians from all walks of life.

McGillin's Olde Ale House has been owned by only two families over the past 165 years. The McGillins (an Irish couple who raised their thirteen children upstairs) and their descendants ran the pub for ninety-eight years. Then the Spaniak/Shepaniak/Mullins family took over and have owned the tavern since 1958—three generations and counting.


About the Author

Irene Levy Baker is the author of 100 Things To Do In Philadelphia and Unique Eats and Eateries of Philadelphia. She is always hungry for adventures that will surprise and delight her readers. Irene is the owner of Spotlight Public Relations, a public relations firm specializing in restaurants and hospitality. McGillin’s Olde Ale House has been her client through two generations, two decades, and countless icy, cold beers and corned beef Reubens.

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