National Mechanics

For over ten years, National Mechanics has been a staple of Old City. Built by famed architect William Strickland in 1837, the National Mechanics building has housed one of Philadelphia’s favorite bars and restaurants for the last ten years. Our warm antique-like feel makes National Mechanics similar to Old City itself; a fresh mix of old-world form and new-age function. Having lived through two Gothic periods, our décor is an allusion to mechanical and artistic elements, from our homemade lighting fixtures to the eccentric pieces that adorn the space: A place molded by time. Our establishment’s name stems from the building’s original incarnation as Mechanics National Bank. In fact, as the building was constructed before the invention of the camera, the earliest picture of the bank was taken in 1901.