A new enterprise in Lehigh County features prominent athletes from the Lehigh Valley, such as Michelle Marciniak, Saquon Barkley, Chuck Bednarik, and Larry Holmes.
On September 5, Valley Legends Sports Bar, located at 1061 N. Sixth St. in Whitehall Township, hosted a soft opening. The bar serves pub grub, pints of beer, and lots of pride in notable local athletes. For many years, a casual restaurant and bar called Park Inn was located in the recently refurbished space.
Owners of Valley Legends, Jose Ortiz and Veronica Thornton, made improvements to the area, including new wall paint, flooring, and lighting. The walls are covered in pictures of numerous Lehigh Valley athletes, and a vinyl bar top made by Express Sign Outlet, located in Lower Macungie Township, features more pictures of notable local figures.
"We are celebrating local players, which is why we call ourselves Valley Legends," Ortiz, a William Allen High School alumnus, explained. "Everyone who is on our walls is a person who grew up in the area, went to school there, or has local ties and became successful in a certain sport."
The roster of notable athletes is diverse and includes three-time Olympic silver medalist in shot put Joe Kovacs of Bethlehem Catholic High School, former world heavyweight boxing champion Larry Holmes (nicknamed "Easton Assassin"), and actor and professional wrestler Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson of Freedom High School. Andre Reed, a Pro Football Hall of Famer who graduated from Dieruff High School, is also present.
In addition, guests can view framed pictures of former NFL running backs for the New York Giants and San Diego Chargers, Andre Williams, Michelle Marciniak, a graduate of Parkland High School who played basketball professionally in Puerto Rico before becoming a successful high school coach in the area, and Ray Barbosa, the all-time leading scorer at William Allen High School, who went on to play professionally in Puerto Rico before becoming a successful high school coach within the community.
"Our objective is to keep honoring the greats and packing these walls with legendary Lehigh Valley athletes," Ortiz stated. Additionally, we want to engage the community as much as we can. We therefore invite anyone to enter and say, "Hey, you forgot this person!" In reality, because we plan to add additional faces to them, that is the reason we left a lot of vacant wall space.
With space for about 60 people, Valley Legends has a complete bar with nine draft beers as well as a selection of specialty cocktails, such as the "Legendary" old fashioned, tropical martini, and blueberry margarita (vanilla vodka, mango puree, pineapple juice, and splash of passion fruit). Traditional and boneless chicken wings are offered on the menu, along with sides like tater tots and mozzarella sticks. Flavors include Buffalo, sweet red chili, and Legendary, a blend of garlic parmesan, hot, and honey recipes.
In the upcoming weeks, Ortiz stated that happy hour beer promotions and a weekly "Taco Tuesday" promotion will be launched. Ortiz declared, "We are tremendously excited." "We are doing this because we wanted to provide the community with an enjoyable and distinctive location. After just a few days of operation, I have already heard comments like "I can not wait to come back" and "This is my new go-to bar." In addition, he has achieved success as a realtor in the Lehigh Valley since leaving the United States Marine Corps in 2022 after 20 years of service.
"I had always fantasized of opening a sports bar, but I never really pursued it since I always had so much going on," Ortiz stated. "I told myself, 'Let us go for it,' when this space and opportunity presented themselves because it was the appropriate time for me."
Valley Legends offers weekly promotions including "Thirsty Thursday," which features $2 domestic bottles, $5 mixed cocktails, and six wings for $6 from 6 to 8 p.m. on Thursdays. The restaurant has a digital jukebox and about a dozen TVs displaying sports games. There is space in the rear room for private events, overflow dining, and upcoming podcasts featuring local athletes.
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