McGillin's Old Ale House isn't just the oldest bar in the city; McGillin's is a Philly tradition. The tavern's been around since 1860, passed down from generation to generation, from family to family, landing into the loving arms of the Mary Ellen Spaniak Mullins, her husband Chris Mullins, and their son, Christopher Mullins, Jr., who've kept it rocking and rolling for almost 23 years.
But a saunter down Drury Street in December will leave you with a vivid sense of holiday cheer, for this is McGillin's Season, and McGillin's does it right for the holidays. Like every night at the Philly relic, the bar is packed with people chowing down on sky-high nachos and sharing pitchers of Yeungling, and like every Karaoke night, singers are belting to songs that they love. But this month, those songs have a familiar sleigh-bell ring, and the bar, decorated with Philadelphia signs of yesteryear, gets some additional beautification: we're talking an all-hands-on-deck (15 people), five hour job of hanging 1,000 feet of garland, 1,200 feet of lights, 150 red bows, and over 200 ornaments.
