Category:The Shanty, Allentown, Pennsylvania

The Shanty is a longtime restaurant in Allentown's 19th Street district, frequented by people looking for a nightcap after a show or film at the Nineteenth Street/Civic Theater.

The restaurant first opened in March 1968 on the 1900 block of Allen Street and moved to 617 North 19th street in May 1980, a former A&P supermarket first built in 1949, then sold to Jack Dankel Chevrolet in January 1971 and converted to an auto showroom.

Owned by the Saylor family, who at the time owned a diner at 19th and Tilghman, the Shanty focused on a seafood menu and was successful for many years. In April 2006, the Saylors retired from the restaurant business and The Shanty was sold to Kil Jin Kim, a Korean restauranteur from New York City. However, the restaurant fell victim to financial issues and put the restaurant up for sale in September 2006. Kim spent the next two years trying to find a buyer for the business, however several prospects fell through and the restaurant closed in August 2007. the building fell into foreclosure and closed in 2008.

After it closed, the building was sold To Auto Zone, however there was local opposition to the building being taken over by an auto parts store along with zoning issues encountered. In March 2009, with the help of a $250,000 grant to area businessman Frank Shipman, the building was transformed into the TC Salan & Spa which opened in May 2010. However the business closed in 2011 due to financial trouble.

In August 2013 the restaurant announced its reopening under new ownership, Ron Pickering, a former Saylors employee and his partner Joe Tatasciore. The new Shanty was reopened with a theater-themed décor to fit into the general theme of the area.