Speakeasy Aiming for Innovative Drinks and Events Coming to Port Jervis
Entrepreneur Jared Brachfeld and his partner, Shailen Patel, aim to rival bar life in Warwick with The Reserve in Port Jervis.
After standing mum for many years, the stylish Port Jervis building at the corner of Sussex and Front Streets will open as a speakeasy themed bar called The Reserve in April, says co-owner Jared Brachfeld, of Greenville. He has been reading books and articles about Warren Buffett and other business giants since elementary school. A 2011 Minisink High School graduate with years of “e-commerce” behind him, selling pools, spas and automotive parts, now he brings his business enthusiasm to Port Jervis, partnering with his longtime friend, Shailen Patel, to create the bar.
“It’s been for sale for a long time,” Brachfeld said of 20 Front St., last functional in 2009 as a restaurant, previously a bank. "It needed work. We looked at it for a year and bought it in October. It’s a beautiful building to own. Port Jervis is being revitalized.”
Jared’s father, Roy Brachfeld, has been buying both commercial and residential properties in Port Jervis for 17 years. “He believes in the area. He sees it as the next Beacon,” Jared said, referring to Beacon’s arty gentrification several years ago. Last year Port Jervis was awarded a $10 million New York State Downtown Revitalization Initiative grant, and new businesses have been sprouting downtown even before the grant launches new projects.
For 20 Front St., Brachfeld and Patel plaln a speakeasy style reflected in the vault behind the bar, along with “Prohibition style big couches, 1930’s art deco and high end cocktails and mocktails made with seasonal local fruit, using ingredients in clever ways,” Brachfeld said. “There are many great cocktails out there.”
Old Fashioneds with New York maple syrup, local and other wines and high end bourbons will be among the fare. Tasting events and intermittent brunches are also part of the plan as are serving tapas—small plates of food, optimally local and seasonal.
In Warwick, Brachfeld sees the kind of bar scene he envisions. “But Warwick isn’t near a highway. It’s off the beaten path, unlike Port Jervis. I’ve been living in Greenville for three years. I go to Port Jervis and Milford for entertainment. This is the start of it here. Cory’s hotel and The Reserve will complement each other,” he said, referring to the hotel that Cory Puopolo and his partner, Martin McDonough, are building a block down Front St.
Brachfeld’s various business ventures have funded numerous travel adventures that inform his taste—trips to Austria, Germany, France, Italy, Spain and various islands. At 16, he began an auto detailing business that became an e-commerce business selling detailing materials and then backyard items—saunas, pools, spas, hot tubs and outdoor kitchens with grills and refrigerators that often went to homes in California, Texas, Nevada and Florida.
Originally from Middletown, seven years ago Brachfeld moved to New Hampton, near his close friend and now partner Shailen Patel. Their fathers, who invested in the 20 Front St. property, are also close. Three years ago Brachfeld and his wife Domonique moved to a house on six acres in Greenville.
“We wanted to be closer to Port Jervis and have more land,” Brachfeld said. “We have dogs and wanted to give them room to run.”
Grizzly is a 90-pound Doberman, who has two “Pomsky” pals, combinations of Pomeranian and husky, and an Iris hdoodle comrade too.
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Like port jervis needs another bar for it to be run down and a sh** hole like all the rest.