But let's be honest, the Dock Street Brewery catered more to beer nerds than to the other half of the population. You know who I'm referring to. The half of the population that takes an hour and a half to shower, shave their legs and do their hair. No, not the cross dressing, transvestite crowd (what were you thinking!) Women, of course!

Public House, with it's cushy couch booths, stars and stripes motif and Frambois on tap, softens the Pub atmosphere and makes a drinking establishment that's more accessible to women...and that's good for everyone. And from the looks of the crowd on a warm summer 2006 Saturday night, it's working.

The layout of Public House lends itself to congregating towards the entrance. Off to the left of the entrance is an open area with comfy couch-booths and tiny coffee tables. Hey what gives, you throw down 4 Hoegartens on these tables and friend #5 is stuck holding their drink!! Off to the right of the entrance is a smaller congregating area with a handful of booths and high-top bar tables.

This front area is a great space to practice your "40 Year Old Virgin" lines. There's plenty of mingling singles to experiment with! Uh yeah ladies, there's plenty of men to ogle, too - ahem. After all, what can  men spend all night staring at? Second to women taking their clothes off, is sports. The Public House has about six 40-inch flatscreens tuned exclusively to all flavors of ESPN.

Ladies, this is another reason Public House is going to be the place for you to meet your next man-to-be. While your Nick Lachey-in-shining-armor is catching up on his sports scores, you can sweep in and impress him with your wit and that low cut frilly thing that shows off your cleavage.

And how about that DJ on Music on a Saturday night :Blondie, AC/DC, Ready for the World "Oh, Sheila" (Hey, Don't give me that Queer Eye look, I'm a fan of the 80's, dammit!) and some song that sounds like: "mmm tsk, mmm tsk, mmm tsk, mmm tsk, mmm tsk, mmm tsk, mmm tsk, etc.."

Of course, we can't leave out the bar. The gorgeous dark wood bar seats about 20 patrons. Behind the bar is the real beauty of Public House. Ten golden beer taps keep the patrons lubricated all night long. Some of the draft choices include Stella Artois, Guinness, Bass, Hoegarten and Framboise. For the martini G&T crowd, there is top shelf liquor for any pleasure. 

Opposite the bar, there are half moon booths that back up to the dining room. If you can snag one of these booth's, they offer the privacy to snuggle up to your hoochie, or for you and your wingman to scope out those fine honeybabies sipping their Mangotini's (a Public House Specialty drink).  

Public House is in a precarious location that ultimately sent its predecessor calling for the moving trailer. On the one hand, the PB is in the shadow of Philadelphia's tallest buildings and hotels like the Four Seasons and the Embassy Suites on the Parkway. This brings in the the out-of-towners and the after-5PM office crowd during the week.

But on the other hand they are out here alone, in an entertainment deprived wasteland with the closest bar about 2 blocks away. Coaxing people out here on a Friday/Saturday Night week-after-week is going to be tough. This was eveident on a previous visit to the PB about 6 months after their Spring 2005 opening. With the price of parking in Philly often costing upwards of $20 for the night, people often prefer to visit 3, 4, 5 bars in a night out to get some use out of that parking space. Even if there was a theater or playhouse close-by, it would work to the PB's advantage. Unfortunately, this is not the case, which is why the previous tenant moved the Dock Street Brewery to the Reading Terminal Market before it ultimately went out of business and became the Independence Brew Pub.          

If you and your crew are looking for a great place to grab a bite and have a few brews or you're up for something different than the Old City meet-markets, move on up to Public House and see how the Center City gets it's drink on.