SOUTH WHITEHALL TWP., Pa. — Pickleball players at the St. Luke’s SportsPlex soon will be able to dink and drink.
The state-of-the-art complex, which has offerings as diverse as pickleball memberships and sports performance training, soon will offer something specifically for the 21-and-over crowd.
Beer.
A new location for Lost Tavern Brewing is set to open at the complex, co-owner Kenny Rampolla confirmed to LehighValleyNews.com on Monday.
“The long and short of it is, it’s a very large space for us. It’s a big open space and we hope to change that with additional things to do while having a beer.”Lost Tavern Brewing co-owner Kenny Rampolla
“We actually started this process a few years ago,” Rampolla said. “It’s just taken a little bit longer than we anticipated.”
The new location officially will be known as Lost Tavern at Court 25 and will be the third iteration of Lost Tavern Brewing.
It opened its flagship brewery and taproom in Hellertown in July 2016, and a second location in Bethlehem followed in May 2019.
“The long and short of it is, it’s a very large space for us,” Rampolla said of the new location. He described it as having four big garage bays that will open for nice weather.
“It’s a big open space and we hope to change that with additional things to do while having a beer,” he said.
The SportsPlex is at 4636 Crackersport Road, just west of Routes 22 and 309 in the former Westend Racquet Club.
It held a soft opening from late December into early January, showing off 75,000 square feet of space with a dozen NBA-quality hardwood pickleball courts and a dozen “designated hardcourt pickleball courts.”
There also are dozens of outdoor courts across 3 acres at the facility.
“St Luke’s has done a heck of a job updating that space,” Rampolla said. He said the new Lost Tavern location will not be members-only and will be open to the public.
'Grab a cooler and bunch of single cans'
While Lost Tavern at Court 25 does not yet have an opening date, Rampolla said it’s not too far off.
“We were originally hoping for this past month,” he said. He said the township required "some improvements that need to be made in the space.”
While Lost Tavern is known for its high-quality beer in a variety of styles, Rampolla said offerings at the new location will be a little bit different.
"There will still be an ample amount of draft... It’ll have more on-site cans than other locations.”Lost Tavern Brewing co-owner Kenny Rampolla
“We have a kegerator set up there," he said. "There will still be an ample amount of draft, but we’ll have a focus on, ‘Hey, you can grab a cooler and a bunch of single cans and take them to your court.’ It’ll have more on-site cans than other locations.”
The hours to start will be limited from Thursday to Sunday, then grow, Rampolla said.
“The space, as you’ll see, is such where investments can be made in the future,” he said.
