Glenside native’s bar in Portland, now an Eagles haven, feat by Sports Illustrated, The Inquirer

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December 10th, 2024 | By Ryan Genova

Nick Calcaterra was featured by The Philadelphia Inquirer for witnessing his brother’s first career NFL touchdown from the Lombard House in Portland, Oregon “where Philadelphia transplants gather every Sunday.”

Grant Calcaterra’s game-winning catch came early in the fourth quarter of the Eagles’ 22-16 win over the Carolina Panthers. Check out the clip below:

“It’s awesome,” Grant Calcaterra said of Lombard House. “Brian [Koch], the owner, is a great dude. He’s taken care of my brother since he’s lived there. They’ve really taken him in.”

Koch, a graduate of Abington High School, moved to Portland in 2006 when he was 30 years old. According to the story, he struggled to find a place to watch the Eagles, so he opened his own bar in 2016. The North Portland Bird Watchers Society gathers there for every game.

“Just to have everyone behind me every week rooting for the same stuff and cheering the same successes,” Nick Calcaterra said of Lombard House. “Even if it’s just a nice block, the whole bar is like, ‘Oh, man. That block was so crucial.’ These days in the NFL aren’t going to last forever, so you just try to soak it up as much as you can while it does last because it’s so fun and so exciting. This place enhances the experience and the fun all the more.”

“My intention was to make it a Philly bar, but I wanted to ease into the neighborhood,” Koch told The Inquirer in a November article. “St. Johns is like a lot of Philly neighborhoods where you don’t just show up and be the new guy. So I kind of eased into it.”

An excerpt from that article:

During the week, Lombard House is a local spot where Vietnam veterans drink for free. The bar sponsors a Little League team — the Phillies, of course — and has live music in the backyard.

On Sundays, Koch rearranges the seats in the 12-by-20-foot bar like a dad moving sofas in the living room to make sure everyone has a spot for the game. The 40-some seats are saved — coasters that say “Reserved” are placed on top — for regulars while everyone else sits outside. By kickoff, the bar in Portland sounds like a spot on Frankford Avenue as a beautiful cacophony of accents blend together.


The story also caught the attention of Sports Illustrated, which published their own article about the brothers’ connection on Sunday. An excerpt:

As soon as the ball hit Grant’s hands, Nick jumped up, pumping his fists in the air as his fellow bar patrons screamed and pat him on the back. He seemed pretty speechless, but still managed to eke out a triumphant “F— yes!” and a disbelieving “Oh my God” amidst the chaos.

You can watch the clip below:

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