10/25/2026
Dear Manayunk,
For 39 years, our 86 board held the names of things we’d run out of. Today, we erased it one last time and wrote the hardest words of all:
86 — Jake’s & Cooper’s.
When my father and mother opened our doors in 1987, they had a dream. We never knew a restaurant on Main Street would become home, or an entire neighborhood our family.
I grew up here. I played darts at Pitcher’s Pub, shot pool at Grape Street Pub, and learned what belonging felt like from the people who welcomed me. We think of Zesty’s, the Cresson Inn, Sorrentino’s, and the familiar faces who have kept Manayunk’s heart beating through the years.
The blessings were often hidden in everyday moments: a wave through a window, a customer who became a friend, a child who returned years later with children of their own. We witnessed first dates, weddings, birthdays, laughter, and tears. We remember those who are no longer here, but whose love remains.
A father built a restaurant here. A son grew up inside it. And whole community helped raise us both.
Thank you to the Manayunk Development Corporation, North Light Community Center, our fellow businesses, our beloved staff, and everyone who ever walked through our doors.
What hurts most isn’t turning off the lights. It’s knowing there are people we won’t get to hug, hands we won’t get to shake, and thank-yous we won’t get to say. Please hear us now: we love you. More than we could ever explain.
Our time has run out. Our gratitude never will. We came here to open a restaurant. We found a whole world to love.
With all our love,
Bruce Cooper & Bruce Joseph Cooper II
86 Jake’s & Cooper’s. Never 86 the love.
