Industrial bones and big flavors in Easton, Pa. | Field Trip

Nestled in the crook of the Lehigh and Delaware Rivers, Easton’s manufacturing might was powered by its waterways during the Industrial Revolution in the early 20th century. Tanneries, flour and silk mills, distilleries, breweries — these were the big businesses in town.

Now, those old industrial shells and the former mansions of tycoons house cafés and galleries, boutique hotels and French-inspired markets. Easton sits just 90 minutes from Philly, making it an easy weekend getaway. Take the Turnpike north, hook a right at Allentown, and head toward the river.

Start the car.

In dining, shopping and arts, Easton way overdelivers. Hotels are still catching up. Fortunately, the popular Gusto Hospitality Group (see Dine, below) opened the Townley House Hotel several years ago, and the 16-room boutique remains the best place to stay in town. An original mahogany staircase links the levels of this restored brick townhouse on Easton’s historic Millionaire’s Row. There’s a sun-dappled courtyard, Mercer-tiled fireplaces, maximalist wallpapers and custom headboards — a different one for each room.

📍 130 N. 3rd St., Easton, Pa. 18042

Running nearly two miles along scenic Bushkill Creek to Lafayette College’s William Visual Arts Building, the Karl Stirner Arts Trail weaves through 27 works of public art. The trail is named for the German-born sculptor and metalsmith largely credited for making Easton an arts destination in the ‘80s. You’ll find his untitled steel arch, painted an unmissable scarlet, about two-thirds of the way down the path.

📍 Parking at 521 N. 13th St., Easton, Pa. 18042

In this world, there are people who love pie, and there are monsters. Don’t be a monster. On Northampton Street, Easton’s main drag, Pie + Tart is charming spot with exposed brick walls and Shaker-style chairs from bakers Lisa Yelagin and Anne Gerr. Savory pies (coq au vin) and sweet ones (Mexican chocolate chess, cherry cheesecake) rotate weekly, alongside soups, quiches, and other cozy blackboard specials.

📍 349 Northampton St., Easton, Pa. 18042

If you’re bringing kids — or you simply have strong feelings about Burnt Sienna and Tickle-Me-Pink — meet the Crayola Experience. The king of crayons was born — and still manufactured — right here in Easton. The four-floor experience mixes analog crafts and digital diversions, including an 85-foot water table and a photo booth that generates a coloring-book selfie. Great opportunity to see what you’d look like as a Mango Tango redhead.

📍 30 Centre Sq. Cir., Easton, Pa. 18042

Men’s shearling-lined shackets, watercolor paint-by-numbers journals, irreverent incense (“Chai-Scented Laziness,” “Burn Away the BS”) and more fill Belleville Market, a three-level department store inspired by the marketplaces the owners fell for in France. Keep an eye on their events page to see if your Easton trip lines up with the shop’s happenings, like the upcoming Moka pot demonstration and tasting and floral-filled spring open house.

📍 20 S. 3rd St., Easton, Pa. 18042

We don’t need to tell you: The PLCB does not make sourcing great wine easy. Which makes Kabinett, a Bavarian-inspired refuge furnished with warm woods, wishbone chairs, and framed botanical prints, all the more impressive. A grandly antlered stag skull presides over the bar. The Wine Spectator-recognized list ranges from whole-cluster Santa Barbara Sangiovese and South Australian Riesling from 175-year-old vines. It’s deep but playful, organized under headings like:“Reds ~ OK, Boomer. Safe Cabernet & oak space for full-throttle bottles.”

📍 125 Northampton St., Easton, Pa. 18042

Italian restaurants run by Albanians form their own industry sub-genre. At Albanesi Restaurant & Bar, Gusto Group’s Mick Gjevukaj, who grew up in the war-torn former Yugoslavia, is putting his heritage center stage with dishes like harissa-spiced rib-eye qofte (kofte), veal goulash, and braised lamb shoulder lacquered in pomegranate. Climb into one of the camel-colored clamshell banquettes, order some samuna bread and hummus swirled with ajvar, a Balkan condiment of roasted peppers and tomatoes, and settle in for culinary geography lesson. Who knew you’d learn it in Easton?

📍 235 Ferry St., Easton, Pa. 18042