I was excited to hear about the newest of the Crowley's locations opening up in University Hts. near the John Carroll University campus. I originally tried their famous Smash Burger at the Kirtland location and thought this new location would be ideal (being much closer to my home). It is definitely popular- it's a much needed neighborhood bar that caters to adults as well as the obvious population of college student, many large screen TVs to watch sports, Keno and weekly specials. They even have live music one night per week. From a food standpoint, it could be so much better. I've been about a dozen times, but I have to say it falls short of being the what could be a much better "go to" place (as in Guy Fieri Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives worthy). In fairness, the Smash Burger at the Crowley's at Carroll does not disappoint, and the variety of options on the menu is definitely a plus. I've had maybe ten other menu items from their Cobb Father Salad (decent) to their chicken wings (served with waaaaay too much sauce- as if they were swimming in it) and their Chicago Hot Dog. Suggestion: don't serve frozen fries from Sysco or Gordon's Food Service; invest $75 into a steel cutter for fresh French fries and use fresh jalapenos. I know it's a college bar and right now business is good because it's relatively new, but it's the little things like that go a long way. The hostess stand employees do a nice job of greeting patrons upon arrival, but the actual service is hit or miss. I've bellied up to the bar and on a handful of occasions found myself flagging down the younger female bartenders (when there was no rush or slam of people) who either aren't trained or managed well enough or just too busy chatting with friends to notice the empty beer or water glass. Don't misunderstand, I want this place to do well, so I'm merely offering constructive criticism. read more

The place was empty when we arrived. One other person did come while we were there. The chips on my burger were stale, so my first bite wasn't good. My mom ordered tomato with her burger and they did forget it, but brought it when we asked. The waitress did take off a little for the stale tortilla chips. No specials on Fridays or during the day. Overall the food was okay, but I highly doubt I'd go back. read more

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We hit up Crowley's on Fairmount Circle near JCU for dinner on a Monday night at about 7, and the place was jumpin'. We did not have to wait for a table, but there were a lot of folks in there including, somewhat to my surprise, at least two families with small kids. This does not bother me. In fact, it gave the crowd more of a pub crowd feel rather than a bar crowd feel. I immediately felt welcome. The place was clean, and the hostess greeted us in a friendly manner. The music, which was the topic of two other reviews (more on that later), was a tiny bit loud perhaps (I am old now, I guess) but my wife and I loved every song that was played. The track selection was right in my wheelhouse. We were seated and our waitress made her way to our table quickly. She was friendly, and offered a great suggestion. She suggested the smash burger ("I get one every time I come to work!"), and my wife and I both got one. It was excellent. Thinner than places like Five Guys and Culver's, thicker than Swenson's or McDonald's. Great flavor on the beef, fresh veggie toppings, grilled onions, and melted American cheese. The burger sauce was excellent. The bun was toasted but still pillowy and didn't make it seem like there was too much bread involved. The fries were pretty good too. They looked like McDonald's fries - almost identical to them, actually - but they were a bit crispier than McDonald's. We also ordered pierogis because it's Cleveland Pierogi Week. These were sadly not great. They were not bad. They were average pierogis topped with a cheese sauce and crumbled bacon. We ate them all, but they just weren't special. With my Coke and my wife's beer and a tip because our waitress was excellent, the tab was about $70. It was more than we expected, but we ordered more than we usually do with the pierogis, so that's on us. Based on two other reviews, there was apparently an incident with the jukebox a week or so ago. I have no idea whether the problem exists with Crowley's staff or the customers in that situation, but know this: this place is deserving of a much better rating than it currently has. I really enjoyed myself here, and every staff member I came in contact with was aces. If you like good bar food and an atmosphere like the one I described, this place deserves a shot. read more

We live in the immediate neighborhood and were excited to have an option we've desperately needed within walking distance for years: a large, family friendly, relatively cheap bar with good enough food. Don't get me wrong, the food is more than fine. No problems here. I think they should introduce a kids menu now that this is seemingly their first location in a neighborhood full of young families. But that's not a dealbreaker. What IS a dealbreaker is the extremely poor level of service we've experienced almost every time we've been in (double digit visits... we have kids that go to Gesu and it's become the Gesu neighborhood family hangout). The inattentiveness and sometimes downright rude attitude from servers and bartenders is really disappointing from what should be the neighborhood spot. The staff seems more interested in talking amongst each other than taking care of customers. Case in point: I was in last week. I sat down and asked for a drink and food menu. I ordered the drink right away... and the bartender never came back to even ask if I wanted food. Most of the time she was on her phone. There was a waitress brushing her hair OVER THE BAR which is nasty. Shifts changed and the next bartender also didn't ask if I needed anything. I finally flagged down a manager/owner to cash out because I wasn't giving them any more money. That was a task in itself because he was more concerned with chatting with and doing shots with the pretty female bartenders than actually tending to customers. I don't get the feeling anyone here cares. They know they're in a neighborhood with college students and lots of young families and they'll make money hand over first no matter what. It's just a bummer that this could be exactly what this neighborhood needs and nobody seems to care to make the effort. read more

Good experience at this location near JCU. Crowded and buzzing on a Saturday night. Able to get drinks at the bar waiting for our table. Cool indoor setup. Lots of TVs, great draft line, pull tickets available. Friendly and engaged service. Lots of seating options. Enjoyed our anchors and liked it was grilled chicken. Burgers were amazing. Fresh, good flavor. Get the tater tots! Our daughter enjoyed her cheese quesadilla as well. read more

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UberEatsDriver: Every order I've attempted to pick up here "was already taken by someone else/a previous driver" and they wouldn't remake an order of salad and tater tots unless I paid over $20 for it. I'm sorry, but I'm not paying for your mistakes. You are supposed to have a driver confirm pick up in their app before handing it off. Just letting anyone with a phone in their hand grab an order is sloppy business practice. read more

I tried the "original" in Eastlake a few months ago. Really enjoyed the smash burger. For Pierogi Week, I stopped by the Shaker location and really enjoyed the Chili and Pierogi special. Understand, this is "bar food" and not haute cuisine. Grab a draft beer and a burger with your crew and relax. This is the place. read more

Crowley's - Crowley's Shaker - Pierogi Week Special - Dive Bars Near Me - Shaker Heights, Ohio

Solid townie sports bar with a good draft selection and the usual pub fare. Ample seating and tons of big screens for the game. Great addition to the neighborhood. read more

Crowley's - Dive Bars Near Me - Shaker Heights, Ohio

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The service was good, the food was what you'd expect from a sports bar and they served me a fine pint of missing mountain. First time and would return. read more

We have never had a bad meal here. The service is fast and friendly. Clientele rhythm seems to be families early, regular adults, college students later. Can get busy but rarely a wait. Louder than average, even in slower times. Everything we have had was delicious. Both the chicken parm sammie and sheehan special are well proportioned. Likewise, the smash burger, while a ton of food, does not require unhinging the jaw. Messy in the best way. Fries aren't ultra special, but pretty good. The food definitely reads dive bar, the vibe leans sports bar. If that's your thing you won't be disappointed. It's not ours, so I can't speak to game day culture or shenanigans. We are far more town than gown, and I am thrilled a business finally shows signs of succeeding in this space. Great addition to the neighborhood. read more

Absolutely excellent. Went here with a close friend after visiting his new house nearby. Ambiance and atmosphere was fantastic. Was more alive than Downtown Cleveland at 3-4pm. Tried the quesadilla for a lighter/healthier option. Pretty good and generous on the chicken addition! It was pricey for the portion, $16 before tip. I suppose I'll try to come another time when there's happy hour deals. Won't deter me from returning. Definitely be sure to check I out this spot! read more

I've been to Crowley's in the range of 8-10 times; sometimes food and drink, sometimes just for drinks. The One consistent thing from each visit is that the cash register automatically rings in a 3% convenience fee whether I pay cash or credit/debit. When I have asked about this on several occasions I'm greeted with similar responses about how it should not be assessed to cash transactions - it's a credit card fee. Nevertheless, once again today - I order a pint of Guinness and indicate I'm paying Cash. Bartender says it'll be $6.66 (devilish pricing - I know - right!!) I hand her a 10$ bill - change comes back as three one dollar bills. No explanation on the short. That's more than 'rounding' in their favor due to penny shortage. If this was ONLY the fourth or fifth time this had happened here I'd let it slide/ no negative review. read more

Smash burger was great. A little stingy w/ the onion rings. Everyone was very helpful and attending. Ambience was typical of a sports bar and grill. I will definitely return. read more

Food was good not great. It is bar food so I wasn't expecting a Michelin rated restaurant. My wife got a salad I got the burger special which was pretty good and added onion rings. They have a great selection of beer. The price was very reasonable. Yes, I will go back. read more

It was fine at this bar until the bartender was a jerk me his name was Micheal but another bartender was kind to me named Patrick so if you can go to patrick read more

The food was amazing and the service was even better. The atmosphere was electric, a great place for a great burger. My server Nikky was amazing. I asked her what I should order and she recommended the special which was a smash burger and fries. I must tell you it was the best burger I've had in a very long time. Her service was impeccable, She made me feel very comfortable like family. The service was amazing. I would highly recommend this place. the price was right and I left satisfied beyond what you would expect for an establishment of its type. Highly recommend will visit often. Definitely 5 stars!!!!! read more

Went for lunch with 4 adults, 2 kids and infant. Was only moderately busy even though it was a Monday holiday. Able to get a table where we wanted especially with kids. Service attentive, friendly and quick. All the adults got the Monday smash double burger and beer special; we all liked the burgers here more versus the original location. One of the kids got a hotdog (fantastic!!!) and the other one got chicken strips which had 5 large strips to the order & were tasty. Nice local place. Able to park easily on the side but also has parking lot in the back of the building. Nice local place! read more

Will rip you off if you try to play your own music! A lot of places install touchtones, a digital juke box where you can pay to play your own music. I had paid for a couple of songs but the restaurant closed down the app service and would not play the songs I paid for. Waste of money read more

Food was fine burger was good for a smash wouldn't run home to mommy about it. Main gripe is the fact that these cornballs wiped an entire queue of music from the touch tunes jukebox that myself as well as other's paid money to queue. When asked about this they pretended as if nothing was happening then turned the jukebox off completely. Will not be coming back lol how can you be so childish when you're running a diverse college bar. read more

I don't expect a whole lot from bar food but it should be at least good bar food. Enough to be enjoyable. I think we have all been to places where they do that! It's not that hard. The chicken strips were way over-breaded and quite tasteless. None of the kids would eat them and they have never refused them anywhere else. I had the smash burger, which I have liked elsewhere and found it Dreadfull here. Way over-cooked with a very unpleasant and heavy handed sauce served on a very bready bun. I ditched the top bun and used knife and fork. Fries were unremarkable. They were crisp but there was no evidence of potato inside the crispness. We had waited so long for the food so I was hungry enough to get it down. I don't think the plan for Crowleys was to have even a modest quality restaurant but to serve things that people who come to drink a bit later will eat just to help soak up beer and alcohol. read more