Interesting place with plenty of character befitting a dive bar but severely lacking in food and beverages. To top it off, 20% is automatically added to each item on your bill. There is only one beer on tap and the Pina Colada that we ordered tasted like a standard purchased mix with a small amount of alcohol. Sadly, the burgers we ordered weren't any better. The server didn't ask how we wanted the burgers cooked and they came out well done but with an interesting and unappetizing gray hue. The Mushroom Burger was topped with nothing but bland mushrooms that were half cooked and half raw. The Grilled Onion Burger was similarly disappointing and only topped with chopped red onions that ranged from raw to slightly cooked (definitely not grilled). The fries that we added to each burger were not seasoned but did have a good crisp. Overall, Kelly's Dockside is not a place that we'll go back to any time soon read more

Looks rough and dirty on the outside. Thought we would give it a try anyways. Inside is nice and back patio is beautiful on the water. No one came to greet us for 15 minutes and when they did, they were extremely rude. The food was extremely subpar . Omelettes are probably the only thing I can recommend. The French toast is literally made with regular sandwich bread aka you can make the same thing at home for free. I don't recommend this place. read more

Decent breakfast and service but they charge $38 for 2 omelettes and 2 cups of coffee which is so overpriced .

Soggy waffles, dried out overcooked omelet with so little cheese I thought they forgot it until the last bite. Food was way overpriced. The lemonade was terrible. Views were nice, but the decor needs an update badly, and it didn't seem very clean. Not a place we need to return to. read more

Yeah, as you can see from previous reviews this place is definitely rough around the edges. They did have a notice about the price increase on the outside of the menu, but it was small. Bathrooms needed attending, and the place was a bit grungy. The food however was fantastic! I have never had calamari that was actually tender. This place knocked it out of the ballpark. Very, very good food and rave reviews from everyone, kids and adults alike. I would have given one more star if the place was a bit cleaner. read more

DO NOT GO HERE! The owner is the worst kind of human! Screaming at his young employees when he can't keep up in the kitchen. You will get one dish for your table every 20 minutes. We waited an hour and a half for below mediocre food. The food is bland and not worth the insane prices! This was the worst experience you will ever have. This dump is a failing business which hides charges by having "outdated menus" and fine print that says there's a 20% up charge. read more

Service was good. Food and drinks were sub par . Very sub par. I had better food and drinks at my local bar. Drink was weak, when they said they're known for their famous bloody Mary.. uhmm no. Weak and watery. The seafood was horrible. Quality for price did not match. Would not recommend this place at all. read more

Great food, great view and the nicest staff! Definitely adding this to our list of stops on our yearly trip to Ithaca! Oh and great cocktails to ;) read more

We came because all other diners had waits and they advertised as world famous. The food was fine..but they charge double what they should for it. A side of hollandaise sauce was $3, almost the price of the poached eggs.. The young waitress was nice and efficient. The atmosphere of the restaurant was shabby and ants were crawling on the ground as we ate. I felt like I was sitting in the early 90s. The place could definitely benefit from a facelift. We gave Kelly's a second chance, but likely won't return. read more

This place is probably one of the most underrated restaurants in Ithaca. The food is *constantly* good and they have a very nice outside seating by the water with a quiet atmosphere. Kelly, the owner, himself is friendly, and usually can be found in the bar area, which situated by the entrance. He greets guests as they come in. Friendly staff, great service, tasty food. Always feel like everything here feels 'genuine and real' somehow. Love it! read more

Just came back from Sunday brunch here and felt compelled enough by the meal's poor quality to leave a 1 star review. The food was seriously, seriously bad. Seriously - it's terrible. I had french toast with the texture of a wet newspaper and my partner had crabmeat eggs Benedict that was possibly the nastiest thing I've ever seen. Nice people, nice atmosphere, but profoundly terrible food. read more

My husband & friends & I wanted to go for Sunday breakfast someplace new (to us), and decided to try Kelly's. We've driven by dozens of times over the years, but never stopped to dine before. It was a gorgeous late-summer morning, and were excited to have the opportunity to get to sit out on the deck. The hostess walked away though before directing to exactly which table to sit at, and were stood there confused and not sure where to sit. After we were finally seated, our drink orders were taken. The server returned quickly with our beverages BUT she spilled the entire glass of OJ all over the table and us. And our cup of coffee was only half-way full, and had many coffee grounds floating in it. The OJ was replaced, but the rest of the meal we sat in a sticky, wet mess, and had a bee hovering around us our entire meal. The food was OK, but nothing special. Our over-easy egg was completely hard-boiled, and the hollandaise sauce was not good. At the end of our meal, the server managed to drop more items; my knife fell on my foot when she grabbed the plate. When the bill came, we wer hoping to see that the OJ would at least be comped, but no suck luck. The bill had not been adjusted for the spill (which completely soaked my friend's outfit and shoes). Again, not impressed, and certainly won't be hurrying to go back. read more

Avoid avoid avoid. Dirty. Rude. Hair in our food beer caps in our water. Food took forever. Much better choices in Ithaca.

Really sweet people! ?Go here & grab eggs anytime. Only thing I would say is the place needs an energy uplift, maybe some redecorating/updating. read more

Beautiful dockside seating. The omelettes are not so impressive given their advertisement for best omelettes in the world, but the eggs Benedict is amazing, soft, and flavorful. Servers are extremely kind and accommodating. read more

The food is great. It's nice to sit out by the water. The facility itself is a little "rustic", so if you're looking for a 4 star experience go elsewhere. If you want to eat great food outside at a little, authentic local restaurant this is a good choice. Try the omelettes - they're as epic as the sign claims. read more

Located near the water in downtown Ithaca. Great chowder and tuna melt. Fried clam platter was tasty but small serving of clams and fries. Good service. Friendly staff. read more

Wow. What an absolute joke. If your thinking about eating at Kelley's Dockside Bar and Grill, do yourself a favor and venture elsewhere. In addition to the restaurant looking like a complete hole in the wall , we were absolutely disgusted by the appearance and taste of our food ( or lack there of). We ordered takeout on 8/8/21. First, the restaurant put an 18% gratuity charge on our takeout order and charged us 0.50 cents per takeout container. After waiting a little over an hour for pickup, we found that multiple meals were missing, half of the meals we did receive were missing items ( sides, condiments etc. ) , food was undercooked, and no silverware. After spending $233, I called to have an ADULT conversation with the manager to see if there was something that could be worked out. He proceeded to blame me for the restaurants shit show and told me that he was mad that his employee even took the takeout order and that it wasn't his problem that it wasn't all there. He was extremely unprofessional, refused to make things right with us, and hung up the phone. When I tried calling back, the girl who took my order in the first place told me he was busy and refused to give him the phone. When I told her I would make sure that people did not go to their shitty shack on the water , she laughed at me and said " You do that". Do yourself a favor, Steer clear of this shithole and the unprofessional low life's that work there. read more

Very friendly and accommodating staff. Nice outside seating with a quiet atmosphere. Great food and variety of options. A++

My friends and I went here for breakfast and the service was horrible. Almost all of the orders were incorrect or missing food, and there was hair in 4 of the dishes. We brought this up to the cook/owner, who claimed there was no hair, screamed at us, and walked away. I checked reviews on other websites, and apparently we aren't the first customers to receive a hair garnish. Needless to say, we called the health department. Do not go to this restaurant unless you want to be treated like garbage and eat hair. read more

I recently ate dinner with my family at Kelly's and it was one of the best meals in Ithaca. The atmosphere was delightful with the inlet and lake in clear view. The quaintness of the joint was quite breathtaking. I had the scallops and they were phenomenal and not over salted like many places . I even was fortunate enough to meet one of the cooks, Tyler, who had actually made my meal. He was extremely nice and a sharp young lad. I would definitly go back and reccomend it to anyone seeking a causal dining experience. read more

5 stars for food, but only 2 or 3 for cleanliness. Let's start with location: make a reservation on the water because it's lovely. Tables with umbrellas in beautiful Ithaca at the southern tip of Cayuga Lake. Easy to find and we parked in the bank lot across the street free (after business hours). My family and I have been here a few times, almost always for the fabulous fish fry; they do a great one! This time we brought a party of 10. We had one waitress and she was great, but she had to make several trips back to the bar to retrieve wine glasses (plastic) because they ran out . It took a while to get drinks, but food was timely. Salads are a fresh mix of curly lettuce, spinach, tomato, cukes...really good. Bread served was warm and good also. Our table was not very clean, my glass was dirty, and the bathroom smelled bad. The place could use some updates, but the prices are good. They will not wrap up your wine (in bottle) so plan on finishing it. I will go back for a casual dinner on a hot summer Friday night for that fish fry and to be on the water. read more

Really appalling service, with terrible food. Part of a group event, they showed no care for the service and wanted us in and out as fast as possible. Wouldn't recommend to anyone. read more

Hidden gem right on the water! Service was awesome and the food was great. Be sure to check out all of the decorations and photos on the walls! The price was perfect as most places in Ithaca overcharge. Will be back soon! read more

Kelly's has absolutely delicious omelets and home fries. I get a different one every time I come and it's never disappointing. During the warmer months, sitting on the patio and listening to the inlet is relaxing. The latio is also isolated from other businesses nesrby. Service is great and they've always been very polite. Highly recommend! For the college students (and others) in the area, this is amazing hangover food. read more

Don't waste your time and money. Dinner was awful. Half full drinks, rotten salt potatoes that had to be sent back, and small portions, all for a very hefty price. Can't emphasize how lackluster the experience was. read more

HORRIBLE RESTAURANT. Rude Owner. Made us pay for meal when they had not informed us that all you could eat meant you had to eat all the crab legs including the knuckle. which is fine if you like that but I do not. I asked the waitress to ask the owner how much to pay for our meal since we didn't touch it and he replied to her all of it. This is when I became furious because I could tell that he just didn't care about anything but money and not pleasing his customers. They did not inform us til our meal arrived and that those were the terms and then acted like that was the policy for every all you can eat crab legs establishment. Highly recommend if you enjoy walking out of a place like you had just been bent over and railed like Jodi Foster. I am an educated and intelligent person believe me this isn't some irrational idiot who never dines out. I know when I've been scumbagged and this is the definition of.... FUCK THIS PLACE...... PS I know scumbagged isn't a word. Kisses... read more

Service is below par. Two different meals had hair in them, please have your cooks wear hats. Meals don't come with home fries so make sure you order them. read more

I recently stopped here for a burger around lunch time and the place was almost deserted. The hamburger patty was obviously frozen/pre-fabricated, the pickles were low-quality, and the appetizer tasted like it was heated from frozen. It was clear that they used the cheapest ingredients possible in order to cut cost, but the quality suffered as a result. A shame, really, because the deck is a peaceful setting with a lot of potential. read more

Food wasn't that great, but I could see how the atmosphere would be nice to sit outside during the summer. The "Crab" Benedict was fake crab, and the Reuben had to be eaten with a fork. Probably will not return read more

Amazingly bad; I cannot fathom where reviews higher than two stars came from. The food is terrible, the dishes are not clean, and the service is poor. I went to Kelly's today for breakfast with my boyfriend. The restaurant was not yet busy and we were excited to check out the patio, which has been raved about here. First we ordered coffees and my mug was caked in crusted food; it looked like oatmeal. The waitress brought me a new mug and we ordered standards off the menu: a Western omelette and over-easy eggs with sausage. In my omelette, the onions were nearly raw and the peppers tasted dirty, like they hadn't been washed. My boyfriend's eggs were severely undercooked and the waitress charged him extra for toast, which she hadn't mentioned wasn't included with the eggs. I ended up sending my omelette back because I couldn't eat around the dirty peppers and raw onions and the waitress said she would adjust the bill accordingly, which she didn't-- we were charged in full. We also never had our water refilled during our meal even though it was a hot day and half the time there was a dirty server's tray on our table that she had neglected to move. read more

I happened to stumble upon this cafe while my friend and I were on our way to Treman Park. Upon arriving we were greeted by a very friendly server who told us to choose a seat out on the deck. We decided to sit by the water and watch all the kayak rentals go by. That was entertaining. Our server was friendly and quick. I ordered the fried fish sandwhich and my friend ordered the scallops. My fish was crispy and fresh not at all greasy. The scallops were really good. We were pretty impressed. As we were leaving at least 2 people wished us well and to have a good day. It was a great start to our day at the park! read more

Good for breakfast. Absolutely the worst for drinks. Stopped on a Friday for a couple of beers-what a mistake! $4 beer! While we didn't expect the Ritz, we expected the prices to reflect that. Lousy service(at the not-too-busy bar I might add). read more

Good service, decent food. The waitress looked young but was attentive and nice. The mimosas hit the spot. I ordered a ham and cheese omelette with hash browns and wheat toast. No complaints with my meal. I would return if I was driving through. read more

The owners were exceptionally nice to us. We came in after closing and they still served us amazing food and treated us kindly. A home style restaurant with nice people! I highly recommend. read more

The orca sculpture out front is what piqued my interest in Kelly's...but then I read the reviews on TripAdvisor and Yelp. I might have dismissed the place were it not for the reviewer who said it is the best place to bring a book for breakfast. If you are an open-minded person, read on for why you need to take reviews with a grain of salt. Some of my comments below take on specific reviews. --Some reviewers are offended that you must carry your own menu to your own table--oh the horror! This ensures that you get to sit where you want--whether close to the bar, inside near the deck, or on the deck. --I think the sign "World Famous Omelettes" (and elsewhere "World Renowned Omlets") is hysterical: the joke's on you for taking it seriously. It got you in the door, as intended! --Kelly's is dirtier than you would expect of a normal restaurant, that is true, but I would not call it filthy. Maybe if you are the sort of restaurant patron who rolls on the floor, you would become filthy. The dust, leaves, and occasional dead bug are what you might expect from a place where the back door is open all day and late into the night for the entire summer. There are some spider webs, and it is a wonder the staff cannot see them. The waitress stood right in front of one well-formed one at one point, and seemed completely unaware of its existence. --The nautical theme on the walls is incredibly charming, with paintings, photographs, and crafts depicting whales, the whaling industry, ships, local waterfalls, and bridges. There are beautiful faux stone walls throughout. --It is true that there are two dogs milling about, but they paid absolutely no attention to me or other customers. It is not ideal, and I would not bring my cat to the office, but it's not as if the dogs were jumping on the table and licking my food. --It is true that the bathroom is a little gross, but I am almost positive as a woman that, if there were separate men's and women's bathrooms, the women would have no problem. The toilet bowl was disgusting, but the seat looked spotless. The bathroom is not so bad that you cannot fathom using it; I imagine most of us have seen a lot worse. --My Mexican omelet was great. It was all very food-like. Unless you are expecting the gourmet food of an exclusive New York chef, the food is what you would expect. I tried the home fries because a reviewer's disgust of them intrigued me so much; they are clearly made of potatoes. They are very bland, but with salt, totally fine. --The bar was filled with customers at 11 am on a Friday. This is the sort of place where locals know the waitress and probably come in every day. It is not what I would do, but if this offends you, I do not know what to say. --Sixties rock played lightly, but not loud enough to distract from your reading or conversation. The music selection and volume was far more pleasant than at many other eateries. --If I found a hair in my food, I would be outraged too; but then again, I found a hair at a famous New York restaurant, and did not find one at Kelly's. And I never wrote a review for the hairy restaurant, so no one even knows about it. I think it happens at all kinds of places because we are, disgustingly, human beings. My overall assessment of the restaurant is this: it is a run-down restaurant that makes you feel like you're at a sea-side vacation spot. It is extremely eccentric. It is utterly unpretentious, so no wonder the pretentious cannot handle it. I think these reviews are a bit guilty of confirmation bias. If your initial impression is disgust, you will tend to see it everywhere. I think subsequent potential guests should judge for themselves. read more

Today at Kelly's Dockside. The view was great. No service offered- after 10 minutes of waiting we left. No lunch, no service! read more

I really love this place for breakfast and lunch outside on the back deck, not sure why it has such a low rating! It is right on the canal and is so beautiful and serene. One of my favorite spots to just have a coffee and bring a book. The food was not outstanding but it was totally tasty and fine and I would recommend this place to anyone passing through Ithaca who wants a scenic breakfast. read more

Was really good. Had a fresh mozzarella tomato basil caprese salad that was wonderful. She had a toasted bagel with some good stuff on it as well. As a light lunch it worked. read more

Sometimes the best places are a little rough around the edges. Do not let the exterior (or the interior) scare you away. There is no better place to have a beer and some thoroughly fried food on a weeknight. Enjoy some colorful characters, rustic ambiance and the sublest hint of nature. Kelly's is concurrently a diamond in the rough and the rough itself. read more