McCloskey’s Tavern

As a restaurant owner I never write reviews. The front of the house staff seemed a bit snobby as we had just come from a spin class in general exercise attire
The clearly seasoned bartender gets the full 2 stars above. We were handed soup
without proper silver wear, mu prepped salad sat behind the bar over ten minutes and than was handed off to the wrong customer just to be returned to me.
Bad food handling practices. The salad had about a cup of mixed greens to it. We were rushed out. Judgment based on what one looks like is just pathetic.
You need to overall your staff. Now the bar top next to us got welcoming service. To bad most millionaires walk
Around on scrubs

It hurts me a little to do this. As you can tell by my previous reviews, I am a huge fan of supporting small local businesses but I cannot for the life of me understand why McCloskey’s is rated ⁴⁄₅ stars. Perhaps it was just an off night.
We went to McCloskey’s for a casual meal to watch the end of the Steelers/​Broncos playoff game and ate at the bar. First things first, service itself was fine. We didn’t order alcoholic drinks, we just wanted to be near the TV’s.
Now the food.
This was probably the third time I’ve been to McCloskey’s since I moved to Ardmore two years ago. Each time, the food took more than 30 minutes (this is the kitchen, not the waiter usually, so I stand by my statement that service was fine). This was one of those things that «redawned» on me while we were waiting since I don’t go often, it’s just close and convenient. Kind of like «oh yeah, the food usually takes awhile here»). An idea of the timeframe: We arrived at the very beginning of the fourth quarter only to get our food with about 90 seconds left in the game. That’s quite awhile when a game takes over three hours to play. All we ordered were wings and a vegetarian sandwich. And they were not busy. We found seats at the bar right away with open seats next to us as well. I also saw the cooks out of the kitchen watching a part of the game while we were waiting.
I honestly felt like Gordon Ramsey on Kitchen Nightmares while eating. The wings (ordered medium) arrived burnt with all the sauce on the bottom. Thus, they were dry. There was absolutely no flavor. A rotisserie chicken from a grocery store would’ve had more flavor. They were burnt and dry. It was as if the sauce was put on the plate and then the wings on top of it. Even so, the sauce was not great. Maybe if the cooks were paying attention to the wings, they wouldn’t of been burnt? I thought maybe this is how they were supposed to look but the people next to us also got wings and they looked properly prepared with the sauce on TOP of the wings. To be fair, I remember them being better in my past trips.
The vegetarian sandwich was also a disappointment. It comes with goat cheese and basil oil. It was mostly goat cheese and basil oil with some veggies thrown in. Thus, the sandwich was soggy and had no chance of staying together while eating it. It was almost as if the goat cheese was used as a way to keep the veggies together and not fall out of the sandwich, an unsuccessful strategy. My date ate half and left the rest which is saying a lot because we hate food waste. It was nearly inedible.
Overall, a bad experience. The initial goal of enjoying the game while eating wasn’t even accomplished because of how long the food took. The only saving grace is that their drink list is extensive including many, many beers on tap. Many of them craft beers as well. It’s also a local place. These two things got it a ²⁄₅ instead of a 1. Unfortunately, we will probably never return.

Pretty decent bar. I would say a little more on the expensive side as well as pretty cramped.

Best cheeseburger on Main Line. Got the onion ring burger last night– incredible. Charbroiled flavor. Each bite is perfection.

Good food, good service, good prices, generous portions. Been there several times. A little crowded at times but still worth it.

I’ve been here a few times already, and I really love this place. It’s a great neighborhood pub and has such a homey atmosphere. The draft beer selection is always rotating and there seem’s to be something for everyone. We’ve sat at the bar, in the bar area and in the dining room and have had great service in all spots. Everything we’ve ordered for food (burgers, pasta, fish, salads) so far has tasted great, My only complaint is that it gets a little crowded on Friday and Saturday nights!

Great pub and has the cutest bartender in Delaware county. He’s adorable and I want to keep him in my pocket. If only he was single

I’m for sure a fan of this place. Took a while to find time to stop by, and now it’s been twice in the last three weeks. I think I’ll keep coming up here!
1. The place is as cramped on a Friday/​Saturday night as described by others. It gets tight. To the staff’s credit, they don’t get frustrated over this. They accept it. It’s a nice change for the client from other places here locally.
2. They do a traditional Happy Hour and Daily Dinner Specials. There are folks that come the same night at the same time every week. Top special is Prime Rib on Friday night. I mean it’s big, gotta be a full 16oz. It comes with a simple baked potato, and sauteed beans. Plain white plate.
3. I prefer the bar here as the preferred spot. While Martha and I can just chat for hours… having a beverage, watching the game or news with a well made dinner is a nice treat.
4. The bartenders provide nice pours without being completely over the top. They seem to have been born in the bar as they know ABSOLUTELY everyone!
I’ve enjoyed every visit so far, and I’m sure I will in the future.
You will too.

I’m not sure if it’s true, but I heard a bartender here has won the
cutest bartender in Philadelphia area award for 2015. I believe it to be Paddy.

Ugh not worth one star. They need a new chef ASAP. We started off with the egg rolls. Like 8 dollars for one strip?! I may as well go to a freakin Chinese store. It did not look right… My boyfriend got a chicken parmesan and he thought it was bland and over cooked. I got the crab and shrimp pasta which was way to watered down! Like it didn’t have any taste other than the crab. Ugh. Shout out to the server who didn’t even ask if we liked our food. I bet she knew it was going to be bad. If you want to go I advise you to just get beer cause it’s honestly it was over priced & no one should waste their money on bad food.

This is a stellar Irish Pub in Ardmore. Walked in around 5 and took one of the few seats left at the bar. Some serious end of the day drinking seemed to be taking place by good patrons of the establishment. The bartender was friendly, especially after he saw my Eagles hat and what he mistook for a blue and grey Cowboys sweater (it was a film festival jacket). Had the happy hour buffalo wings which were excellent. For dinner I had a tremendous cheddar cheese and onion ring burger. The side of onion rings were a little overdone. The Paulander Octoberfest was delicious. The food was excellent. Great tapped beer list. This is a place I will return to. Highly recommended

Stopped in for a quick beer, ordered a Leffe blonde. Comes in a little 12 Oz glass. 7.00. Really 7.00, that’s just to much.

Came for lunch while traveling. Seems like a nice place and I would return but prime rib sandwich was over cooked and service while nice was pretty inattentive even though the place was pretty much empty.

This tavern fills up fast so make sure to have a smaller party, get their early, or be ready to wait. They have an impressive draft list, just read the chalk board to see what they have, the ABV and the price. The staff is friendly, every entrée we had was well done. The appetizer was a group favorite. Love their fries, cool pub atmosphere.

I have so much love for this place. Always a great draft list, generous pours of wine, and delicious food. The staff is really friendly too. We always sit in the bar area and they’re always chatting with regulars like they’re family (while still doing their job!). I love the atmosphere here.
My husband loves the roast beef sandwich. The new apple Jameson pulled pork sandwich is the bomb diggity– can they please sell that sauce? The wings with that sauce are great too. The meatloaf is delicious.

One of those solid neighborhood bars that it took moving 2 blocks away from to recall. While seldom my first or second option, its one of those good low key suburban food and libation options that have always managed to be consistent for the 10 plus years that I’ve visited.
The draft list touts an admirable 15 taps that constantly sees brews from the likes of Southern Tier, Ommegang, Ninkasi, and La Chouffe; and they can make a pretty dapper cocktail when its needed. And the menu takes things up a notch with options like apple Jameson chicken wings and and a quesadilla of the week for appetizers, 10 different burger options, a multitude of pasta dishes with or without seafood, and reasonably priced entrees like a $ 21 filet mignon.

Ordered wings for an Eagles game because I read that they were delish. My sources did not disappoint. These wings were meaty and flavorful and cooked perfectly!
We got the Mild and Barbecue. My palate cannot handle anything too spicy, so these hit the spot. They came with blue cheese, celery and carrots. Bonus points for the carrots. Loved!
Cute little pub atmosphere– would definitely go back and dine-​in with a pint of Guinness!

It’s a fairly small pub tucked in a side street just of Rt 30. There are a few booths but most of the seating are normal tables. It also has a large bar with a good selection of beers written on a chalkboard so I guess specials can change fairly regularly.
It’s a quite restaurant and seemed to be popular with middle age+ locals. The menu is fairly standard pub fare. We ended getting a few apps: wings with the delicious apple Jameson sauce, quesadilla which was average, crab balls were good but only came with five and were kind of small, and some potato skins which were nice and crispy. I got the paddy melt which was excellent.
The entire staff was very accommodating and the bar had some football games on. I can see why it’s a popular spot in Ardmore. If you are coming from out of town, there’s a parking lot across the street.
Don’t be mistaken by the name for the type of cuisine. There are a few Irish dishes like the shepards pie, but it was mostly sandwiches, burgers, and pasta dishes. Everyone was happy with their dishes though.

This restaurant has these super cool tables that are right in front of giant open windows that overlook the street. My boyfriend made reservations for us here so that we could sit at one of those tables at night – and we were very pleased that one was there waiting for us!
I ordered the Crab Cake Sandwich; he ordered the Roast Beef Sandwich. They were both huge! Very delicious but a little on the salty side. Our waitress was very friendly. She accidentally brought my boyfriend french fries instead of onion rings (which cost extra) so she gave them to us for free.
The ambiance here is very pleasant. There are always lots of people inside but it feels cozy. We got to watch the sun go down on Cricket Avenue and it was a truly lovely time overall. I would definitely recommend this restaurant if you’re nearby!

I’ve been here a few times when I lived in Ardmore, and now that I’m in the city, it’s still one of my suburban destinations. Biggest draw is their impressive beer list. It’s a bit hard to see since the seasonals are all up on the chalk board, but worth a gander when you first get there. I love that they get their summer shandy in early.
Once you’ve arrived for the beer list, don’t hesitate to get tempted by the food. I have to say I’ve never not liked my meal here. I try to stick to the healthy side — I think last time I got a spinach sandwich with a crab cake. It was really ridiculously good for food at a bar!
The atmosphere is nice. It’s not loud and raucous and doesn’t get too packed. Mostly everyone’s just at a table and a well-​mannered ‘burbs crowd — no crazy Villanova drunkards in this pub. Although, I don’t think I’ve been here much past 11… my guess is you’re safe though.