Tick Tock Tavern

An awesome dive bar with great ribs on the west side! Despite living practically across the street for months, I never stepped foot inside for food other than the occasional beer. I’m happy to say I’ve had their St. Louis styled ribs with a cajun dry rub and was impressed. The meat was well cooked, the seasoning was fantastic and the sides — fries and coleslaw, were fantastic. Decent drink selection too.

The food is awesome & the wait staff is funny as hell. The prices are amazing! Drop $ 20 on two people and walk out happy and stuffed. Never been to the bar side… so I can’t comment on that. But it’s a nice lay out, if you want a sit down meal then it’s one side of the diner… if you want to get hammered and watch a game it’s on the other side of the wall. Good for families that don’t want to eat at a bar, but want a great meal cheap… or a drinker that doesn’t want to look at junior while drinking a boilermaker.

Great food great people! Bartenders are very attentive and informative! They definitely look out for their customers! There was a very intoxicated man almost falling off the bar. Every bartender and some of the regulars assisted him with a cab home, one bartender even offered to take him home. Their specialty wings are a must and their burgers are to die for!!! They even knew my wife and I were splitting the wings and burger so they put half on separate plates. We used to go to this place for a couple drinks and because it is right down the road but this is our new spot for dinner! Can’t wait to try the ribs!

I’ve been coming here for years, since I moved into the neighborhood in 2010. The Tick Tock is a great dive with good food and even better people watching! The portions are enormous. They have all the fried bar staples and burgers you are looking for, but the menu is almost as long as Cheesecake Factories. The daily specials will have no less than 15 options. I’ve never heard of Mousaka until I came to Tick Tock, it’s like Greek lasagna and I couldn’t recommend it more. The service can be hit or miss depending on who’s behind the bar and how crowded but I’ve never had an awful experience.

This place is great. I’ve been here since 2013. The bartender won’t let me leave. I was married. I have kids somewhere, I think. My mail comes here, but so too do my paychecks. I told the bartender «one drink».
She stuck a straw in a bottle of Jameson and said «sure, here».
I laughed…
She was serious.
I was a young man, full of hope and optimism. Now, I’m full of Santorini wings, and a pickled liver.
Please help me…
Tell my kids I love them.
Loved them.
I only love tick tock now.
Tick tock took my wife.
Tick tock is my life.
Tick.
Tock.

Breakfast great Kim good waitress coffee great Price cheap .this a deal the bar side is
Also the best be coming for year’s something is special and historic here.
Free WiFi best ribs in state. All you can eat fish nights.

I went to this restaurant for lunch about 2 weeks ago, they were advertising all you can eat fish. The lunch came with fries and coleslaw. The waitress brought out my food and I began eating the coleslaw, I noticed something black in the coleslaw, I took a closer look and discovered it was a nasty bug, I immediately felt sick to my stomach. The waitress informed me that the restaurant had just been exterminated. I stayed there anyway :(, the fish was horrible. I ate 1 piece of fish and requested the check. I asked the waitress could I get ½ off the bill due to the fact that I had only 1 side dish and a bug in my food. She told me that they could not do that… I was appalled. I left there and will never go back!!!

The experience here was absolutely magnificent. A special friend took me here and explained in detail the charm this establishment provided. Wow did it not disappoint!
The portions were huge. The taste was amazing. The price extraordinarily low. The service was delightful.
I just can’t find anything critical to say. I only hope that I can visit the area again soon so that I may stop back here! :)

I have eaten here in numerous times over the years and can’t remember a time I was disappointed. For starters, If you leave hungry it’s your own damn fault. Generous portions. No one will be late on the rent eating here. Prices are more than fair. The food is non pretentious and well prepared. The ribs will run circles around any chain. The specials really are specials. It’s one of our family’s go to restaurants. Two words mozzarella kabobs! The Greek dishes rival anyplace in town.

Perfect greasy spoon /​dive bar ! Best screw drivers. Lori is a feisty bartender;) We stumbled upon this place while walking in the morning so glad we did. Stopped there twice for breakfast while we were in Cleveland

I’m giving Tick Tock 4 stars because frankly, they are a group of lovely people. Great service with decent food. We’ll be back.

I love this place. It’s definitely a dive bar/​restaurant hole in the wall but the staff is friendly and food is cheap. I just enjoy this place!

I absolutely love this place! It’s my favorite dive bar that serves food for sure!
I’ve had several different dishes here so far. Fried Chicken Steak is delicious, crispy on the outside and juicy white meat on the inside with savory sausage gravy! The dinners come with fantastic soups. (The best is the beef vegetable with barley! I’m addicted.)
The Greek Burger is delicious, comes with gyro meat on top with onions and feta. A perfect combo.
I’ve also had the chicken wings, tenders, and the reuben sandwich. All great choices that were very good!
Place has very strong drinks and a cheap price which is a must for a diver bar.
Shout-​out to Ruthie who is the sweetest bartender, always pleasant and a great personality. The rest of the staff in my opinion is great too. They are always very sweet and I haven’t had any problems so far.
The only reason it doesn’t get 5 stars is because it can be a little slow at times getting in the bill or flagging someone down for attention but they seem to be busy quite often when I visit, especially during sports games, so it’s forgivable. The place has some rowdy, classless people that can make the atmosphere slightly uncomfortable as well, but after all it is a dive bar — so this should be expected.
In conclusion. Check this place out if you want cheap good eats & drinks and that divey vibe.

So, this quirky little place is over on Clifton and reminds me of a place in my hometown of Twinsburg that is no longer in existence; remember the little local bar/​tavern in your town, where all the «characters» hung out?
That’s the Tick Tock all over. We went on a Saturday morning, quite by accident, and ended up going just to check the place out. It was an interesting trip. Firstly, the breakfast we got was tasty; I got a Monte Cristo that was really good, and Patty’s breakfast of the day was good as well. The price was very reasonable, and the small café area was really comfortable and packed with lots of local sports memorabilia. It felt like home. The waitress we had was really great and was full of good, topical conversation.
Now, the Tick Tock is still a tavern, so they do have a full bar and that bar draws a really fascinating local crowd…
With that in mind, heh, we almost got to see an «altercation» as the barmaid got in an argument with someone. We did not SEE it, but it was loud enough that we sat wide-​eyed as the offending individual was «asked to leave» … (and I’m putting it mildly.) It was… hilarious. I like a place with chutzpah, and this place has it in buckets.
(And the food’s good too:)
So, if you get a second, make some time for the Tick Tock!

It is your typical dive bar crowd and all. We went there for breakfast because they were one of the places where we could get it at 11 on a Friday and also get a bloody. Bloody Mary mix is made in house and is delicious. Bartender was very cool and our drinks were poured right. Yea it is a dive bar so if you want something fancier you probably shouldn’t go there. We ordered a simple breakfast and it was pretty good. No complaints at all. The crowd was interesting and nice. Will definitely visit again if we are in the area.

Will never go back. Ordered a makers mark on the rocks and got FRUIT FLY’S in the bottom of my drink!!! The barmaid is very rude and acted annoyed when I complained about the disgusting BUGS in my drink! Food and drinks are cheap, but beware! The staff basically ignores anyone who isn’t a «regular», I guess they don’t complain about flies in there drinks! It is very dirty and smells in the bar. Didn’t try any food, lost my appetite after the disgusting drink!!!

The crowd at this place is worth the trip alone – that and the plethora of old school, fried foods to choose from.
Wings seem to be a big hit – I had chicken tenders and fries. Really. The food is just simple, bad-​for-​you, comfort goodness.
The bartenders are middle-​aged women who get stark-​raving mad when you shut the bar doors, even if it’s under 30 degrees out. It’s hilarious. They’ll kick you out just because you weren’t born in a barn.
I’d come back to this dive for sure. Solid 3-​star dive with a cleaner bathroom than I’ve seen in nicer bars. Cheap and entertaining.

Good Retro Dining Bar!
I went there to order a meal and they were sold-​out, but it didn’t let me down… and neither did the drinks. I’m sure that I’ll be there again!

This is probably the last time I eat at Tick Tock but I might stop back for drinks and sit at the bar and watch all the lunacy. Place is a GOLDMINE for that. Came here late on a Fri nite and was craving a fish fry. The server lady we got was maybe 70? Ordered 2 VODKA and diets to drink. When they came out we could not tell this was NOT vodka. We both asked her twice what it was and we were told vodka. Later upon receiving the bill it said: BAC (in her own handwriting). Anyone who loves booze as much as I do knows what Bacardi tastes like this was Bacardi. Fish fry was gross and fries were bagged, frozen, cold and greasy… yumm. When they took my full plate of food away one would of thought to ask how our food was? Nah. Come to find out I could of gotten any potato side instead of the crap fries but I was never given the option. If you like to flag down your waitress for everything you need and be told what your going to eat/​drink without any input then come here! Maybe Gertrude needs to hang up the orthopedics and retire? Only reason this place gets another star is the staff is (mostly) friendly and there is that excitement in the air while walking to your car at night here that you 1) might get robbed or 2) may get asked to buy rocks. Both are pretty sweet.

Tick Tock draws some of the best crowds of any bar. There is a lot of weirdness. If you are looking for an authentic, weird experience in Cleveland, Tick Tock is where it is at. Places like Austin, TX and Portland, OR claim to be weird or pride themselves on it. Tick Tock is really weird and wants to be normal.
The picture that Steve L posted says it all. A dude straddling over another guy with his knees pinning the other guy’s arms down and his crotch in his face. That is the physical manifestation Tick Tock. It is like Marty’s dance quintet in Big Lebowski. His «cycle».
There is a superb Youtube video of two drunk girls fighting in the daylight outside Tick Tock on Clifton Blvd:
Like that one country singer who sang the terrible song said «I love this bar». To the Tick Tock you don’t stop!