5 O’Clock Charlies

Place was empty and the food was just plain gross. I should’ve known better when I was the only one seated there.

Had the chicken sandwich and fries, was delicious, you can’t make either any better. And the beer selection on tap is excellent. I used to come to this location a lot when it was the german place. Glad to see they cleaned it up but it’s still open air.

Cool little bar, great service. Had their wraps, fresh and tasted awesome. Fries were great.

Stopped in around 9:30 pm after a long afternoon of travel. We were made to feel right at home. Staff offered great reccomendations on food and a local beer. We loved the food and drink and the service was outstanding. We enjoyed meeting the staff, who were kind enough to offer tips for our stay in Ft. Lauderdale. We will definitely be back while we are here.
Kids raved about the chicken tenders, which are battered in house and cooked to order. They were delicious, as were the blackened chicken nachos. Proof that «bar» food can be very high quality. My kind of place. So glad we stumbled across it!

Awesome service. The beer mixups are awesome. Courtney was awesome. Food was great. The mozerella sticks were off the off the hook good.

If you are planning to drink, you may have found the perfect hole in the wall. If you are looking for great (or even decent), classic american pub/​bar food, you should probably run in the other direction.
There were 5 people in the place when we arrived, none eating, which should have been enough of a red flag. Still, we forged ahead. I’ll start with the good… The woman behind the bar, who also serves the tables, was nice and the service was fast… that was the nice. The soda has a foul, tubes in the pump need a good clean, taste. I got the lemonade which tasted a bit like that acidic smell that creeps up from the bar mats in places that are not cleaned the way they should be. My pals coke had the same rancid taste. Probably not many people buy soda there, so who bothers cleaning it, right? Now, the food. Frankly, it’s terrible. It is the sort of food you eat when you are too trashed to realize how bad it is. Unfortunately, no one in our party drank, so there was nothing to hide the taste or quality of the food. The mozzarella sticks were over cooked, to the point of being hollow, hard, shells of breading, The chicken fingers were decent, the quesadilla was awful, 90% flour tortilla and 10% cheese (not a ratio I’ve ever had before), and they do not give actual salsa with it, they give some sort of chopped up tomato mixed with Italian spices and something like A-​1 steak sauce. Don’t try it, its as bad as it sounds. The double bacon double burger… well the burgers are the sort that come from a bulk club (sam’s or costco), perfect cut circles with the too long in the freezer taste (which of course, made it dry), and the double bacon, well, that would be three slices, which is the same as, and sometimes less, than I get at a place that doesn’t claim to double the bacon (and those places usually have a thick cut, this is the thin, right from the bulk club kind of bacon). There were 18 fries on the plate and no lettuce or tomato. We got more fries with the appetizer chicken fingers than we did the burger. For a $ 12 burger, I would expect quality beef, lettuce, tomato and perhaps a pickle… nope. Just 2 circles of dry meat, 2 thin slices of cheese and three slices of thin bacon folded into a square.
When the waitress came for pick up, she asked if it was good (I’m sure a reaction to our plates which ½ or more full… I had didn’t have the strength to swallow more than 3 bites of my burger…), I looked at the plates and said meh. She took the plates, brought the check and asked for no explanation for our reaction or how it could have been better. To me, that is a sign that she is painfully aware of how horrible the food is and knows full well that without a time machine or a full refund, there is no way to make good on mess of food that has been served.
Proceed with caution… Three apps, a burger and 2 sodas came in at over $ 60 (with our still over 15% tip). I don’t usually give 1 star reviews, especially when the staff is nice, but the food was so atrocious that I feel compelled to warn all unsuspecting travelers.

Stopped in to get out of the rain. What a hidden treasure. Music was great, bar staff very friendly… Definalty recommend visiting…

Hidden gem. I’ve been here about 5 times now. The service is outstanding and the owner is always here working hard. The food is priced well and tasty for bar food. The cheese fries are a comfort food favorite. It’s hidden down a short alley off the beach so it’s never too crowded. Great music, tvs, electronic darts and pool table. Full bar and clean!

I’ll just do a quick list describing this establishment;
+decent beer selection beyond domestics, not amazing but better than average
+friendly service (though we were the only patrons at the time)
+pool tables
+darts
+good tunes
–HOT inside, even a few ceiling fans would make the heat less oppressive
–bathroom, even though we were some of the first/​only patrons of the day, the ladies room stunk like cigarette smoke (there were butts in the toilet)
I think if this place was packed it would be much less attractive to me because of the heat. I like that it has a very open feel to the alley where they have live music therefore no a/​c but fans would definitely make it more tolerable during the summer. I’m sure this place is packed during spring break because of the pool tables, happy hour specials and overall laid back party-​vibe.
I’d go back and grab a beer in the alley bar where it’s much cooler.

I went here Friday night with some friends and it. Was. Awe.some. the lay out of the bar is open and inviting with patio seating and pool tables. Drinks by Tyler are delicious and served with a welcoming attitude & great music! Food… not typical bar food. We had the wings and mozzarella sticks and they were incredible. Obviously fresh food made with care and flavor. The place is literally right across the from the beach! Loved my night there, the most fun I’ve had in a long time :) :)

AMAZING! They are the closest to Hawaiian hospitality that I’ve experienced since moving away from the islands. We got here past midnight (half past to be exact) and I was so hungry — Found this place through some in the biz locals because it was so late! And THE FOOD IS INCREDIBLE– I expected tiny little shrimp drowning in batter — instead this wasn’t the usual bar food at all! The fried shrimp was juicy and fresh and the batter was perfection. The bartender went to ask if they could make us something even though the kitchen had just closed and we got FRESH DELICIOUS FOOD — topped off by what is probably the best service and the most aloha since I’ve gotten to Florida. We are absolutely coming back. This is a hidden gem!!! Thank you 5 o’clock Charlie’s !!!

This is a decent place to grab a beer off the beach. Not too crowded but warm inside. Beer selection isn’t too bad have about 15 plus handles. They have a pool table and play reggae music in the evenings, happy hour a plus. Tried the buffalo shrimp which was good but not sure what’s meant by buffalo. Wasn’t spicy which is typical of buffalo shrimp.

Charlie and his team are awesome. Super (genuinely) friendly. Wish I had time to stay and try the Chicken ala Playa. Happy hour specials, karaōke and live music on regular, This spot is tucked back yet still right across from the beach– a hidden treasure!

It’s too bad 5 O’ Clock Charlie’s isn’t loyal to LOCAL returning customers. Got terrible food here!!!, and was frequenting here during off season!!! and no compensation for the terrible food! They don’t care about loyal customers or locals. Returned MONTHS later, ONLY to support great local band, bartender recognized me, (for the bad service) and still nothing. Too bad, bc I’ll never buy anything from this place again. Not recommended.

Great stop after a day on the beach. Variety of drafts, and liquor. Sit outside; the breezeway is the perfect place to grab some shade and a some air to cool off! Appetizers aren’t fancy, but they’re good and will do the trick.

Greta beer selection. Courtney is a great bartender. Good is very good. 22 taps. Good prices. Just off the beach so there is a great breeze.

Stopped by on a Saturday afternoon with 3 friends. It’s down a side alley so you’d have to notice the sign on the sidewalk to check it out. It wasn’t very busy, and it was nice and breezy so no other issues with lack of a/​c like others mentioned. It is kinda big and open air so if they ever got packed and had a/​c it’s probably pretty uncomfortable.
We got some beers and played pool. They had awesome drink specials (happy hr pricing) about 8 beers only set us back 20 bucks! Schwing! We were able to sit on the outside table and you can actually see the ocean from the tables under the shade which was really awesome. The bartender gave great service and told us about a reggae night they were having later and how it gets crazy packed. A bit divey, but not as gross as other beach dives.

This was my second (and final stop) of the Unilocalers for the YSB15 — Unilocal’s Pirate Takeover @ Liberty Belle after party. A group of Unilocalers dressed in full pirate costumes walked here straight from the Elbo Room, and I am sure it must had been quiet a sight for people driving down on A1A to see… LOL!
This is another small local bar where people come here to listen live music and to have a few drinks. It seems like a hole in the wall place but I think it looked quiet nice inside. For one thing, the men’s room was pretty clean so that’s a thumbs up in my book.
On this evening, the place was very busy. I did see maybe two or three bartenders working behind the bar, but It took forever to get someone to take my drink order. I have watched a lot of Bar Rescue TV show, and I know they should have a better system to serve the customers. Instead of all the bar tenders working in the same area and taking orders from the same corner, they should have assigned each bartender in a designated area so they can take better care of all the customers. While I was waiting, the guy sitting next to me said he waited 30 minutes to finally get someone to take his food and drink order… that’s not good.
Overall, I like the atmosphere and enjoyed the live band playing outside. They got a pool table inside but on a busy night like this, I doubt you can get any shots off the table. I will probably come back with my out of town friends again, hopefully they figured out a better system behind the bar by then.

I happened to come here after the YSB15 Liberty Belle cruise. Seems like a hole-​in-​the-​wall place where people come to listen to live music, drink, and hang out. The bar was packed, but that’s to be expected on Saturday night in Ft Lauderdale beach.
One complaint I did have is that it was really hot inside the place, although, it’s April in South Florida and that means it’s hotter than the ninth circle of hell from now until the end of October. Please turn on the A/​C or some fans next time!!!

The hole in the wall bar was loaded with lots of people and there was an outside band who was suffering along with the rest of us in no A/​C. It’s a must in South Florida and our asses had to drench in sweat while we hung out consuming drinks. We didn’t stay long and I was happy to get out of there. It definitely wasn’t 5 o’ clock there!