Crowley's Dive Bar plans two new Lake County locations
Mar. 27—Less than a year after opening Crowley's Dive Bar in Eastlake, four local restaurant owners are preparing to bring their blend of smash burgers, sports interests and Irish and Croatian heritage to Kirtland and Painesville.
The self-described "unapologetically unglamorous" restaurant and bar is set to open its Kirtland location on April 1 and its Painesville location in the late summer or early fall. Co-owner Brendan Kearney said that each location will offer an "almost identical" menu and the "same feel" as the Eastlake establishment, which is located at 35647 Vine St.
The Kirtland Crowley's will open at 9378 Chillicothe Road, which is the site of the former Just One More Tavern.
Kearney described the former tavern as a "neighborhood staple" and said that a number of its former owners and employees will help with the new restaurant. The Kirtland Crowley's will also offer Just One More's jumbo whole wings.
"We've always wanted to be in Kirtland," he said. "We've got a really nice relationship with city officials there, we do events with the Fungry Food Truck throughout the year in Kirtland and we got to know everybody pretty well."
The Kirtland Crowley's will be open from 11 a.m. to closing time on weekdays and 7 a.m. to closing time on weekends, according to its website. The kitchen will be open until 10 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, until 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Sundays.
"We are elated this group has decided to invest in Kirtland," said Mayor Kevin Potter. "It's another instance of Kirtland catching the eye of the surrounding business community. We know Crowley's will quickly work to become part of the Kirtland community and we couldn't be happier to have them here."
Later this year, the Painesville Crowley's will open at 77 S. St. Clair St. Kearney said that Crowley's will conduct market research to consider unique food options for that location.
"Landing a Crowley's location in Painesville is an exciting win for the city," said city Economic Development Director Susan Crotty. "Having their award-winning burgers and variety of food available in our downtown, especially during evenings and weekends, helps to create the vibrant atmosphere that we are seeking to achieve with our revitalization efforts."
"We are super excited about the revitalization happening in downtown Painesville and are glad to be a part of the amazing growth in the city," added co-owner David Bartulovic in a city news release. "We can't wait to bring our unique casual dining to central Lake County."
Kearney said that he, Bartulovic and McPat and Seamus Coyne partnered to open Crowley's last June. Since then, the restaurant has sold nearly 30,000 burgers.
The bar reflects its owners' sporting interests.
"We're a supporter bar of soccer and rugby, and then obviously of local Cleveland sports, and we try to be kind of like a hybrid sports bar, Irish and Croatian pub, but at the same time really driving home the dive bar feel," Kearney said.
He added that Crowley's opens early on weekends to show English Premier League soccer games. It also cheers on local high school teams, and the Painesville location will support Lake Erie College athletics.
Crowley's also reflects its owners' Croatian and Irish heritage. The bar's website states that it is named for Thomas Crowley, who came from Ireland but later fought and died for Croatia in the 1990s during that country's war for independence.
The four owners all came to Crowley's with experience running restaurants in Willoughby, Kearney said. He and the Coynes are partners in the Wild Goose, Nora's Public House, Fiona's Coffee Bar and Bakery and Mickey's Ice Cream and Hot Dogs, while Bartulovic owns Sol. All four are partners in the Fungry Food Truck.
Kearney said that the owners are "really excited" about the new Crowley's locations.
"We appreciate all the support from the Eastlake community and the surrounding neighborhoods that have allowed us to feel comfortable taking the risk and going on and opening new locations," he said. "We're just excited to grow and be part of new locations, new communities and let everybody see what we have to offer."
More information is available at crowleysdive.com.