Crowley's Dive Bar is Coming to the Campus of John Carroll in University Heights

Crowley Dive Bar is coming to John Carroll University. Credit: Courtesy photo

Crowley’s Dive Bar has quickly made a name for itself in Eastlake (35647 Vine St.) since opening in 2023. The “unapologetically, unglamorous establishment” serves up smash burgers, sports tellie, and comradery — and the formula is paying off in dividends.

Not long after opening their original location, the owners added a second spot in Kirtland (9378 Chillicothe Rd.) while announcing plans for a third in Painesville. Just today, the owners – which includes David Bartulovic, Brendan Kearney, and brothers McPat and Seamus Coyne – have announced plans for location number four. That will be on the newly expanded campus of John Carroll University in University Heights.

“We started looking at John Carroll right after Covid, so it’s been about four years, on and off,” says Bartulovic, a John Carroll alum.

The location – the former Picnic Hill (20621 Fairmount Blvd.) space on Fairmount Circle – is much larger than the previous Crowley’s, says Bartulovic, but the formula will be the same.

“It’s a sports bar concept,” he says. “With our Irish and Croatian heritage, soccer and rugby are the two biggest sports for us but we get a lot of people in for the Cavs and Browns.”

The owners, who run various and separate restaurants, first came together to launch the Fungry food truck. They joined up to purchase a dive bar on a lark and opened the first Crowley’s. It took off.

“We exploded,” says Bartulovic. “It’s loud, it’s fun, and the bartenders have fun with you – and the food’s good. We’re doing about 115 to 130 burgers per day out in Eastlake. We never thought we’d blow up like this.”

Bartulovic says they hope to open in summer, before the start of the fall semester. Painesville should open around St. Patrick’s Day.

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