Good Time Charlie’s Pub

On a Friday night, karaōke. It was packed. A mixed crowd.
Bouncer Alex is funny.
Manager called a customer fat while they were kicking her out, unnecessary.
Also, I know it was my own risk to play the jukebox near the end of the night, but the manager also turned it off after I put 6 bucks in that would’ve played because I asked for it to be turned on and I heard most of them before close but the first one I missed while it was off.

Extremely disappointed in the service I receive tonight. I’m not one who expects a lot from a place like this but due to my experience tonight I will never patronize this establishment again. I came in to enjoy some late night comfort food with 2 friends. 1 order of cajun fish, 10 wings, a whole pizza & a basket of cheese fries. The basket of fries came out cold and half of the wings were undercooked to the piont there was still red inside. After picking over and half eating 4 wings (between the 3 of us) that should have been cooked a little longer, we stopped trying when we opened 2 that were still bleeding… We brought it to our server’s attention who immediately informed us «I can take off the fries, but because you ate some of the chicken you have to pay for it». I replied they were undercooked & some not done. She quickly grabbed both plates saying she would speak with the owner.
The owner or whoever she was comes over and says I can remove the fries but I can’t remove the wings because there were only 3 left you should have not eaten any of them. I explained no there were 6 left: 2 pulled open that were still red, 3 left untouched and 1 with a piece pulled off it. To this she pretty much replies that we were lying, repeating «I only saw 3» No acknowledgment, no negotiation, no apologies, nothing!!! I told her to cancel the pizza (yes we were still waiting on it) and bring our check. The icing on the cake was our server somehow managed to dropped my friend’s credit card in the garbage so on top of being served undercooked chicken we waited an addtional 10 minutes watching our server dig around in the garbage can trying to fish out the credit card. She eventually grabbed the guy checking ID’s at the door to assit her with his flashlight.
I’m new to the Tampa area and this was one of my favorite dive bars. Been there multiple times for lunch during the week & weekends and our course I came many nights for Karaōke, Always, took my out of town guest there and, I was just there 2 weeks ago celebrating my Birthday with about 10 friends. It’s really sad to lose customer’s over an $ 8 order of undercooked wings and poor customer service.

Such a dive, but perfect for when you want to sing some drunk karaōke. Good pub grub, but stay away from the jello shots!

I went here for the first time last Friday. I will not be returning. Tables were dirty, there were a collection of annoying bar flys from the 70’s.
We had one bill and gave the payee our cash. The bill was paid and as we left, we were stopped and told the bill still needed to be paid! Well they insisted we pay again and that is exactly what happened. We paid AGAIN we confined this by checking our friends account online
So sorry Charley. You need to get your act together.
How many others will or have been ripped off with this scam

Very bad experience Friday night. Someone stole our money for the waitress or maybe one of the waitresses thought it was a tip who knows. The reason I give 2 stars is because management in NO WAY tried to sort the problem. We were even asked to confront the prior currently sitting at our table to see if they pocketed the cash. I mean seriously! But lesson learned. Had fun singing but that just put a bad taste in our mouths! Don’t see how we will ever forget that experience!

If you grew up in the 80’s and remember white laminate counter tops, wood paneling and all the other entertaining décor features of the day, then you’ll be treated to a blast from the past when you visit Good Time Charlies as that’s about when the place was put together and it’s remained unchanged since then. The seats around the bar remind you of an old bowling alley lol.
None of that should be considered a knock on GTC’s, it’s an old school neighborhood bar which accomplishes its primary purpose admirably, and that is to get a bunch of friends together to knock back some drinks and be entertained; who really cares how old the décor is. Prices are reasonable, drinks are strong and watching people do kareoke is hilarious. They’re open late every night of the week so no concerns there.
The only real issue with the place is it gets fairly smokey inside at times, so if you don’t like smelling like a cigarette after a night out, this is not your place.

LOL, what’s not to love about Good Time Charlies. I have been a patron on & off for many years now & always seem to find a reason to return.
The clientele is as unique as the establishment itself. You will find all types of patrons from 3 piece suits to shorts and flip flops. People watching is a personal hobby of mine & this is another great place for me to partake in my hobby.
You can’t really call GTC a dive, but it certainally is nothing to write home about, unless to tell your stories of adventures while there. It is like a «B» grade movie or a homemade potato vodka, even though they do have top shelf liquor available.
I can honestly say 90% of the times I have been there have been really good times, I guess that helps to explain why I keep returning. Usually there is just something in the air that becomes contagious. A bowling teams victory, a job promotion, a divorce party… or just a good time not to work party.
I love the different games & pool tables, it adds to the charm of a décor that never seems to change. As usual, I normally end up sitting at the bar & chatting with the folks behind the bar, as well as around me. Both sides of the bar are usually fairly antimated.
I have to admit, I am not a fan of karaōke & now they have it every night. No… stop the madness, every night is 6 too many! I quit smoking 3 years ago, so that is no longer a reason I like GTC. I really don’t like leaving and smelling like a cigarette, but all things in moderation.
Overall they take their food pretty seriously. It is not just pub grub, but you can get specials and entire meals. I am sure there is no chef back there, but who ever is cooking, usually does okay.
Yup GTC & I go way back & other than the karaōke, I see no reason to mess with our relationship.
What’s a girl to do? If it’s not broken, don’t fix it.

Good drinks. Good times. Kareoke is OK. Prices aren’t bad, but watch your bill. We ended up with an extra round on our tab. Smokey. 3.50 smernoff and 6.00 kettle one

Good Time Charlie’s has been around since ’79 & looks like it came straight out of a TV show. Plenty of seating at the U shaped bar, along with about 20 tables and 10 high tops. They were grandfathered into the smoking law apparently, so there are ashtrays at every table. On the left side, there are three coin operated pool tables, a bowling game and a dart machine.
The drinks are fairly priced, with bucket specials during games, and a happy hour from 11am til 8pm. Bartenders and servers remember you by name, and memorize what you’re drinking. People always play music on huge jukebox, until karaōke starts.
Karaōke is EVERY night! It usually starts at 930, and they use two awesome karaōke DJ’s. Extensive song lists, extremely entertaining, and some pretty good singers! I heard there are people who have been singing there for 20 years!
Food is regular pub food. Onion rings, cheesy bacon fries, and delicious chicken wings. There is always a pretty good special on the board if you get there before 8oclock.
Needless to say, I have had great experiences here, met some awesome older people, and was entertained for countless hours. Jell-​O shots come in those doctor injectors and they have tons of flavors. If you are looking for a good place for a birthday party, bachelorette party, or just a good place to watch the game and not be bothered by bros… this is the place to go.
If you want to start a tab, make sure you have your card or ID ready, as the servers hold onto it.
Plenty of parking in the back!

A pretty cool neighborhood dive bar. This place has been around a long time. I first stopped in in the 80’s. The atmosphere is very laid back. It is a good place to hang out and enjoy a drink or two.

Good Time Charlie is a good time! Karaōke every night, Cold Beer & Friendly staff.
Only suggestion, Stay away from the jello shots!!! Ugh!
Also is alittle smokey!

My hubby and I have been going to Good Time Charles for almost 28 years! We love every bit! The bartenders know how to make a great drink especially when you’ve had a nice long week at work! I would recommend Friday night’s for a party and Saturday for chill mode. anytime is good for darts, pool or even if your into playing golf on those machines, lol. Enjoying a low key Saturday night now!

Really decent although this is a dive bar and you really need to look to find it. Good place to go with some friends but not honestly a place for a first date.

I love, love karaōke and this dive was so much fun! I came with a few friends for a birthday and GTC did not disappoint! Extensive song list and lots of characters on stage belting it out!
Food was good, and drinks were tasty but somewhat hard to come by, which is understandable considering how busy they were. I think they would have been flowing more freely had I stuck to bottled beer instead of mixed drinks, but hey, a lady’s gotta have a cocktail or three!
See you soon, GTC!

Great place for karaōke but food sucks… at least it did at 11:00 pm on a monday 12÷2÷13

Great dive bar that you can actually smoke in. Staff is friendly, good food, and strong drinks! Gotta love free pour…

Great place and perfect peeps. Good food. and an awesome local hangout

A fine neighborhood bar… and not at all a dive. Serves beer, wine, liquor with
lots of specials, shooters and bombs. BTW having a jagermeister chiller machine disqualifies a bar from dive status. Also a fairly extensive menu, also with lots of specials and free hot app buffet on Fridays. Strangely the bar allows smoking even with food… so they must sell oceans of booze.
Big emphasis on entertainment, including karaōke and pool table. Did not sample the food but drinks were good, reasonably priced and served well. Made our escfape well before karaōke cranked up.

Teeeeeeeee-​rashy! But still fun.
You’ll find all kinds here. Chicks with really bad tattoos everywhere, old men that ogle the young ladies, jocks, good old boys, grown men that send girls notes from across the bar on karaōke slips.
I’m not sure I’d call it a dive. They have actual organized activities here and you can probably get almost any kind of typical cocktail.
They have karaōke, of course. There were wayyy too many whiney country songs being sung for my taste.
Also, it was smokey as hell. I was shocked to discover that you can still smoke in Florida bars. I smelled rank when I finally went home that evening… errr morning.

Please keep in mind that the rating is solely based on an experience on a Tuesday and focused on the Karaōke. The bulk of the review will be around that, but I’ll start with a little bit about the bar (which as a dive bar, I’d give it a 3 star rating).
It is rather smokey, as some people have mentioned in their reviews. My eyes are a little red after being there for a few hours. The drinks are really cheap though. 4 bucks for a well mixed drink, and the servers were really welcoming!
Onto the karaōke. The list was pretty decent. It was really long, that’s for sure. I think I read 128 pages written somewhere. Unfortunately there weren’t a lot of options for 90’s rock so I struggled finding songs to sing.
The place was pretty much dead. I think a total of 6 people sang tonight. While it was nice to be able to not have to wait to sing (and I ended up singing 4 times) it was also a little frustrating and embarrassing going up there so soon after I’d gone last.
I can’t really comment on the «crowd» because it was a total of 8 people there for Karaōke.
The KJ was alright. He was personable with his buddies, and inviting to new people, but he didn’t add anything to the karaōke experience. Basically he just played the song and prepped for the next one. He did intersperse a music video once when it was down to just two singers, but he probably shoulda started doing that earlier in the evening.
I can only imagine that this place is just dead on a tuesday and might be better on the weekend.