Grog Shop

Was just here for Freddie Gibbs on Monday. Matter of fact I’ve only been here for rap shows.
It is easily one of my favorite Cleveland music venues.
It’s small, but those hold the best concerts. Close enough to see the artist, and the shows are always cheap. Sound quality is good for a small spot also.

OK, this update is long overdue. The Grog gets 5 stars for holding some of my most ridiculous, embarrassing, and cherished memories within its dirty walls. This place is grungy, small, and perfect. I jump on opportunities to check out live music here – I’ve seen all kinds of artists here and each have put on a great show with the help of this venue. Pop, rock, ska, punk, rap, hip hop. It’s all great at the Grog!
Ticket prices are on point and you can’t beat having a PBR tallboy at a show here.
Just watch out, because a lot of times there are kids here. Mopey teenagers that need a scolding every once in awhile. Which I have shamelessly done, complete with a stern look and little shove.

Cool venue we hit on tour. Great staff, soundman, bartenders, and door people. They have a large merch area to the side of the stage so people can see shirts and stuff for sale. Large selection of beer for a ‘dive’ kinda place! (Awesome)
I hope we get to go back here again sometime… It was a blast!

Comparable in size to the Alrosa Villa in Columbus, but with a definite dive bar atmosphere, my visit to the Grog Shop was everything I expected it to be. Heed the warnings below about bringing quarters. The Coventry Deck, which looks rough to be sure, is nonetheless within comfortable walking distance and requires that you feed the meters with quarters at a rate of 25 cents per each 30 min block. Given that I paid under $ 20.00 to see Meg Myers here, paying about $ 2.00 for parking was not a big deal to me. For a list of municipal parking lots in the area, click here:
Contrary to reports below, my experience with the bartenders was satisfactory. In the interest of full disclosure, this wasn’t a sell out crowd. Even so, I was able to get the bartender’s attention twice within 30 minutes. Be aware that there is a $ 10.00 minimum to open a tab with a credit card. Also contrary to other reports below, the show started promptly at 8:30 pm as it was scheduled. This show was standing room only and, consistent with one review below, might pose a problem for shorter people if they stand in the middle or back. I’m tall enough, so this wasn’t a problem for me. The bathrooms have the same dive bar atmosphere as the rest of the bar, with stickers and graffiti on every wall, which definitely enhances the pissing experience. The toilet, though, looks like a relic from a local prison.
Perhaps the best thing about this place is the fact that it offers a truly intimate experience. I was within feet of the stage and I had an excellent view of the show. In fact, I’m pretty sure I made direct eye contact with Meg Myers. This obviously means we’re a thing now, right? I mean, she wouldn’t have looked at me that way if she wasn’t…alright, I digress. In any case, if you enjoy literally feeling the energy of the show right in front of you, you’ll be able to have that experience. For a sell-​out crowd, you may have to get here early.

Every once in a while we come to check out a live band, last show I saw was DMC (yes minus reverend Run). Bar staff is attentive, free iced water that you can get yourself. Bathrooms are covered in graffiti but entertaining to read while making wee wee. Lots of dancing room. For short people like myself I was still able to see the performers easy.

I have been anticipating a visit to the Grog Shop — many friends and acquaintances list this among their favorite venues to play, and I wanted to check it out. Friendly and street-​smart staff, good beer selection and nice acoustics. Ladies room is a sight to behold (but it works and has warm water and paper products, making it better than 99% of other clubs) — pics don’t do it justice. Go see for yerself.

Neat space. I enjoyed the beer selection and the show. If I am ever in the Cleveland area again, I will be back.
Pro tip: Bring plenty of quarters for parking. Quarters only.

it’s hard to see a show when you’re under 5′ tall so when you do find a spot, you’re lucky to hang on to that spot. when someone tries to fight you for it, be prepared to fight for it… and then be prepared to get
ejected from the show, regardless of how much you paid for the tickets.

Love this place, this is the vibe a music venue should ooze. Good beer selection, very affordable, good service and great shows, enough said. If your the type of person who prefers to sit while watching shows this is not the place for your old huxtable ass.

Ok, the Grog is a Cleveland Heights institution.
Bands have cut their teeth here, from the forgettable to the UN-​forgettable, and it has played host to THOUSANDS of them.
Just look at the graffiti-​covered walls, and you’ll see history in sharpie over every inch. Bands like Flaming Lips, Oasis, Meat Puppets, Sleater Kinney and even people like Henry Rollins have graced its tiny stage with their music and poetry. More recently, comedy in the form of a multitude of local, talented stand-​ups as well as nationally known names like Pete Holmes and MC Chris have started appearing there and there’s no end in sight.
They have a decent bar, fairly typical for a smaller music venue, and there’s really no parking save for street and the metered garage just down the road on Coventry, but it is worth it to see a favorite musical act up close and personal, and soak up the energy of this oasis of sound and culture.
Rock on Grog Shop, rock on:)

Great place! Cool layout, interesting art, arcade machines, good beer, nice staff. Free amateur comedy show on Mondays at 9pm. Cool bands come and play there. I’ll def be back when I’m in the Cleve!

I come to this small Coventry club mostly for the comedy shows, but it’s primarily a music club. It’s a Cleveland institution (probably twenty years old) and the beer prices are pretty good (see picture of blue menu), but the only food they have are the bags of potato chips they sell for a dollar. Luckily, there are LOTS of restaurants near the Grog Shop to visit first.
EDIT: Regarding parking — bring quarters. Even if you find something on the street rather than the nearby parking garage, EVERY parking spot in Coventry has a meter by it. And you WILL get ticketed if you’re still parked there after the meter runs out. Trust me.

Affordable shows, small venue, decent priced beers. Not much more one could want. My favorite was seeing Mates of State w/​benches around the stage set up so that I could sit front row and enjoy the show… always prefer sitting & drinking to standing & drinking.

Great place for live music. Be sure to check out the B-​Side liquor lounge downstairs.

I can safely equate this to Magic Bag in Ferndale. Great little place to see a show. Cleveland style !

This place would probably garner more stars if I could better tolerate the standing, the too-​loud soundsystem, and the questionable bathrooms. That is to say, if I wasn’t old. The Grog Shop does its job well. It’s an intimate venue and you can just about touch the performers. Also of note, they have an excellent beer selection and a quality pinball machine.

This is one of my favorite Cleveland venues. The bands are usually great and the tickets are always cheap. Sometimes I wish the stage were a little higher. There are no elevated areas and the stage is quite low. If you’re not up front, you’re probably going to miss a lot of the show. However, the low stage combined with the small venue makes for an intimate experience. I guess that’s the trade-​off. There’s something special about being able to stand almost next to a performer while they release energy into the crowd. Just make sure you’re aware of your surroundings. Intimate is great, but it comes with its cons. This place can get packed if the show is sold out. If it’s a high energy band, be prepared to deal with concert goers who want get wild and toss beer. I don’t usually see this happen with the softer bands. At any rate, this is NOT a venue for people who just want to sit back and watch a performance. This is dive venue built for a dive experience, which is often very fun if you want to be an engaged member of the crowd. There’s not enough places like this anymore.
They take credit cards, but note that buying a concert ticket with a card will result in a dollar service charge.
I think the sound quality is hit or miss for me depending on the type of music. I’ve heard amazing sound and I’ve heard some shitty sound. At this point in my life, I’m wearing ear plugs to save what little hearing I have left, so it doesn’t really matter to me.
I’ve found the booze cheap for a concert venue. Some dive bars are cheaper, but those joints don’t have bands. Even well booze isn’t overpriced given this is a venue and not a bar that happens to have bands.
My only big gripe is the how the shows usually go very late. I don’t really like getting home at 2 am when I have to be up for work in four hours. If the shows started on time, and there was better stage management for changing bands, this wouldn’t happen. But at least it’s not like Peabody’s where the shows go late because they booked six local high school-​aged bands to open for the two main acts. Those shows are like marathons… the marathon experience never happens to me at the Grog Shop.
I really like that this venue has been getting more harder rocking/​metal acts as of recent. It’s not a metal venue at all, but being able to see the likes of Jeff Loomis, High on Fire, Goatwhore, Municipal Waste, Hank III, and many others at this kind of venue is amazing.
Ultimately, this place gets five stars from me because the ticket cost is low and it provides an intimate space to enjoy a performance, and it allows for a high energy crowd experience.

I’ve been going to shows at the Grog since probably around 1994, when I was too young to get in but I got in anyways. I have seen hundreds of shows at the Grog Shop over the years, both in the current location and the old one.
Shows rarely start on time, so expect to have a long night. And if it’s sold out, don’t expect to be able to see anything. Maybe it’s just the type of music I like that attracts every seven foot tall man in the Cleveland area, though. And they always want to stand in front of me. What the hell is that all about? I wish there was elevated spots in the club, sort of like at Musica, or the old Agora Ballroom. Alas, there’s not.
Best thing going at the Grog Shop right now? The comedy. This is a great spot to take in a comedy show. I prefer the dive bar atmosphere to a squeaky clean, two drink minimum, terrible opening acts comedy club. And lately, the Grog has been bringing in some of the best names in alternative comedy. If you’re looking at the listings and see a Chucklefck night, you should check it out. Who knew Cleveland had so many great comics?

Why didn’t I grow up in Cleveland!!! The 14-​year old version of myself would have been obsessed with this place.
Ok, ok. The acoustics are kind of terrible. And some of the opening bands are REALLY terrible. But the place just has that something that makes you keep coming back.

The Grog Shop is that grungy, hole-​in-​the-​wall music venue that every city should have at least one of.
That being said, it’s exactly how it should be: a small, dark space with graffiti-​covered walls, a hipster beer selection (lots of PBR tallboys), teeny stage and tattooed staff adorning old band t-​shirts. If your head is as bright-​blonde as mine, expect a little bit of judgment for not seeming «cool» enough. But, hey… I don’t mind.
I love seeing live music and yes, I used to be a musician… but I’m not one to sit here and talk your ear off about the acoustics of a dive bar. The Grog is a cool place to see a band because of it’s intimacy and atmosphere, not because it’s Severance Hall.
If you’re looking to see a band and relax around a table with your friends, don’t come here. There really aren’t many places to sit and when the show starts, it’s time to rock out.
One thing I love about this place is the bathroom. I could literally sit in there forever just reading the walls. That’s how you know this place is a legit spot to see a band. all the graffiti!
If there was one thing I could change about the Grog though, it would be the age limit on show nights. I don’t mean to sound like a snot, but I’m not paying a cover charge to hang out with 18 year olds. If you serve alcohol, you should be 21 and over. Period.