Porco Lounge & Tiki Room opened in Cleveland's historic Tremont neighborhood in October 2013. Owner Stefan Was let his passion for tiki lead him into the hospitality business. Porco Lounge is the first tiki bar in Cleveland since the Kon-Tiki
closed in 1976. Was used elements from the Kon-Tiki in the decor for Porco, including some lamps and bamboo from the restaurant. Also used for decor are Was' collections of swizzle sticks and tiki mugs. Was hired Shannon Smith to lead the bar program, bringing his background in craft cocktails with him, resulting in a menu of finely crafted tiki drinks.
watchin_waihine has visited Porco Lounge & Tiki Room.
June 4, 2022, 11:45 AM
Porco is great. Just great.
#1 reason is their passion for the genre. Followed closely by their amazing attitude and good-natured approach as a part of the industry. Yes, the drinks are great.
Always a must-see any time we are in Cleveland. If you are into the bar & cocktail scene in general, you truly don't know what you are missing if you haven't spent a few days exploring Cleveland.
North_coast_tiki has visited Porco Lounge & Tiki Room.
November 3, 2019, 1:01 PM
Visited on a Friday night in November. Small, cozy place with a patio. Limited parking. Waited 30 mins for a table. Staff was friendly but rushed. Not a single patron in Tiki garb. Mostly college hipsters posting pics of their drinks. DJ played classic rock and 80s hits. Decor was pretty solid. Bamboo, thatch, tapa, and tiki mugs. Crossed over a little into pirate territory. Hallway leading to the restrooms smelled like piss, so did the restrooms. Impressed with the drink menu, appropriately priced with quality ingredients and fun garnish. Ordered a Navy Grog, Mai Tai, and a Jet Pilot, which were all great. Didn't care for the paper straws and cubed ice. Food menu is limited. Ordered nachos with pulled pork. Huge serving and hit the spot.
petercmartin1 has visited Porco Lounge & Tiki Room.
August 11, 2019, 3:07 PM
Drinks here were really good. Well made and well balanced. Unfortunately, for me, the ambiance of the place didn't live up to the drinks. It really felt more like a college bar with the tiki theme tacked on. The hip-hop music didn't really help in setting the proper mood. Overall, I just felt the decor was a little strange and jarring. Some really great pieces of art hanging all over the place and some areas were really well done but then other areas felt like I was back in college, at a local watering hole, trying to get as drunk as quickly as possible.
watchin_waihine has visited Porco Lounge & Tiki Room.
June 4, 2022, 11:45 AM
Porco is great. Just great.
#1 reason is their passion for the genre. Followed closely by their amazing attitude and good-natured approach as a part of the industry. Yes, the drinks are great.
Always a must-see any time we are in Cleveland. If you are into the bar & cocktail scene in general, you truly don't know what you are missing if you haven't spent a few days exploring Cleveland.
North_coast_tiki has visited Porco Lounge & Tiki Room.
November 3, 2019, 1:01 PM
Visited on a Friday night in November. Small, cozy place with a patio. Limited parking. Waited 30 mins for a table. Staff was friendly but rushed. Not a single patron in Tiki garb. Mostly college hipsters posting pics of their drinks. DJ played classic rock and 80s hits. Decor was pretty solid. Bamboo, thatch, tapa, and tiki mugs. Crossed over a little into pirate territory. Hallway leading to the restrooms smelled like piss, so did the restrooms. Impressed with the drink menu, appropriately priced with quality ingredients and fun garnish. Ordered a Navy Grog, Mai Tai, and a Jet Pilot, which were all great. Didn't care for the paper straws and cubed ice. Food menu is limited. Ordered nachos with pulled pork. Huge serving and hit the spot.
petercmartin1 has visited Porco Lounge & Tiki Room.
August 11, 2019, 3:07 PM
Drinks here were really good. Well made and well balanced. Unfortunately, for me, the ambiance of the place didn't live up to the drinks. It really felt more like a college bar with the tiki theme tacked on. The hip-hop music didn't really help in setting the proper mood. Overall, I just felt the decor was a little strange and jarring. Some really great pieces of art hanging all over the place and some areas were really well done but then other areas felt like I was back in college, at a local watering hole, trying to get as drunk as quickly as possible.
Unfortunately the music was a big detractor from the otherwise great drinks and food! It is yet another one of those places that if they just embraced the tunes, it would be fantastic. The majority of the patrons seem to really want to 'escape' as many of them were wearing tiki garb and enjoying the well crafted cocktails, but the run of the mill 'bar music' made it feel like just another place to get an expensive (albeit strong and very good) drink. I definitely recommend going there once, but this was my second time and I think I will save my tiki tourism dollars for somewhere that captures the mood better.
Though it may look more "Bar that does Tiki" than Tiki Bar, the team at Porco's not only knows their stuff but loves the art of Tiki.
Great selection of high quality drinks, a lot of fun daily specials and even daily moods.
Weird music choices, I think when I rolled up right after opening there was a 30 minute interlude of music from the Road playing, but I think it was like Jukebox Shuffle Wednesday or something odd.
violetcrumble has visited Porco Lounge & Tiki Room.
May 27, 2019, 8:11 PM
I've been visiting Porco a couple of times a year for the past few years. I love the drinks and the decor! The staff is friendly and the drink quality is consistently high.
I was really disappointed last time I went because they changed the menu design. It's nice looking, but not nearly as cool as the old menu with the drawings. The updated menu has been simplified, and is too corporate looking.
I'm really glad they let me keep one of the old menus on a previous visit!
I liked Porco’s a lot. Drinks were very good. Bartender took the time to talk run with us. The music was too loud and not tiki inspiring. Fixing that would go a long way!
I stopped in during my trip to Cleveland and was very impressed with this place! Lots of 70s reggae, unique tiki mugs and good food made for a unique experience. The staff could have been a bit more stoked on the drinks and overall vibe, but I was still happy to chill for a bit. I recommend the Pain Killer!!
slacksmonster has visited Porco Lounge & Tiki Room.
December 14, 2018, 10:53 AM
I see all the high ratings for this bar and I wonder why. To me this place is awful. Décor is less than stellar. Menu looked extensive until you find out the bartender can't make half of them. Food was close to inedible. And what was with the 80's and 90's rock music? The local hipster dufi crowd the place making it uncomfortable. my guess is they've never seen a tiki mug and get all giddy about them. I don't know. Been to tiki bars around the world and this place is a zero.
I gotta say, I think this place is highly underrated! I've only been once, but despite being absolutely packed, the drinks were made with attention to detail, and the staff was so friendly and knowledgable! Our server took the time ti share the history of certain recipes and really knew her stuff! I appreciate that they serve food (what's with Cleveland and meatballs?), and that they had a vegetarian option. The decor was excellent. I would go back to Cleveland just to visit this place!
Wife and I visited on Sunday, March 12, 2018, during a grand tour of tiki establishments stretching from Milwaukee to Smyrna, Tenn. Well forth the visit.
Wasn't crazy about the music (80's Rock), but everything else was so great I looked right past that. Decor was outstanding with lots of tiki clutter to admire. Drinks were amongst the best I've had anywhere, bartenders were friendly and sent us away with a collector mug by Tiki Diablo and a complementary drink menu, something they didn't have to do and a welcome gesture.
Side windows were open, something that goes against my bias for dark tiki bars, but it was night time and snowing outside. Fun sipping an outstanding Mai Tai while watching the snow coming down in 22 degree weather! Probably the best bar we hit all trip.
While in Columbus for our friends' wedding, my husband and I made the two hour trek to Cleveland just to check out Porco. It was well worth it-great cocktail selection, good balanced drinks, friendly clientele, dark and moody atmosphere and exceptional decor. Thursdays is vinyl night and DJ Max Payola was spinning some fantastic 60s pop that really upped the vibe. We spent the majority of our visit talking with the owner, Stefan, spanning all topics from tiki and mid-century modern to Star Wars and Vespas. If we were brave enough to live in the frozen North, no doubt we'd be regulars here. We went home with one of their custom mugs designed by Tiki Diablo and a genuine sense of aloha from our newly found Ohio ohana.
DJMaxPayola is a regular at Porco Lounge & Tiki Room, and is usually there Last Thursday of the month.
November 17, 2017, 12:56 PM
If coming in-town to visit:
Every Wednesday is Yacht Rock Night:
Raw Bar (Oysters, Shrimp Cocktails, etc.), Daiquiris & the Smooth Sounds of the 70s
Every Thursday is Vinyl Night:
Each week brings a different DJ spinning 45s and LPs all night long, 7pm to Close. Exotica, Garage Rock, Soul and Beyond...
when I landed in Cleveland yesterday I was tired but I need to hit a tiki wishlist spot before work business today Porco lounge was great! A tart passionfruit heart of darkness with a creamy painkiller for dessert. They had lots of great meatball and pork centered small plates but I had eaten during travel so I just had a pepperoni snack roll. I wish I could revisit this place but won’t likely have time. I love the little pig icon too. They had horror movies on the big screen for Halloween so it felt festive. I didn’t capture it but they are serving and cooking with the liquid and decorating with the giant yellow cans of luxardo cherries it’s cold here I would need to live in this tiki bar if I lived here it was cozy and friendly
Last month I had the pleasure of visiting Porco's on a Tuesday night. Business has brought me to Cleveland numerous times, but I had promised myself that I'd visit Porco's finally. It was a fairly quiet night with most of the customers on the patio. I sat at the bar and had a very nice time drinking and talking to the bartender Steve. His recommendation of the Heart of Darkness was appreciated, the drink being very reminiscent of a Hurricane. Steve and i got into a conversation about dark rums and he was nice enough to pour me a little Goslings Old ... gratis. The food menu is thin and was Mexican the night I went. Overall a good experience. Solid A-
Stopped in while in Cleveland for a car show. I love this place, great staff, great atmosphere, and most of all, great drinks. Gonna try to stop in this March after the Piston Power show.
Cheap bastard has visited Porco Lounge & Tiki Room.
October 20, 2016, 6:21 PM
The best bar I've been to since Chicago! So awesome! Great drinks! Souvenier mugs! Awesome bar snacks! A mug collection on display to die for. Bar tenders so cool and one new female bartender with THE BEST hair. Wow....just wow....love this place. The owner works the kitchen. So humble and nice. This is top 5
kortiki is a semi-regular at Porco Lounge & Tiki Room.
March 1, 2016, 7:38 PM
This is my favorite tiki bar. Decorated with relics from the dearly departed Kon-Tiki, this Cleveland landmark serves the best quality tiki drinks I've had... Their Painkiller CLE and Fog Cutter in particular are the easily the most balanced and delicious iterations of these classic cocktails I've had anywhere.
#1 reason is their passion for the genre. Followed closely by their amazing attitude and good-natured approach as a part of the industry. Yes, the drinks are great.
Always a must-see any time we are in Cleveland. If you are into the bar & cocktail scene in general, you truly don't know what you are missing if you haven't spent a few days exploring Cleveland.
On-par with ANY city, anywhere.
Full stop.