Charley O's - Times Square

We were in Times Square last weekend and after walking around all afternoon, we wanted to look for a place to have dinner. We tried to get a table in Bubba Gump but there was a 45 minutes waiting list. So, we continued walking uptown and saw Charley O's.

It looked like a pretty decent place and went closer to take a look at the menu. They were having some specials and the prices were very affordable for Times Square's standard. To seal the deal, the greeter at the door handed us a coupon for 10% of food and a list of the happy hours drinks price. $3 for a bottle of beer and $5 for Cosmos, Margaritas, Long Island Ice Teas as well as some selected wine is a very good deal.

We also liked the music that was playing, some jazzy stuff. We also found out later that they do have live jazz bands at night and also comedy acts. Pretty cool. Charley O's is a Sports Bar/ Grill cum Jazz Bar/Comedy Club. It also seems to be a popular restaurant to go to before a night out at the theaters.

I love the decor of the place. There is two levels, with a huge bar near the entrance. There are also ceiling to floor windows for people watching. Their wait staff were very pleasant and well trained. Our waitress brought us three menus; the regular dinner menu as well as a two different prix fixe menu.

Kevin and I both ordered from this three course prix fixe menu. It came with a choice of the soup of the day or garden salad, a choice from seven different kinds of entrees, ice cream or the famous Lindys NY Cheesecake and coffee,tea or soda. All that for only $19.95!! Like I said earlier, that's really a good deal, considering that we are in the heart of Times Square.

We both chose the soup of the day to start off our meal. It was chicken noodle soup (yay, my fav!). There wasn't really anything to shout about, it's just regular chicken noodle soup. Not too bad, but it wasn't great either.

Kevin ordered the Grilled Sirloin Steak. It came with a side of Parmesan fries and garlic green beans and brocolli. He asked for it to be medium well and it came out perfectly medium well. Not only was the meat was tender and juicy, it also had a really great marinade. Really good.

I ordered the Slow Cooked BBQ Ribs. Mmm mmm mmm...they didn't name Charley O's as one of the best BBQ joints in town for nothing. It was really really good. The meat was so tender and nice, just falling off the bone. I had the same sides as Kevin. We both found the sides to be super delish! I dare say it's one of the best fries I've ever had!

For desert, we both had to try the ever so famous Lindy's NY Cheesecake. It's supposed to be the best NY Cheesecake around. Lindy's (same owner as Charley O's) is so famous for their cheesecake that it was reported that Milton Berle used to frequent Lindy's almost on a nightly basis. Lindy's was also mentioned in one of the songs of the famous musical "Guys and Dolls". So, was the cheesecake as good as what it's made out to be? Well, let me say something. People who know me knows that I am generally not a fan of cheesecakes. However, I really enjoyed my slice of Lindy's Cheesecake! It was yummy! The crust was really thin (unlike most NY cheesecakes that I have tried before) and tasted really rich and creamy. No wonder it's so famous! For a person who doesn't like cheesecake to say that it's good, it must be really really good. Overall, we had a really yummy meal at Charley O's. The food was good and so was the price! I highly recommend this place and I will definitely return again.

Charley O's - Times Square
1611 Broadway,
New York, NY 10019
Tel: (212) 246-1960