Shawn's Irish Tavern

What Shawn's Irish Tavern does

Shawn's Irish Tavern is a privately held, locally owned bar and restaurant operator serving the Toledo, Ohio metropolitan area since 1968. Originally founded as Shawn's Back Door, a small neighborhood tavern in South Toledo, the business was rebranded as Shawn's Irish Tavern in 2004 following a full renovation that doubled seating and expanded food preparation capacity. The company now operates two reported active locations — Waterville (opened November 2009) and Sylvania (opened March 2012, on St. Patrick's Day) — and maintains a community-rooted identity as a family-friendly sports bar.

The company offers an American/Irish pub menu of appetizers, wings, sandwiches, pizzas, salads, dinners, and desserts alongside a full bar with draft beer. Distribution is primarily dine-in service, with takeout enabled through the SpotOn online ordering platform (linked from the company website) and a party room at the Waterville location accommodating private events for up to 50 guests. Marketing channels consist of organic Facebook pages for each location, AdRoll and Google display retargeting, and a WordPress-based website with online ordering, party room booking forms, and an employment page. The technology stack is commodity restaurant tech with no proprietary platforms, no disclosed data assets, and no AI/ML capabilities.

Revenue is generated through three streams: (1) food and beverage sales (dine-in and takeout), (2) catering and private events (party room rental with plated or buffet options, open bar or cash bar), and (3) transaction-fee-based online ordering through SpotOn. Target customer segments include local families and individuals, youth sports teams (notably little league), and private event hosts. The company has no external capital, no franchise operations, no disclosed management team beyond local ownership, and no plans visible in the data for geographic expansion beyond the Toledo metro.

Name

Shawn's Irish Tavern

Legal name

Shawn's Irish Tavern

Website

https://shawnsirishtavern.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1968

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Shawn's Irish Tavern is a family-owned bar and restaurant operating two locations in the Toledo, Ohio metro area since 1968. It serves American and Irish pub food, draft beer, and party room rentals for private events to local families, youth sports teams, and community groups.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Casual Dining / Sports Bar & Restaurant

NAICS

Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) (72241), Full-Service Restaurants (722511)

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810), Retail-Eating Places (5812)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYTHAFAEAA

Neighborhood & Sports Bars

Travel & Hospitality/Foodservice & Beverage (Restaurants, Cafes, Bars)/Bars, Pubs & Nightlife Venues

SECONDARYCRANACAA

Neighborhood Bars & Taverns

Consumer Products & Retail/Tobacco, Alcohol & Cannabis Retail/On-Premise Alcohol Retail (Bars, Pubs & Taprooms)

SECONDARYTHAFACAC

Family-Style Restaurants

Travel & Hospitality/Foodservice & Beverage (Restaurants, Cafes, Bars)/Full-Service Restaurants (Casual & Fine Dining)

Keywords

• Casual dining restaurants
• Sports bar services
• Private event catering
• Pub food menu
• Takeout ordering service

Headquarters

HQ city

Waterville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Food and Beverage Sales: Core revenue from serving prepared food and alcoholic beverages to dine-in and takeout customers. Menu includes appetizers, main courses, pizzas, sandwiches, salads, kids meals, and desserts with full bar service.
2. Catering and Private Events: Party room rental and catering services for corporate meetings, birthday parties, funeral luncheons. Offers plated or buffet options with open bar or cash bar choices. Most parties consolidate to one bill.
3. Online Ordering Platform: Third-party online ordering through SpotOn platform for takeout orders. Customers place orders through external link to SpotOn.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Shawn's Irish Tavern operates two family-friendly sports bar and restaurant locations in the Toledo, Ohio area, serving American and Irish pub fare (appetizers, wings, pizzas, sandwiches, salads, dinner entrees, kids meals, desserts) alongside a full bar with draft beer selections. In addition to dine-in service, customers can place takeout orders online via the SpotOn platform, and the Waterville location offers a private party room (capacity up to 50 guests) available for corporate meetings, birthday parties, funeral luncheons, and other group events with customizable plated or buffet catering and open bar or cash bar options.

Product overview

Shawn's Irish Tavern is a multi-location family-friendly bar and restaurant serving the Toledo area since 1968. The company operates two locations (Sylvania and Waterville, OH) offering dine-in services, draft beers, and sports viewing. Additional services include online ordering via SpotOn platform and party room rental at the Waterville location for private events up to 50 guests. The menu features American pub fare including appetizers, pizzas, sandwiches, salads, and dinner entrees.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Dine-In Restaurant and Bar Service Family-friendly sports bar and restaurant service offered across two Toledo-area locations (Waterville and Sylvania), featuring an American/Irish pub menu including appetizers, wings, pizzas, sandwiches, salads, dinner entrees, kids meals, and desserts, plus a full bar with draft beer selections and sports viewing. Customers dine in a casual neighborhood atmosphere seven days a week with extended Friday-Saturday hours.
• Online Takeout Ordering Takeout ordering service enabling customers to place orders online through the SpotOn platform for pickup at either the Waterville or Sylvania location. Provides an alternative to dine-in for customers wanting pub fare and bar-style food at home.
• Party Room Rental and Private Event Catering Private event space at the Waterville location with capacity up to 50 guests, available for corporate meetings, milestone birthday parties, funeral luncheons, and other group gatherings. Includes customizable plated or buffet catering menus, open bar or cash bar options, laptop hookup to a large TV, private entrance, and ample parking, with most events consolidated to a single bill.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• SpotOncoreTechnology or IntegrationThird-party online ordering platform powering takeout orders at both Shawn's locations. Customers access ordering through dedicated SpotOn URLs for Waterville and Sylvania.
• AdRollminorGTM or Marketing PartnerDisplay advertising partner enabling retargeting advertising. Cookies/pixels placed on visitors' computers to understand interests and serve targeted ads on other websites.
• GoogleminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAdvertising partner for display advertising campaigns on Google's ad network.
• Shawn's Back 9minorOthersGolf-related partner referenced on Sylvania location page. Sylvania page includes 'Reserve Tee Time' link to shawnsback9.com. Likely a golf outing or adjacent business.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• TGI Fridays: Casual bar-and-grill chain serving American comfort food with full bar. Comparable mix of dine-in family meals and bar trade, competing in the same local market space.
• Buffalo Wild Wings: National sports-bar chain serving draft beer, wings, sandwiches, and family/group dining with sports viewing. Most directly comparable competitor to Shawn's family-friendly sports-bar positioning.
• Chili's Grill & Bar: Casual full-service chain with bar, burgers, sandwiches, and event-friendly seating. Directly comparable in family-friendly bar-and-grill positioning and bar-driven revenue mix.
• Applebee's: Casual-dining chain offering American pub-style fare, full bar service, and a family-friendly atmosphere. Closely mirrors Shawn's dine-in model combining comfort food and alcohol service for families and groups.
• Quaker Steak & Lube: Sports-themed casual dining chain with a beer-centric bar, wings, and family seating. Closely comparable to Shawn's sports-bar identity with draft beer focus and family-friendly seating.
• Outback Steakhouse: Casual-dining chain with full bar, family seating, and group-friendly dining. Comparable dine-in family and group-event positioning, with bar sales as an important secondary revenue stream.
• Smokey Bones: Sports-bar and BBQ chain combining casual dining with bar service and sports viewing. Overlaps with Shawn's sports-bar atmosphere, family-friendly positioning, and group/event use cases.
• BJ's Restaurant Brewhouse: Casual-dining chain offering pub food, in-house beer, sports viewing, and family seating. Comparable concept combining comfort food, draft beer, and group/family occasions.
• Bagger Dave's Burger Tavern: Regional sports-themed burger-and-beer tavern with neighborhood tavern atmosphere and family seating. Closely comparable independent-style concept with sports identity and beer-driven bar trade.

Broad incumbents

• Hooters: Established sports-bar brand serving wings, burgers, sandwiches, and draft beer with strong sports viewing identity. Broader incumbent competing in the same casual bar-and-grill segment, though narrower demographic positioning.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Shawnswaterville
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/shawns-irish-tavern

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Shawn's Irish Tavern