1921 Lane Avenue South
Jacksonville, FL 32210-2741
(904) 783-8237

Tad's Store Front

If you have been in Florida for more than 20 years you might remember a chain of restaurants known as The Clock Restaurant. You can still see the distinctive look around the state but very few of The Clock’s are still around. You will notice the style and see them in Palatka (now as a porn shop) and in south Florida as various pawn shops. But in Jacksonville the old Clock Restaurant is now Tad’s. 

Tad’s has a tradition in Jacksonville and is a favorite for those on the Westside of town. As a matter of fact right there on the menu is a drawing of the original Tad’s dating back generations. On the menu they have listed the long time motto of  “A Place to Meet and Eat” . The original location of Tad’s was close to Park and Forrest Streets. Much of their pride comes from the tradition of home-style and country cooking. That pride is displayed on the front of the take out menu by saying “We will never knowingly serve any item that is less than fresh and of top quality”. 

The time of day that I visited Tad’s was in the early afternoon on a weekday. It was a little later than the lunch rush, so the restaurant was less than half full of customers. Looking at the customers I could easily tell that I was the youngest patron in the place by close to 20 years. There were older businessmen signing papers and elderly couples talking about the weather. The wait staff was very attentive and quite different. To say they are different sounds odd and I do not want to take away from them and their quality as a staff. But they looked a bit rough for a family restaurant. There is no dress code for the staff whatsoever. All the servers were in regular old t-shirts, shorts, and sneakers. My server appeared to be in her early 40’s and was well covered in tattoos. Let me stress again that she was very sweet and that I acknowledge tattoos or ragged clothes do not make a person any less of a person. It is just that Tad’s does not have a high standard for anything remotely formal. 

My server greeted me as I came in and was at my table as soon as I sat down. I let her know I would like to get an unsweet tea and a water. As she left I looked at the menu and was wishing that I had stopped by on a Monday. Because Monday’s special is Meatloaf, and that was what I was craving. I decided not to go with the special of Wednesday (which was Beef Tips, Pot Roast, or Spaghetti and your choice of veggies). I instead decided to be a little healthy (in theory) and get a vegetable plate. The four vegetables I went with were cottage cheese, green beans, squash and macaroni and cheese. Okay so mac n cheese and cottage cheese are not really veggies…I know. The plate was served with corn muffins as well. These muffins were wonderful. Now I must be honest with you the reader. I said I would be a little bit healthy. Yes I did eat both muffins and yes I did include butter on them. Also, yes I did use salt on the mac n cheese. Also the squash was not fried, I know you are surprised. It feels good to be honest with you and to let you know exactly what I did. And, it was delicious. The green beans were fresh and I might even say that they were snapped by a grandmother on a front porch somewhere. That is how they tasted, just that fresh. The squash was equally as good. The cottage cheese was good also. My guess is that it was 4 % meaning full of fat. 

After waiting for just a little bit longer for a refill on my water than I would have liked, I was offered a home baked dessert, either strawberry shortcake or a Coca Cola Cake. That’s right y’all, a Coca Cola Cake with chocolate icing. Now remember I am trying to eat healthy. With this in mind I decided not to get a dessert. That is not saying that I did not want it, but apparently they offer these dishes regularly. One of these days soon I will stop by to indulge in a Coca Cola Cake with some ice cream. 

Side of Tad's Building

Sitting there in this little diner with great history I did not feel like I was in a metropolitan city. Instead I felt like there should be a farm in sight of the parking lot. The food is very good. It is also home-style. They also offer sandwiches such as a tuna melt, egg salad, fish, hamburgers and BLT’s. Everyday they offer a variety of different daily specials. When you stop by you do need to try some of the very fresh vegetables. You can also get breakfast at Tad’s. The breakfast menu includes pork chops, hot cakes, ham steak, and even an USDA strip steak. The sodas they offer are of the Coke family and the tea is from China Mist.

 Review by Pie, email:  pie@piesplate.com