urbanSTL

http://www.barlouieamerica.com/



I lived in Chicago for six years and Bar Louie is very popular with locals and tourists alike. No, it is nothing like P.F. Chang's or The Cheesecake Factory, hell a Bar Louie is opening in Peoria. It is not even remotely a tourist trap. Think Applebee's, except it is not full of cheese-eating suburbanites, it actually has good food and a good beer selection, decent decor, and no fake memorabilia on the walls. Hmm...ok I guess that takes away all of the defining characteristics of Applebee's. Oh well, you get the idea.



And prices are reasonable. It is just a place to go, sit at a bar and get decent food and a beer, and maybe watch a game. St. Louis could definitely use more places like this.

I, for one, am excited about Bar Louie. The bar has a lot of LCD TV's for watching sports, the menu looks good, the place is nice, it's very close to where I live, and it's something new.



Chain or not, if a place is good then I'm there.

"And prices are reasonable. It is just a place to go, sit at a bar and get decent food and a beer, and maybe watch a game. St. Louis could definitely use more places like this."



I'm excited about bar louie opening, man, anything opening in that spot is great after inaction for years is good news. But, doesn't st louis (city?)have more bars per person than any other city? just another random quote I've heard from someone here.

^Where do you get these "random quotes" you're always talking about? "Most bars per person", "least dense city", etc.? I'm just curious because they all come across as just plain made up. If these quotes are coming from one person that you know, stop listening to that person. If this is more Wendell Cox talk......

I've also heard St Louis has the most bars per person in the US followed by Milwaukee. However Harrison, New Jersey is listed in the Guiness Book of World Records as having one tavern for every 395 citizens...

^Interesting stuff, my apologies JCity.

I don't see why it's a bad thing, though. We like to drink here. And there are a lot of people from Illinois and STL County that go to the city to party/hang out.

jlblues wrote:http://www.barlouieamerica.com/



I lived in Chicago for six years and Bar Louie is very popular with locals and tourists alike. No, it is nothing like P.F. Chang's or The Cheesecake Factory, hell a Bar Louie is opening in Peoria. It is not even remotely a tourist trap. Think Applebee's, except it is not full of cheese-eating suburbanites, it actually has good food and a good beer selection, decent decor, and no fake memorabilia on the walls. Hmm...ok I guess that takes away all of the defining characteristics of Applebee's. Oh well, you get the idea.



And prices are reasonable. It is just a place to go, sit at a bar and get decent food and a beer, and maybe watch a game. St. Louis could definitely use more places like this.

That sounds good, maybe I'll give it a try after all. I feared the worst when I heard it was a chain from Chicago. Silly reason to avoid the place, I know, but I get really sick of some locals and their obsession with Chicago. That obsession is usually driven by an inferiority complex about Saint Louis, when oftentimes these people have never really given Saint Louis a chance. It's nice to know that it's free of Crapplebee's-type schlock.



I took a walk in the CWE this morning and checked the place out- it looks very nice, as do the adjacent new businesses that are opening on Maryland Plaza. I didn't see a menu- I don't know if the people setting up removed it, or if I just missed it as I was walking by. Everything looks nice, though, and I wonder when they'll open...

ThreeOneFour wrote: but I get really sick of some locals and their obsession with Chicago. That obsession is usually driven by an inferiority complex about Saint Louis, when oftentimes these people have never really given Saint Louis a chance.

You should consider the fact that most of those in the ThreeOneTwo and SevenSevenThree area codes have an inferiority complex about NYC. Why do you think Chicago has such an obsession with supertall buildings that the market doesn't support? Or, just start a conversation about New York with any Chicagoan. They get even more defensive than a Saint Louisan in a conversation about Chicago. And that is saying a lot!

^It's true.

jlblues wrote:

ThreeOneFour wrote: but I get really sick of some locals and their obsession with Chicago. That obsession is usually driven by an inferiority complex about Saint Louis, when oftentimes these people have never really given Saint Louis a chance.

You should consider the fact that most of those in the ThreeOneTwo and SevenSevenThree area codes have an inferiority complex about NYC. Why do you think Chicago has such an obsession with supertall buildings that the market doesn't support? Or, just start a conversation about New York with any Chicagoan. They get even more defensive than a Saint Louisan in a conversation about Chicago. And that is saying a lot!

Oh, I know all about Chicago's TwoOneTwo envy. And I have nothing against the average Chicagoan, with the exception of their so-called National League baseball franchise...



I just become annoyed with STL-area suburbanites that b*tch and moan about how boring and lame Saint Louis is compared to Chicago, when they know very little if anything about either city. They're self-proclaimed experts about Saint Louis' supposed malaise, even though they've only been to the city for a Cardinals game and/or for a concrete at Ted Drewes. And oftentimes, they know even less about Chicago, it's just that the grass is always greener.



Really, I'm not too worried about finding these folks at Bar Louie to watch the Cardinals, when Harpo's and HotShots are much closer to their homes...

buckethead wrote:St Louis has one drinking establishment for every 1400 citizens.

That's the most bars per citizen for a large city.

Reminds me of the old story that supposedly happened back in the old days: Somebody ran into St. Louis City Hall and yelled "Your Honor, your bar's on fire". Every alderman immediately got up and ran out of the building.

Went to Bar Louie last night...all that was open was the bar, no food yet. IT is really nice, well laid out and a perfect fit for the CWE. Drinks were good and reasonably priced.

Just curious, does it take up the entire former M.P. O'Reilly's space, or just part? If it is the entire space, that is much larger than any Bar Louie I've been to.

It takes up the entire space, but it is all open...not sectioned off like MPO's. Also they have the bathrooms on the first floorinstead of the second floor bathrooms.



Along one side is sitting areas with couches, comfy chairs and nice rugs...it is really well done inside. THe main bar and area is non smoking, but there is a smoking bar as well

I dropped in on Saturday. It looks amazing. far better than most bars that are popular right now. This place will be packed.

I wonder what they did to get the puke smell out?

Looks like they are ready to start serving food. When I passed by today they had a bunch of tables set up outside ready to go.

St.Louis UAB alumni wrote:Looks like they are ready to start serving food. When I passed by today they had a bunch of tables set up outside ready to go.

Ya went there Friday night. They were serving food, and copious amounts of alcohol. All of the outdoor tables were full. The place looks really great. I doubt anyone would recognize this place as part of a chain, if they hadn't already heard of it. Looks like this place is going to be a big hit, for awhile anyway.



I am much more enthusiastic about what Koplar has done to the streetscape west of Bar Louie. The fountain, sidewalk, storefronts all look great. And, what I believe is a first for St. Louis, the tree planters along the sidewalk contain those cool little mushroom speakers which pump out an urban mix of house/trance/jazz - whatever the kids are calling it these days - without being intrusive.



Would be very interested to know what is going in all those storefront spaces.

My wife and I ate dinner here last night. While they have a few kinks to work out, I think this place might be a good fit. Not as expensive as other bar/restaurants in the area, but still they have a modern approach to pub food. For my veggie wife, they had a few vegetarian selections, and plenty for the rest of us. We ate outside, but walked through the space when we were finished. The two bars from MPOs still exist, and there are several nice sitting areas throughout (not all tables, but actually a couple of sofas). With a good execution, this place will be a hit.

Oh yeah, I forgot, the other thing that impressed me was that they got rid of that hideous canopy and restored the entire entrance. Looks a million times better!

I finally had dinner there and was very impressed. The waitresses were good looking, the place was very nice, and the food was good. My only complaint is that they had fliers on the tables for $1 Hamburgers on Tuesday but that doesn't start until next week.



One thing I like about the place is the lounge area if you just want to drink. The place does not feel like a chain at all and is a great fit for the area.

I went to Bar Louie on Saturday night for a couple of starter cocktails. I will agree with some of the posters, waitresses were good looking, service was fast, and the lounge decor was very nice... Overall a nice evening location.



I also went back on tuesday during lunch and tried the Vesuvio melt, very tasty and the outside seating was a great area to people watch... It may be a chain but I like it...



Better than MP O's...

MidcoastSTL wrote:Better than MP O's...

IMHO, that wouldn't be difficult.