Bar Louie Charlotte – University City

I’ll start off by saying that the 3 times I went there to eat, the food was delicious, BUT 2 of those 3 times the food took longer than a hour to come out… the service is horrible, I can understand maybe that they are backed up in the kitchen but the waitress barely checked on us. I had to go to the bar to get a water because the waitress kept «forgetting to bring it». I got my food before I got a WATER, and my food took about a hour and a half to get. If this place wants to stay open then they need to get more servers and more cooks.

Spinach dip took 45 minutes to come out and was cold (3xs). Had the BBQ Chicken flatbread. It was delicious and the drinks from the bar was excellent. Didn’t like that there was no hostess to seat you either… Overall, food was great, drinks were excellent, service needs work

Just an absolute awful experience a few nights ago. To be clear, I typically enjoy Bar Louie locations pretty much wherever they are. Friday night was not one of those nights. It surprised me that the bar and restaurant were not crowded when we got there, but now I know why. Service was poor, attitudes were negative, and it took forever to get anything. Everyone working there looked grumpy or had very cynical or sarcastic comments to make. Didn’t look like anyone working enjoyed spending any part of their lives there and they wanted to pass it on to their guests.
Since we had already eaten across the street we had just stopped in for some drinks and dessert before heading back to the hotel. Mistake. We perused the dessert menu and one member of our group decided to get the chocolate cake. Then the waiting began. After 5 – 10 minutes we talked to the bartender about their desserts and asked about how they made them or whether they were made in-​house, etc. His response? «It takes too long and costs too much to make. Nobody buys that crap.» WOW… Nice job building value in your company, your product, and your guests’ confidence in their decision. While I do appreciate the honesty of telling us they don’t actually make the cake, they could probably form their response with a little more tact.
The waiting continues. After about 20 – 25 minutes of waiting on the cake we are ready to scrap the order altogether, especially since we were waiting a ridiculous amount of time for a pre-​made purchased cake that they just needed to slap on a plate. When we decided to pay up and leave we got nothing but grief from the staff about not wanting the cake anymore. What a miserable place to be — whether working there or dining there.

I have been here once before on a first date and because the date didn’t go so well I never came back. It wasn’t the restaurant..
I’ve been passing the place up recently as I’ve headed to the boardwalk over the past few months and decided to give it a try. I was not disappointed. The waiter was wonderful and had the bartender make me a concoction because while I like a little fruit I don’t like overlay sweet or carbonated beverages. My specially made strawberry mojito was perfect. Then my meal was the jerk chicken and shrimp lettuce wraps. Wow! If you like spicy these will not disappoint. You get to make them yourself so you can control the heat but the jerk flavor is delicious. I will definitely be back again.

Place has promise –location, ambiance. Food and service — needs work.

Pretty good bar food. Very overpriced. The atmosphere was dark and dingy looking. It is ok to go and have an appetizer or a quick drink, but that’s pretty much it. Would probably go back if I wanted something quick.

I went here on a Sunday night. Not very busy at all. Our waitress was telling us how great the food was and how we should expect amazing service and all this and that. Sadly, she didnt come back for a good 10 minutes or so. She said she got busy, but with only a few tables in the place occupied, I was wondering how that could be. They didnt seem to lack waitstaff either as I saw a good 5 – 6 of them milling about. Her and one of the bartenders didnt seem to know about NASCAR when we asked to have that put on a TV. I ordered a bottled beverage, and she had to come back and confirm with me what it was, and im glad she did because it wouldnt of been right. The food was pretty good. Pretty nice atmosphere. Our waitress was one of those types that seemed to think she was really good at what she does, but she really wasnt. I’d try this place again down the road.

Great food and drink specials but service needs improvement!!! There’s no hostess so when you walk in you’re confused on where to go. Then someone yells «sit wherever you want!». Oh, and they need a bust boy pronto! Customers standing but nowhere to sit because they tables are full of dirty dishes. Just come for the food and drink specials on Wednesdays.

I see mixed reviews on this place. Service was fantastic by Noël and Ryan. I ordered the Buffalo Chicken Flatbread which was pleasing to the palette. This coupled with a No Da Red Rumble draft (local brew) made my meal complete. You can enjoy conversation with the staff or watch the ball game. Your choice. I will come again.

If I could give less than a 1 star I would!!! I travel for a living… literally it was the worse service (first and foremost) and food I have had in a very long time. Horrible really just doesn’t even cut it!!! I can get better service and food from McDonald’s!

I returned to Bar Louie in the University area of Charlotte almost a year after my first disappointing visit. This time, instead of a workday lunch, I went on a very slow Sunday evening. In other words, there were customers sprinkled throughout the restaurant, but about 80−90% of the tables were open. We were promptly greeted by our server and served our drinks. The disappointing aspect was with how long it took to get our food (AGAIN; see my previous review). All we ordered was a burger and a chicken sandwich. And it takes over 30 minutes? With a restaurant that’s barely occupied? What is with this location? I’ve gone to other Bar Louies in different cities when it’s been jam-​packed and was delivered food promptly. Why can’t this Charlotte location operate properly? VERY disappointing. The food was excellent, but something seriously needs to be done about the kitchen (and possibly management).

I had been here twice in December of 2013 and didn’t enjoy it much… Food or service.
My visit yesterday for $ 5.00 martinis and ½ price appetizers was much better! The food was good, fresh and hot. We had the chips with 3 dips, buffalo chicken flatbread and a shrimp crostini type dish. The martinis were a decent size and very good.
This may become a regular Wednesday spot!

Went here twice for lunch while in town, since I’ve been to other BL locations and always liked the food here. Got the build your own fish tacos, which were fresh and very good. But the second trip here I had to get the turkey burger with giardiniera and tater tots, mmm. Been to several locations and none of them disappoint. They’ve always been friendly and it’s always clean, two important things for me when eating.

Stopped in on a Wednesday afternoon. Nobody there and I mean nobody else. Nice selection of draft beers. I had a few of these OMB Coppers which are local I understand. One of the best amber pale ales I’ve had. Except they were $ 7.10 each. Ouch on a stick. While there I munched on the appetizer of tater tots cover in cheese, scallions, bacon and a hot pepper mix. Super good. Seemed like a good place to drink beer. I’d go back again.

This place tries hard to not be like a regular bar, but a cool bar (Mean Girls reference, anyone?). When you walk in, you can walk right into the area/​seating of your own choosing. There’s no hostess at the door so don’t waste your time waiting at the front to be acknowledged.
Since this is a bar, there are plenty of drink specials available throughout the week. I’d suggest that they also start offering entrée/​app specials because their food is mediocre at best and not worth full price.
Besides the food, Bar Louie suffers from incredibly S-​L-​O-​W service. The two times that I’ve been here, the place hasn’t been packed but with the service I’ve experienced, you would’ve thought they were dealing with CIAA-​level crowds. On both occasions, I’ve had waitresses who seemed to forget to that they had food to bring to tables. On my last visit, my table waited at least 20 – 30 minutes for food to arrive. All that was ordered was a salad, sliders, and chips with salsa & guac.
Bar Louie is good for a drink (or two) and to catch up with friends but don’t expect to do both over your food.

I feel like this place should be a little more popular. Maybe it is the odd location, or the fact that it is a chain, but it was a nice surprise. The décor is nice and relaxing. It feels like a casual lounge.
The drinks were really good, too. They have tons of martini, cocktail, beer, and wine options. They also have nice ‘small plate’ items and snacks to complement the drinks.
Bar Louie is a fun place to hang out with some friends or a date, and try a variety drinks and snacks. I wish it was closer to the metro area, but definitely glad we checked it out.

Slow service but great food and friendly folks. Ordered Chicken Street Tacos for lunch and they were incredible. Massive serving of spicy, white meat chicken with all the fixins’. Great healthy choice.

Within walking distance to our Hilton hotel, this restaurant/​bar is loud and large! They had great HH deals, and I went with their version of a peach bellini that included peach vodka! Woo wee, it was a good one, that I had 2!
Most of us opted for their flat breads (tasty!) and burgers, and I got the fried chicken sandwich with tator tots (how often do you get to eat these at a restaurant?) with a side of mac and cheese which is a must for me!
Service was pretty good for our party of 15, and our food came out quickly enough! My fried chicken sandwich was perfect, that I annhilated the whole thing! Tator tots were the perfect complement to the greasiness of my meal. It was a hit with my peers. Mac and cheese, I didn’t care so much for it, although everyone else liked it. It wasn’t the creamy cheesiness of mac and cheese that I enjoy.
Prices are really fair here too, and would be back if I was ever in the area!

I went here right after they opened on my birthday and nothing really stood out.
There was lots of hype after this place took over the old Smokey Bones building.
They had a few «promo days» with free apps and whatnot. A lot of my peers went.
When I decided to try it out, the food was alright, drinks were alright (pricey), and the waitress was sweet and attentive.
The one thing that made me say «what the heck» was when my friend ordered calamari and there were literally five measly strips stuffed into a martini glass. Cute way to rip off customers and make it look like they’re actually getting a lot of calamari for the buck.
I would never go out of my way to eat here and have never said «hmmm I’m craving bar Louie tonight.» But it’s not terrible either.

Came here last night. Service was great and the food was just as good. They have a full bar but also have a wine selection as well. I had the buffalo chicken flatbread which was really good and different for me. This place is pretty new so it looks great inside and has a nice ambiance too. This is a place where you can come and hangout with the homies and watch a game or take someone out for a low key date for good food and conversation. There’s plenty of different types of seat selections too.
They also had live jazz music last night, where local musician Harvey Cummings and his band did a great job mixing traditional jazz music with a little bit of RnB and neo soul.
Overall, had a great time and I’ll definitely be back.