Loosey’s

Open late, but the food wasn’t too memorable. It wasn’t bad but wasn’t great, either. Strange mix of décor and vibe.

Sometimes you want a restaurant that serves drinks, sometimes you want a bar that has its food game on-​point. If I saw Loosey’s as the former maybe 4 stars… but this joint is a roaring nighttime spot that happens to stand out with both food and service. Embrace the divey and enjoy the decision!
The Space
Just a block or two west of the main Downtown area, Loosey’s gives an immediate dive bar vibe from the exterior. Black paint and brick give a rowdy first impression. Step inside to wood floors, alcohol brands, and worn furnishings that prove the spot is bustling when it matters.
For it being main area Gainesville, the venue is pretty large: the large bat is immediately visible when walking in. To the right are some games (pool, darts) ad to the left a stage. When the early hours come expect to find tables but at night know there will be people rocking out!
The Service
This crew can get busy but, again, it’s a bar with some table service. Depending on what is happening you can get your food orders a little delayed, but overall drink pours and eats are swift. Never have I ran into rudeness or mistreatment even on rowdy evenings and that, my Unilocalers, is hard to find.
The Goods
Quickly, the bar offers an extensive liquor selection that will satisfy all but the snootiest. Craft beer game is rockin’ and even includes a monthly featured beer at $ 3.50 a pint. Not bad for an Everyman beer option. They take care of you concerning booze strength where possible.
Food though? Rock-​solid! From the Truffle-​Parm fries (A) to the Veggie Burger with Jalapeño Aioli (B+) you’ll be shocked to find yourself:
— drunk
— hungry
— satisfied
at a late-​night bar venue that’s downtown.
Final Thoughts
As mentioned, there may be ways where you could criticize aspects of this place because of its aesthetics but, accepting it as it intends to be, Loosey’s nails the late-​night drink & pint atmosphere a growing adult needs.

Loosey’s is the best dive bar in town. Locally owned, great bartenders. Think local «cheers» bar. Ask for Pete downtown.

Best burgers in town. The staff is super nice and helpful and they have live music regularly. I come here every once in a while while the farmers market is going on to grab a burger or some wings.

Great bar with great beer and great people. Only charge a cover during special performances and has very fair beer prices. The food here is some of the best bar food around.

My husband and I were looking for a place to listen to live music at, so we came across Loosey’s. We went on a Friday evening, parking was a bitch so we had to pay. There was also a $ 5 cover to listen to the music. The local musicians they had were good, crowd was small. They had a good selection of beers on tap, and quite a few options for food. We tried the truffle fries which were really good.

Great food. Great drinks. Awesome staff. One of the best places in gainesville if you are thirsty or hungry or want to see some great bands.

This place has changed since I was in college. Used to go here with the coworkers after work to have some drinks (or a lot of drinks) and before I would never imagine eating here but the food here is AWESOME. Had the korean style chicken wings with sriracha honey glaze, AMAZEBALLS. Friend had a burger with bacon and avocado which was also great. They also have a great selection of beers and the service is great as well. Will definitely have to venture here for food more often when I’m back in town.

Nice selection of drinks and the waiters really encourage you to try samples. Big surprise was the big tasty burgers. Nice size and come with the basic. However if you want more than lettuce and tomato be aware of the +0.50 charge. This place has everything you except when you think of dingy dark bar in a college town.

Description:
I discovered Loosey’s about a year ago with some friends of mine. We heard that they had $ 6.00 Wednesday specials on burgers and knowing us, we were in the car and on our way before any of us could suggest another place. I’ve been three or four times now and I seem to recall good memories. My last visit was about a week ago and I’ll focus on that experience a little more.
Food & Service:
First off, my review is solely based on going to Loosey’s on a Wednesday for $ 6.00 (base price) burgers. I cannot comment on any of their other foods with accurate information besides that they do have specials on other menu items. For the size and quality of the burger for that price, it’s pretty unbelievable. You won’t find anywhere in Gainesville that can offer the same value. The Top comes close but I haven’t heard of any specials on theirs. My burger has for the most part always been cooked to my liking. It might not be perfect every time but again not complaining for the price. I do want to add though that depending on what you add to your burger, that price could go up a lot. I usually just get a fried egg and some cheese for like a buck fifty more. If you’re feeling adventurous though, get the parmesan truffle fries — very yummy. I’m also a fan of their garlic aioli as well as their beer mustard. Sauces are twenty five cents each so might as well try one. Service has usually been friendly here but I’ve noticed they can be slow and unresponsive at times. We had a moody waiter once but with that many people coming in on a Wednesday night, I can understand.
Final Thoughts:
All in all, I would recommend Loosey’s to anyone craving a burger worth eating. I’d say the regular price puts it pretty even with the burgers at The Top but the Wednesday special cannot be beat. The only thing I could find annoying about this place is the lighting is quite dim, seating area isn’t too large, and music is sometimes played too loud. At the end of the day, it is a bar. Just a heads up in case you wanted to catch up with some friends and didn’t feel like using your «outside voice».

Fantastic meal, delicious beer selection. Definitely a dive ‘towny’ bar where everyone knows everyone.
Korean BBQ sliders are no joke, they’re sooooo good! Bun is buttery and toasted and gives the soft shredded pork a fantastic texture– melt in your mouth with a little crunch… mmmm!
Truffle cheese fries were unbelievably addicting– would be great with any meal and I highly suggest them for sharing
Beef tenderloin tacos were good– the meat was cooked perfectly, although not very much flavor otherwise. Next time I’m going to try one of their famous burgers!

Loosey’s is a pretty cool venue, but the food looks a little rough due to the intense oil and heaviness of everything. Fried this, battered that… well actually, they do have a couple salads, but I’ve yet to see them ever ordered. My guess is that in a bar atmosphere, people tend to order scary things like truffle fries and corn dogs.
I saw the final performance of «Greenland is Melting» which was an 8 year old bluegrass band. They were awesome! Also, I did karaōke and tore the house down with my early 90’s punk revival. Yup, Loosey’s is pretty cool. ***4 stars***

Good food, good service, and good ambience! We went here for a friend’s birthday and it has become a routine place, along with market street pub!

This place is awesome especially the chicken wings. line siracha cilantro are one of a kind. Weekly treat.

This is the first time that we made our way to one of the smaller karaōke bars which serves food as well. We were a huge group of 12, we managed to shuffle tables and get ready. Ten mins before that, we had no space for 12 — ironic ain’t it, just when we were thinking we had to go somewhere else. There was just one waitress coming around taking orders, it was Saturday night and it was already 10 pm, there was a crowd which was just coming in when we came, the place looked pretty full. It was KARAOKE night and boy we had some awesome fun :). We ordered like 2 plates of onion rings and one plate of chicken wings with BBQ Honey sauce, both were pretty good. We got VEGGIE burgers which are made in house and man that was heavy, I just managed to finish my burger, you can add your toppings if you want, but I suggest adding minimal because it’s big: D. It was awesome btw, really good burger.
We then had some fun, after being dragged to sing by one of the other regulars within the place and two of us had a ball, the crowd appreciated our performance so that was FUN overall. I definitely think this one of the places you could go as a group to sit down, drink, have a bite to eat and have some fun if you like singing :). DJ was really nice dude FYI :)

This place seems like your classic bar that is reliable if you are looking to have a drink or two.
Lots of room to sit and walk around. The beer selection was really good, and the staff was very friendly and attentive.
The food was not bad, but it is for sure more of a place to just drink and if you want to eat I think it would be best for appetizers.
I had the blackened chicken sandwich and my wife had the cheeseburger. We each had a salad beforehand and appetizers were chicken wings and egg rolls. I honestly would say the Chicken Wings were the best thing we had, those really were very good I thought. The rest was good, but nothing really exceptional.
All in all though not a bad spot at all.

The table service was indifferent at best. My sandwich was soggy (grilled Caprese). Fries awesome but no ketchup so had to flag the server down. Wings were absolutely the worst I have ever had. The menu claims the wings are fried then grilled. You sure couldn’t tell they were grilled. We ordered them blackened (they weren’t)with honey sirache. They were hot but it wasn’t a good flavor. The house dinner salad was delicious but don’t try the lime vinaigrette. Stick with the house vinaigrette.

Amanda was a fantastic server, her food and beer selections for everyone was spot on. We had been in Haiti all week and wanted a good burger and this place did not disappoint. This place has a great laid back atmosphere, but a commitment to excellence in good, beer, and service.
BTW: The local beer offerings are really good.

This review is purely based off of the rude and horrible service I and a few friends have experienced on several occasions and not by the staff but by a female owner.
The bartender is awesome and the burgers are great. I use to be a regular but after being disrespected and feeling like I was being profiled I’ve decided to stop going.
The owner does not know how to treat customers and has an attitude. They have a good chef and some good employees but she should stay away and just collect the profits.

G’ville’s bars usually have the generic, cheep beers (Budweiser, Miller, etc.) which is what you expect in a college town. This place has many craft beers, which is surprising. I got Bold City’s pumpkin beer ans it was AMAZING. I am a little biased when it comes to pumpkin beer. It had great pumpkin taste and a hint of cinnamon.
But the star of the meal was the burger. I got a black angus burger, with mozzarella cheese and bacon. Also there sauces are all hand made, i got the AK sauce which the only way I can think of explaining it, was a Sriracha mayo. If you are in the mood for a burger before, during, or after a Gator game this is the place to go.