The Barley Oak

Great place for drinks. It has become my place of choice for Friday afternoon lunch. Good food, drinks, and atmosphere.

Great place for your beer drinkers. They have full menu’s available with all of the drink listing. They are affordable and have many options. Great view of the water and plenty of televisions for sporting events.

Came here on a whim for dinner and some beers. My friend and I split a burger, pretzel, and salad — all which we’re old for «bar food»
The bartender was very sweet and he let us try a bunch of different samples before we ultimately decided on which one we wanted to drink.
If I ever needed to go out on the South Shore I would come here.

Good beer selection, pretty good bar food, great location, nice physical facility. I keep coming back do that means I like it.

The Barley Oak, situated right on the North shore of Lake Pontchartrain, is a must for a picturesque sunset Happy Hour.
The beer list is deep, with a large draft selection of local and nationally known craft brews. Even the variety of wine by the glass is better than most restaurants in the area.
In classic Southern style, service is welcoming, but unobtrusive and laid-​back. The patios are perfect for a drink after a long walk along the lakefront. Four legged friends are welcomed.

Largest beer selection on the Northshore. Make sure you get a «Kask Port.» Essentially it is a beer passport that you get stamped. If you complete the 100 or so beers (max is three per visit) you recieve a beer stein and you are inducted into the Kask Club. The staff is very friendly and very knowledgeable about the brews. They do serve mixed drinks and wine as well. There is a small food menu available. Try the cheese plate or the jumbo pretzels. Warning: the dipping mustard that comes with the pretzels is HOT! The upstairs outdoor balcony has breathtaking views of the lake and is dog friendly. The balcony does shut down at 10pm sharp though. The inside stays open later.

This is a REALLY nice and comfortable place to have a drink.
I’ve never been here past 5pm, so I’m not sure what the nightlife or even the evening atmosphere is like here, but mid-​day and mid afternoon, this is a very nice place to stop and quench your thirst.
I have only 2 complaints, which are the reasons I give this place 4 stars instead of 5.
1) When they DO have music playing, it’s usually hipster crap, some crappy cover versions of good songs or random trash that no one really seems to be listening to at all. This place is modeled after a medieval structure, for god’s sake, play some real music. Maybe some Irish Folk, at least!
2) They have a good selection of beers on tap, but like most of the trendy taprooms these days, there are usually WAY too many IPA’S (THE most historically misunderstood and crappiest of all ales), or way too many really obscure beers. Now, I like craft beers just as much as the next guy, but some of the brews they get in here are one and done; and you may never see it again.
Well, aside from that… they usually have Guinness and a few other good beers on tap and the price is about average for a tap room. Once in a while, they have pretty «rare» beers on tap like Wiehenstephaner, one of my favorites. They also have a very good selection of bottled beers that you normally would not find anywhere else for sale other than a specialty grocer or a wine and liquor store.
The inside is really nice and open, VERY well lit on a sunny day. I haven’t ever seen that fireplace lit, though, even on a cold day, and I don’t understand why not. I think it’s a gas fireplace, but still… light that sucker!
The outside is very nice, too, and I like how I can park my beautiful car across the street and then go have a drink and stare at it as it’s parked by the lake; a very pleasant thing.
They do serve food. I ate there once or twice. I got their Brisket sandwich and it was good. They served it with some honey bbq sauce that was pretty good, but I didn’t use much of it. They also served it with fresh fried potato chips that were some of the best in-​house chips I’ve ever had.

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this place. The bartender was very attentive and friendly. I love the atomsphere! 6 beers in we started to get the munchies and decided to order the Cajun Sausage Platter… OMG BEST thing I have ever had. I am so sad we live so far away from Mandeville, I wish they were located here in Baton Rouge. One of the best bars I have been to. Love it.

I enjoy coming to Barley Oak for a quick beer. Great beer on tap and staff is pretty knowledgable about the selection. They even give samples! Some of the bartenders are a little dry… no smiles, a little pretentious, and ask for ID like I’m breaking the law asking for a beer at 27. Not the friendliest bunch, but I can look past it for the great view and breezy porch. Also, and I have noticed it each and EVERY time I have come here: THEY NEED MUSIC! Or more music at least. And others have mentioned it too. Very stoic inside and all you can hear are people talking. A little music, even some instrumental music playing, would be very nice!

Moving from Portland we love our beer! We’ve been in several times and each time the servers have been very friendly and helpful with beer selections. Food is good, we’ve done the cheese platter, sausage platter and pretzels.

This is a beautiful draft room /​restaurant on the Mandeville lake front. It’s a two story building — the bottom sells hipster beer cans and has outdoor seating. A guy was playing some pretty good acoustic guitar covers while I was there. The upstairs had probably 30 beers on tap and a large selection of bottles. We ordered the cheese platter and the German sausage plate and were very pleased with both. There were a ton of people in here by the evening so I’m guessing it’s popular with the locals. I’ll definitely be back for the nice view of the lake, great beer selection, and delicious platters.

I had heard about the Barley Oak and finally made my first visit. I stopped in on a Friday afternoon after work to meet up with people from my office. I took the stairs up rather than using the elevator. I fully expected to find everyone on the balcony, hanging out in the cool afternoon air, watching the sailboats on the lake. No, they were inside. The only coherent reason I could get was that they were closer to the taps and it was easier to select a brew rather than play 20 questions with the servers. I was impressed with the extensive selection of craft beers on tap. I didn’t really get to do justice to the beer selection as I had to drive home across the bridge. In spite of the comfortable looking chairs scattered around, I ended up standing, often with my foot on the bar rail, looking at the taps and trying to decide what i would have next. An enjoyable afternoon in a nice bar.

Love the Barley! Very helpful bar tenders if you are looking to sway from the usual beer choice. Clean and always an amazing view of the lake. Definitely a great place to just relax and visit with friends.

Went to two restaurants today mainly for some drinks and to get some sun. Lots of rain over the last two weeks.
We stopped at the Beach House first. Had a great time. Live music and the drinks were reasonably priced.
We decided to ride over to the Barley Oak. They had no live music and no music at all plying outside.
We decided to ride back to the Beach House. Glad we did.
Suggestions:
Live music
Better happy hour
Acoustics are not very good inside. Sound like a large empty room.
Easily fixed with some sound traps.
Oh, and put some pool tables downstairs.

The prime place for a relaxing drink! The atmosphere is very cool with wood floors, high ceiling with beams, and an open concept with a patio to look out over the lake. Lots of dogs around on Sunday’s! Tell the bartender what kind of drink/​taste you’re looking for, and they will give you great suggestions!

The beer is too dam cold! There is too many choices! The people are too friendly! Hate this place! The view of the causeway really sucks! Can’t wait to come back!

The Barley Oak is in my opinion, the number one bar to go to if you just want to relax with friends. From the view to the Interior, everything about this place says come on in and stay a while.
It is located on the Lakefront of Old Mandeville and you can sit out on the front patio and just take in the view of Lake Pontchartrain after a long day at work. Sit out and watch the sun go down or sit inside next to the fireplace on the extremely comfortable leather couches. Either way, you will not be disappointed coming here. Even the food menu is worth checking out.
If you have issues with climbing stairs due to any kind of handicap or intoxication, there is an elevator. There is also a decent size parking lot located behind the bar for convenient parking.

I’m happy Barley Oak exists but there are definite hits and misses. As an avid beer enthusiast, I wish they had more info on their beer menu in the restaurant. It states the brewery and the beer name but that’s it. I think that’s a pretty large fail– no location, no style, no ABV, no IBU, no price… come on! These are important factors. At LEAST list what kind of beer it is. When I see Saint Arnold Reserve #13, I have no idea what kind of beer that is. It’s not fun to ask the bartender 21 questions before ordering a brew.
The food is fine. I’d give it a 3.5 out of 5. I’ve had a few of their sandwiches ($ 8.95) and love their potato salad. They’ve got cheese boards ($ 10.95) and pretzels ($ 4) and sausage platters ($ 10.95).
The patio is excellent. Truly amazing view. On a lovely day, there isn’t a better place in Mandeville.

The Barley Oak is a beautiful bar in Mandeville. A grand staircase takes you up to the wonderful balcony where you’ll be delighted with amazing views of Lake Pontchartrain. There are many tables for you to sit and relax while taking in the great scenery.
Inside is pretty great too. Abundant plush leather chairs and exposed wood beams gives it a very sophisticated and masculine feel.
The beer selection is quite extensive and they have a pretty nice wine list as well. I didn’t try the food, but some of the neighboring tables did and it looked good and smelled amazing.
Definitely give The Barley Oak a try! I think you’ll love it as much as I do.

And, now that I am not on my phone, let me correct the typo and expand this review: Gorgeous location and great happy hour deals (i.e. PBR for $!). The brisket taco was yummy and probably the best food deal going. The pretzel basket has two huge pretzels for $ 4. The staff is friendly and you just can’t beat the location.