Bar Louie - Virginia Gateway

Although part of a chain, this bar offers friendly and personal service, a sophisticated atmosphere with a variety of comfortable seating options and some really tasty drink and food options. There is a daily happy hour specialty menu in addition to the regular drinks, beers on tap and a pretty good wine list. My group tried a couple of the 90s flashback specialty drinks (blue Hawaii and sex on the beach) as well as some happy hour specials. Everything was very good. Highly recommend the truffle fries and the chicken tenders with both the bbq and Thai sauces.

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 I had an amazing time at Bar Louie in Virginia Gateway! 😊🍹 The bartender Adrian deserves a special mention for his excellent drink-making skills and exceptional service. 🍸👏 He really knew his craft and made some fantastic cocktails that were not only delicious but also beautifully presented. 🍹🎉 Adrian's friendly and attentive nature added to the overall enjoyment of my visit. The service at Bar Louie was top-notch, with the staff going above and beyond to ensure a great experience. They were prompt, knowledgeable, and always had a smile on their faces. 👌👍 I can't wait to visit again! 🥳🍽️💕

Always had a good experience coming here! The staff here is wonderful I forgot my server’s name but he had such a great and funny personality. Food was great and so were the drinks (please bring back the melon drink my boyfriend misses that so much). I recommend coming here after a long shift at work or even a casual Friday night!

We reserved a high top via your website- when we arrived there was no host to greet us and no one acknowledged us. After more than several awkward minutes we just went to the bar. We came in an 1.5 hrs before our scheduled movie next door for a few drinks and light bites (to be clear it was early in the evening at it was not busy ) Jacob was kind and courteous- after we were finally able to get his attention. HOWEVER -You were out of at least 3 beers we tried to order SOUP took more than 30 minutes - had no croutons (French onion) and only came out when Jacob actually went to check on our food. Flatbread had hardly any arugula and no blue cheese crumbles. (Again took OVER 40 minutes) We had to rush and eat as we only had 20 minutes before movie started. Unacceptable at your price point to have so many missing ingredients, and no host on a Saturday dinner. Would not recommend unless you have plenty of time to ….wait, and wait., and be disappointed. Next time we will visit another local joint before our movie.

BROOOOO!!!! My first time here, I had amazing and excellent service from Brendan, the bartender. He works Tuesday’s, which is also burger night, but he recommends the best drinks, has great personality, and overall he just a wonderful bartender that definitely makes me come back every Tuesday. As well as the manager, Ashley, she delivered my food and had a wonderful personality and great presence, she cared about how I was doing as a customer and overall the best manager I have seen in awhile.

Very disappointed with our experience here tonight. Our server was incredibly unfriendly. He told us his name and disappeared halfway through our meal. My friend and I ordered the spinach and artichoke dip which was watery and sour and when we got ahold of our waiter (we had to ask the bartender for assistance after 15+ minutes had passed) he was visibly upset that we wanted to return it. He then didn’t show us the receipt and said we couldn’t split the check. We left feeling very uncomfortable and dissatisfied and will not be coming back.

Food was surprisingly good for a chain restaurant. Servers were all kind and everything came out quick. It was very quiet around 7pm but quickly got crowded so make sure you're here early on weekends!

Great local bar in a shopping district. Food is delicious and quite the variety of cold beer available. Staff is always friendly and the establishment very clean.

It's an amazing time coming to Bar Louie! So much that I've become a regular at this amazing place! I come for the bartenders and staff more than the drinks! Spend a friday or saturday night here with the dj's that make it all that more groovey! I love drinking and dancing the night away! Not to mention their great point system to get food discounts!

Although part of a chain, this bar offers friendly and personal service, a sophisticated atmosphere with a variety of comfortable seating options and some really tasty drink and food options. There is a daily happy hour specialty menu in addition to the regular drinks, beers on tap and a pretty good wine list. My group tried a couple of the 90s flashback specialty drinks (blue Hawaii and sex on the beach) as well as some happy hour specials. Everything was very good. Highly recommend the truffle fries and the chicken tenders with both the bbq and Thai sauces.

Service. There was one young woman doing it all; hostess, bartender, waitress, food runner, and clearing the tables. She did her very best and never got upset. There were just too many customers. Food wasn't hot.

The food is great and the bartenders are so cool. The overall service is great. I come here all the time with my girlfriend for brunch

My dining experience was fantastic, thanks to Payton was incredibly attentive, friendly, and knowledgeable about the menu. Every recommendation was spot on, and her service was fast and efficient without feeling rushed. It's rare to find someone so genuinely welcoming and professional. We'll definitely be back and will be asking for Payton again!

My boyfriend and I come here almost once a week and it's because we LOVE everything about it. Gainesville bar louie has the best service from the bar tenders to the hosts and even the management. The food is great. It always comes out hot and fresh. Everything is always so amazing!!! LOVE bar louie

Crappy drinks, crappy service! Came here on a Friday @ 3:30pm (NOT crowded) and ordered, go figure, a martini, in a martini bar... After waiting 15 mins for this 'martini' and one draft beer, my 'martini' was served in a high-ball glass! What?! It was a weird color, tasted like pure sour mix, and didn't come with the garnish it was advertised as having... The bartender was very young, and cute, and therefore had another restaurant worker following her around like a dog in heat, to the point that she obviously couldn't concentrate on her job... Again, there were hardly any patrons in the bar, but somehow, about 12 hours worth of empty dirty bar glasses and dirty dishes were piled up on the bar, with fruit flies buzzing all around...! Disgusting! I won't be coming back here!

Service is HORRIBLE at the bar or at a table. The food is mediocre. The "nightlife " ambiance on weekends sucks. Bartenders charge whatever price they want, add their own tip. This place focuses on getting you blackout drunk . So if you are looking for crap food, crap service and a DUI that's the place to be.

the bartend Ashley t was so on top of it!! I couldn't recommend this place enough!!! they made us feel so welcomed! had a wonderful time.

I really want to like this place but it is so confusing. It's rather pricey for the quality that you get. The seating is terrible. The bar area is very nice but I wasn't there to drink. Need a better food selection. Our server was nice and the restrooms were clean.

Needed a midnight dinner option and Bar Louie was the only one still serving food in town. They serve food until 1 am which is great when looking for a late night snack! The bar and restaurant is very big and also pretty upscale (comfy seats!) They only had the late night menu option considering it was midnight, but I was still surprised by all the different burgers and appetizers they had to offer. The chicken and nachos were a hit, the dressing and cheese really added a lot of flavor. I got the hot honey chicken sandwich with fries. The hot honey chicken sandwich was dripping with honey, and could've been a little spicier but still enjoyed it. It did get soggy after a little bit. The fries, on the other hand, were too tough and chewy for my taste. Overall 4/5, good food available late at night!

omg! came in on a tuesday and it was $8 burger! Sat at the bar and had such a good time with our bartender Brendan he was really welcoming and entertaining. 10/10 recommend :)

has a weird vibe to it - service always seems to be slow. Drinks/food are on par. Lots of locals, duh.

After waiting about 10 minutes to order a second drink and food the bartender threw my credit card at me and was rude to put it nicely. Manager did not seem to care at all. The appetizer was mediocre at best DO NOT RECOMMEND

We come here often and all of our experiences have been delightful! Brendan is by far one of the most personable and outgoing bartenders we have had in while. No matter how busy he is he will always make sure that you are taken care of 10/10

Great place to get a burger, an appetizer and grab a drink. Close to Jiffy Lube and next to the movie theater.

Worst customer service in the area. Please don't waste your time. I tried to place an order online but received an error saying that orders couldn't be placed through the website. Although inconvenient, I decided to call and go through the process that way. Towards the end of placing my order over the phone, the staff member asked if I wanted to leave a tip for the kitchen staff. I then told her that I'd bring cash to tip the staff when I came to pick up my order in person. Then after a few seconds, she told me that the kitchen staff has decided that they are not processing orders through the phone at this time. Not sure if it was related to me bringing a cash tip in person but I found it really "convenient" that we were going through that whole process of me saying my order on the phone and providing my payment details only to be told that my order would not be processed after me explaining that I'd prefer to leave a tip in person. Management here needs to get things in check because there are way better options around here than to deal with this type of nonsense. No thank you! On to the next...

10/10 exquisite burger, everyone should come on a Tuesday and get a $8 burger and see Brendan on bar. He's the best

My friend and I came in for a cocktail after lunch at Cava and before our movie started on a weekday. The only thing we ordered were two cocktails and we sat right at the bar. They were delicious, however, we have no idea why the bartender didn't make the drinks in front of us, for $14 a drink. Were the drinks mixed with well spirits ahead of time? Why didn't I complain? I'm not there to ruin my friend's afternoon by complaining. But I wanted you to know that I noticed that I didn't see or hear a shaker being used. I noticed. I also noticed all the beautiful decor. Why such beautiful decor, and no live bartending?

We were there at an off hour for supper, halfway between lunch and dinner. The service was nice; the drinks were good. We all dug into thr spinach and artichoke dip. Everyone mostly enjoyed their meal: the impossible burger was devoured but the salad was untouched. The voodoo pasta was cheerfully served without sausage for our pescatarian. I chuckled that my side of broccolini was just broccoli and was disappointed that there was little flavor other that sweet and crunchy in my hot honey chicken sandwich. Where's the hot? Descent but I wouldn't make a point of going again.

We had the most unpleasant experience, We were with my friends at the Bar LOUIE in Gainesville, we decided to order some drinks and they asked us for our IDs, we gave them to the server and she took the order, she came back 5 minutes later asking us about our IDs again, but this time she asked questions about the document such as "the date of issue"or "customer number" data that we really didn't remember at that time, she said that she didn't feel comfortable selling us liquor because in her opinion our IDs were FALSE and that we withdrew, without giving us the option to show her another document. She was very impolite and we are Spanish - speakers and at all times she felt as if for this reason she didn't want to attend us, in addition to feeling discriminated against because our IDs ARE NOT FALSE and we are of legal age, we asked to another person from the staff and he told us that they could not give us a solution since the person who made this uncomfortable moment for us is the manager of the place. We frequent the place, it's the first time we see her and they make us feel that way.

Went there with coworkers gathering happy hours. The food is good, the service is friendly. HOWEVER, they need to clean the windows, too much spiders web, and we even noticed a spider hanging down from the windows.

Curious why this location is still open when so many others have closed. Servers absolutely are friendly. But there's no clarity on seating and when we sat at a table, we sat nearly 10 minutes without being provided a menu or being greeted by a server. The place looks...very unappetizing and most the seating is uncomfortable bar tables. Not everyone wants to sit at high tops. It really needs to close so a better restaurant can open.

We love having this Bar Louie location in Gainesville! The service has always been good and the staff are all friendly. We visited last night, within a week of this location reopening from COVID-19 restrictions, and the service was excellent. We sat on the patio outside, with chairs/tables 6 feet apart. Service was mainly the same and this experience brought back feelings of "normal". They also remained open until 10:00pm on a Sunday, which is impressive considering lots of other places close up early. The fish tacos and loaded tots were delicious. Great job, Bar Louie! We will be back soon.

Hot garbage. Slow service, and no one cares. Food value and taste is not good. Wendy's would be better.

Nice food, nice place. I could eat that much because I already ate but what I did ate it was good.

None of the food we ordered was appetizing (and we were a group of 6 that ordered unique dishes). There's a multitude of better options just walking distance away.

Tried Bar Louie for the first time and my family was not very satisfied. We usually are not big complainers but this experience wasn't very good. I ordered the Strawberry Lemonade Sangria and it was great. My husband, son, and I ordered our food all at the same time. My husbands pasta dish came out first. 5-10 minutes later my sons dish was brought out along with my husbands side of fries which were cold. 15 minutes later my pasta dish was brought out. My husband asked for new fries and the new ones were also cold. My son enjoyed his kids meal and then finished my dish for me as I didn't enjoy it very much. My husband said his pasta sauce was runny and he didn't enjoy it. Service was slow but our waitress was kind and attentive. I liked the ambiance of the bar. It was clean and pleasing. I wish we had a better experience but we probably won't be back.

This place was okay. I went before heading to a concert nearby in Virginia. You could sit anywhere. I ordered a strawberry lemonade that was not good. The second bartender made it for me and it was awesome but the first bartender just could get a good mix going. I ended up just drinking water. My friend and I ordered a bunch of different appetizers. The flash fried calamari, bourbon bbq wings, and the chicken quesadilla were what I ordered. The wings were not flavorful. The calamari was rubbery and inedible. The chicken quesadilla was pretty decent. I prefer regular grilled chicken as opposed to pulled chicken. I ended up having a burger which was decent. I was not very impressed. I had heard a lot of good things about this restaurant and had high hopes. If I was a drinker I would have indulged in the bar specials.

5/17/21 The last time I saw a Bar Louie, it was in Rockville Towncenter. I don't understand why they closed down, but they did. Wanting to see what this restaurant/bar looked like, I stopped by. I see lots of drinks for one's favorite alcoholic beverage. I see sports games on televisions around the bar. I can just imagine lots of people cheering on The Baltimore Ravens when the games are on. The footbar located at the foot of the stools gave me an idea for my book about communicating to someone without talking to them. Thank you Bar Louie. The bartender is pretty cool and I thanked him for the drinks. It is not very crowded right now, but this could change later on. Nevertheless, this restaurant/bar seems pretty new, but I was informed by the bartender that this establishment has been here for a few decades. Nevertheless, I could see a dinner and a movie date happening here offten. Masks required when walking around as of right now. Feels good to be at a Bar Louie again.

It was late and I was hungry. There were very limited options for delivery. So I decided to try something new when I saw this place had tator tots! I ordered them along with the hot honey chicken sandwich and I was really blown away. It arrived hot and fresh, and the chicken sandwich was actually really good! The tator tots were awesome and hit the spot!

It was a ice cold rainy night, the restaurant was dark and cavernous. Makes it spooky speakeasy like. I love that environment and when I come here, I know what I am getting and it can't be too bad. I always hear the negatives about this chain, but I truly don't get the dissatisfaction others seem to have. The drinks are always good, service is always fine, the seating, restrooms are in good condition and spacious. The lighting is enough to see my food and there's always a TV on and guests throughout the bar/ restaurant. I enjoy the eats here. Happy Hour is the best value. I've had the Calamari, flatbreads, buffalo chicken, and the burgers without complaints. They've always been served within a good time period and have good flavor. This restaurant was very hospitable and I usually end up leaving stuffed and happy.

I really like this spot and can't understand why they are never busy. The location is great, they serve brunch on Saturday AND Sunday and the food is great. This is our go to spot when we come for movies of if we are just in the mood for food and drinks.

Just terrible. I came here with my two sons. I ordered wings that were dry and barley had flavor. My sons food was horrible. What a dissappointing experience. I've been here with friends before and had drinks. I don't think I'll be back.

After watching two of the waitstaff talking to a table by the bar for 15 minutes without anyone waiting on us, we had to go to the front and ask for someone to take our order. I appreciate and understand when staff is busy or a place is understaffed but here work is getting in the way of their social life. They are not that busy, I think I know why. When they took our order our drinks arrived about 5 minutes later, a reasonable time. The drinks were good. Just be ready to wait if you come here.

Went on Tuesday for the half priced burgers and had the gastro burger which was recommended by the bartender and tasted awesome. I had great service and would recommend highly.

All In all food was decent, however my asparagus tasted like dish soap. I would recommend this place if you wanted to lick the inside of a soapy sink.

This place is no special compared to others. Few lacks here.. not enough employees. I saw one waiter busting his arse all by himself on late Thursday and I felt very bad and left him a good tip. I also knew he did his best as far as serving us so that was ok. This two stars are for the owner who own this because the food wasn't that good and need to manage it better.

Fruit fly infestation all around the bar. There was food stuck to the inside of my beer glass. Bartenders were more interested in socializing with the riff raff than helping customers who were obviously frustrated and waiting for refills or service. Bar Louie Gainesville wasn't this way years ago, and I'm not one to post negative reviews online, but after several visits in the last couple months with the exact same experiences...The food was good though.

Service slow(obviously new waiter). Drinks very weak. The Bavarian pretzels were like rubber. My friend had the gastroburger which she loved my aunt enjoyed her burger. My pepperoni flatbread was ok. I hate paying $12 for something I didn't eat but the waiter didn't seem to care.

On Tuesday, you really can't beat the five dollar burgers + happy hour drink prices. My son and I ate there last night. Two burgers, one soda, and one glass of wine, and we were out the door without tip for $17 bucks. I did tip :) - don't worry. Both the Southwest & Fried Louie Burger are excellent. We will be back next Tuesday!

Our first (and last!) time here. Arrived at 11:45a for lunch. Only 1 other table occupied with 2 people. We just couldn't believe it took 50 minutes for our food!!! We heard a guy complaining that his to-go order was taking forever. My burger was cold. The other two entrees were just ok. But they forgot the avocado, cucumbers and green goddess dressing in one of our sandwiches. Server didn't come to refill drinks. The manager didn't come to the table to apologize. Waste of time and money for such a terrible experience. To top it off we had a stomachache after eating there :(

Wish I checked the reviews on Yelp prior to dining here. Ordered blackened shrimp tacos and they came out cold and stale as if they had been sitting out all day. Decided to just ask them to take it back and not eat. While my husband was eating he asked the waitress if the pimento dip came with chips and she said she'd check. 10 minutes later she comes back with the pimento dip that comes with vegetables. Confused my husband said, "I asked if this came with chips. I didn't place the order." She then responded, "Yeah I asked the kitchen and then placed the order." LOL Clearly miscommunication but this location was a disappointment and we will not be returning.

First time eating at Bar Louie was overall a good experience. My boyfriend and I love the atmosphere of the restaurant and thought it was cool and laid back to allow customers to seat themselves. Appetizers were great. My boyfriend got the Chicken parm grilled cheese as his entree and I got the Louie's choice cheeseburger. His chicken parm grilled cheese was amazing, and my burger was okay but nothing to write home about. When planning to eat here expect slightly longer wait times on your food, but other than that I plan on returning and trying other items from their menu. :)

Dined here recently and probably won't go back. We've lived in the area since before this place was built. We were excited to see it open, having gone to the DC location many times. When the Gainesville spot opened, the place was clean, service was good, and the patrons were lively. Most recent visit was pre-pandemic. Fast forward to now, the place needs a deep clean, staff needs structure and direction, food is sub-par and the vibe is different. Silverware was dirty, beer on tap tasted weird, mixed drinks tasted like flavored water. I felt like I needed a shower when I left.

Have gone here a few times and each time it's worse than the previous. Last night was the tipping point. Bartender was VERY inattentive and seemed almost annoyed when I placed my order. There were only about 4 people in the entire bar. Next to the bar a group of super loud people including employees--including managers. I don't know them personally but have seen them in the past. Loud, vulgar, and this was with children in the restaurant. Sad behavior by anyone but employees even worse! Food is OK, décor is not bad--this place if ran properly has potential but NO, not even close.

Came here on a busy Friday. Almost everything on the menu was gone. Waited an hour for my grilled cheese, only to have the wrong thing delivered. And then they ran out of grilled cheese. Ended up leaving without food. Drink was alright though.

What didn't go wrong during my visit here yesterday? My girlfriend and I decided to do a date night and chose this ridiculous place as it was close to the house. When we arrived, we sat at the bar and were basically ignored for 15 minutes. I was tired after work and didn't feel like going anywhere else, or we would have walked out then. In hindsight, I WISH WE DID! We wanted Tito's and they had none, first red flag. Next, we ordered some calamari as an appetizer. It came out quickly but BOY WAS IT BAD. We also had to get up after a few minutes and ask for utensils and a plate to eat the gross calamari. It had to be the frozen stuff, with more tentacles than the circular part. The taste was off-putting almost like freezer burn, and they breaded red and green peppers and stuck them in there like we wouldn't notice. Calamari was TERRIBLE. Next, we ordered some salmon sliders and blackened shrimp tacos. Took about 45 minutes for them to arrive and when they arrived they were ice cold. The tortillas weren't even toasted or heated like they took them directly out of the pack and served them. The entire experience was bad from the piss poor service of the staff to the horrible food. I recently moved to Haymarket and was hoping this could be a hang-out spot. Sadly it can't, these morons can't even make drinks and the food and service is just BAD. I would stay FAR AWAY. Off to Uncle Julio's which is right down the block. I will check them out and compare.......wasted date night. Thanks

I'm by no mean a food critic, but i have dined at my fair share of chain restaurants/bars. We had Brendan as our server and WOW talk about service! Very attentive, courteous, and kind and how could you forget the Scooby Doo tattoo lol. 10/10!