Louie's 106

07/04/2008 Posted by jp25

I went here with a party of 10 for a graduation dinner. Everything was going fine until the waitress served my mother's plate upside down right in front of her. I wasn't really upset about this, accidents happen. When she finally brought out the replacement plate, the fish was tough and dry, probably from being cooked too quickly. From that point on, we didn't see our waitress again until the check came. The busboys cleared our entire table and we were just sitting there--no one to refill drinks, ask us if we needed anything, or offer a dessert menu. My brother had to go downstairs to speak to the manager who said he would take my mother's meal off the bill, but no one even apologized for what happened. At the prices they charge, I expect much better service. The food was okay, very rich, nothing special. I definitely would not recommend this place.

Pros: Can't think of any

Cons: Lack of service

07/23/2007 Posted by paki0972

My fiance and I went here on a Sat. night on the recommendation of the hotel that we were staying at. We were seated right away but it took our waitress about 5 minutes to greet us. After she finally showed up she must have taken another 5-7 mins to come back with our drinks. As usual my fiance hadn't made up her mind on what to get on the menu which turned out being a 15 min smoke break for our waitress. I exaggerate on the smoke break part but not at all the time that it took for her to get back to us to take our order. The food however made up for the lackluster service. For the appetizer we had the tuna tartar which was exceptional. For our entrees I had the flounder special which was heavenly while my fiance had the halibut which was also good, but not nearly as good as the flounder. I would go back, but perhaps next time I'll get it to take back to our room.

01/22/2007 Posted by hm2

A few months ago my husband and I decided to give this restaurant a try. We were very pleased that we chose to do so, our experience was perfect in every respect. Our waitress was gracious and attentive, we went with her suggestion and tried the sea bass and the roasted duck. Their wine list is extensive with reasonable prices. The only complaint we had was that the music was a little loud, but as soon as we mentioned this to our server it was taken care of as well. We returned a few weeks later with some friends and again everything was fantastic. We highly recommend this restaurant to friends and will definitely be back.

01/10/2007 Posted by oldaustin

The place is not what it used to be at all.This was the 2nd and last time it's been poor all the way around,we won't be back. It's now loud and fast, poorly prepared basic food and weak service. The GM Joe wasn't interested in feedback any more than the owner. The menu prices would have been fine if they could have delivered quality food and service, they didn't. You don't keep Risotto in a steamtble !!! It's made to order. luke warm Lobster BASE bisque with too much congnac. ONE warm crab cake per order mostly filler not crab. The front door staff is the most qualified staff that work there, they even answer the phones and are used to settling down unhappy customers and covering for Joe. Rename the place to Joe's joint and Bar

Pros: It's central

Cons: They can't cook or serve

11/26/2006 Posted by jlm3

Louie's 106 --- what can I say other than I have never had a bad meal and the service has always been excellent. Sure Joe is a creep but heck what restaurant owner is not? I love the paper table cloths at lunch and cannot tell you the number of deals that have been outlined on those paper cloths. I dare you to have the mussels, a pasta dish and dessert (maybe a good wine and an espresso afterwards) and not feel better about the world.

Pros: Never miss menu, great service, great room, fun vibe

09/29/2006 Posted by cprater7

We do not often make the trek all the way downtown to eat or eat at establishments such as Louie's (were just a young newlywed couple starting out) but it was a special occassion. Although we were appropriately dressed, we were very much made to feel as though we did not belong there. The food was fabulous, but the staff was unfriendly and snooty, at best. To add to our embarrassment, when I mentioned that we had received something in the mail from American Express that we could dine there with additional discounts if we paid with our card, we were eyed warily. We did not have the coupon with us at the time and were not counting on being able to use it, but thought that it was definitely worth asking about. We were told that we could get the discount as long as we paid with our card and we were very excited and appreciative. Until we got our bill that is.. At the bottom of our bill, our friendly little waiter had ADDED THE GRATUITY to a party of 2. I can not even tell you how insulting that is. The worst part of it is that both my husband and I both have worked as servers in college and have great respect for what hard work it is. We may be working class, but the thing about us blue collar folk is that we know what its like to work hard for our money and therefore tip accordingly. We generally tip 25%-35%, depending on how impressed we are with our server. We were just discussing that we were going to tip towards the high end of that scale (not because we thought he has very friendly, but because he said we could use our discount) when he brought us the ticket with his tip already on there. Although we went ahead and tipped on top of that, we left there fuming. It probably wont hurt their business at all, and if this is a restaurant policy, they probably dont even care, but we wont be back.

Pros: Food

Cons: Service is rude-

09/03/2006 Posted by ravelcy

On reading the review below mine, he wrote (The trout... left much to be desired... I thought it was boring and the breading is one I make on ocassion. I didn't really understand how this is considered "tapas" or "small plates") Well the explanation in quite simple. On the sign it says "A MEDITERRANEAN GRILL AND TAPAS BAR" meaning that it isn't just a tapas bar. Their main menu consists of Mediterranean inspired dishes. You may request a Tapas menu to your server. Tapas originated in spain where barmen would place a peice of bread over their drinks to keep the flys out. Later it evolved into small plates of food. While the service can be it or miss, I find during a restaurants busy time a little patients and understanding goes a long way. Being a server myself I can understand that I am not my servers only table and other tables are just as important as me. Usually if we take in account that they are there for everyone and not just you your experience will be much better. On the tapas subject I have been going to Louis for a while now. And All day Sunday and Monday in the bar area Tapas are only a 1.50, these little babies can become a cheap meal in there selfs. As far as there regular menu I highly Recomend the Sea Bass, It melts in your mouth with a wonderful explotion of flavor. If you live in Austin and have not eatin here you are missing out.

08/22/2006 Posted by habitez

Usually whenever you have quality food you have smaller portions. I found these sizes to be really normal. They were large for the price. The steak was delicious. Calamari plate is huge and worth trying. The trout... left much to be desired... I thought it was boring and the breading is one I make on occasion. I didn't really understand how this is considered "tapas" or "small plates" I went for dinner during the week and the service was ok. Because I'm younger I felt like we didn't get as much attention, I was going to order wine but after the waitresse's attitude I decided against it. The environment is very nice, low lighting, very cozy.

Pros: calamari, ambience, location

Cons: service- rude waitress and uninspiring hostess, parking

08/13/2006 Posted by sawaddi

Great ambience. A nice bar with a good selection of single malts. For appetizers we had the crab cake and the fried calamari. Both were very good. For entrees I had the macadamia crusted tuna which was great. Very rare just the way it should be. My wife had the salmon. It was very "fishy" and not very remarkable. The service was cold and indifferent. The waitress had no personality. A very good restaurant. Only the indifferent service is holding it back.

Pros: Ambience. Food.

Cons: Service. Parking

11/23/2005 Posted by shaylagrey

This place has been around for a longtime and there's a reason for that. Their food is awesome!! Last night my boyfrend and I went there to eat. We split the mussels as an appetizer, then ordered the 8 oz. filet and marinated chilean sea bass, both to die for. Atmosphere was great, service was great!! Although on the weekends I recommend making a reservation or arriving there early.