Bar Louie

Above: Bar Louie

Having both had a tough week, Chris and I decided to go out for a couple of drinks last night.  Then came the inevitable question of where to go.  We usually just go to Tampa Bay Brewing Company in Ybor City, but Ybor is not someplace you want to stay past midnight, and we didn't leave until nine so we were going to be out pretty late.  Chris and I had gone to International Plaza a few weeks ago and had noticed a new place called Bar Louie on International's Bay Street.  Of course we came home and looked it up, and it had some pretty good reviews.  So we put on our big girl panties, braved the unknown, and went to Bar Louie - someplace new.

International Plaza (off Columbus Drive) has an outdoor section called Bay Street that has several nice restaurants and clubs along it.  Bar Louie is next to Blue Martini by Capital Grille.  First off, the bar is way too cool.  It is directly in front of you when you walk in, and all you can see is a huge island bar and their "world of beer" on tap.  They had just about everything you could ever want!  We found seats by the door, we froze our asses off, and I ordered a 20 oz. Guinness while Chris got some kind of German beer.  I think it was a pilsner - not sure, sorry.  Later we ordered their "loaded fries," yeah, those were amazing!  Chris got another beer, but he gave up on the beer and started drinking my amazing mojito, that I got after the Guinness.

Above: the bar at Bar Louie

As for the rest of the place, there are loads of tv's all showing different sports which I thought was pretty cool.  One tv had wrestling, another had NASCAR, and thank God, one had football.  It's nice because everyone can, hopefully, find something they like - at least more than everything else.  Bar Louie is actually a chain, and they have many locations across the country, so if you've seen one somewhere, go in; you'll probably love it.  The atmosphere was chic but not too formal, and it is supposedly a really nice restaurant during the day.  The kitchen is open late, and all of the tables were as packed as the bar.  I have a feeling that we'll definitely be frequenting this place, for the mojitos, if for nothing else.  The employees and patrons were all very friendly, and being Gasparilla (Tampa's annual pirate invasion/festival.  I know, I live in the coolest city!) many of them were very festive, too.  I saw one guy, wearing tons of beads (like mardi gras), order a black and tan, but I think that he forgot about it for a while because when I looked over thirty minutes later, his black and tan was a murky brown, and he hadn't touched it.

So yeah, that was our Saturday night. Definitely check out Bar Louie if you live in Tampa, visit, or have one near you.  The drinks are fantastic, the atmosphere is loads of fun, and the food is very yummy.  Oh yeah, we also didn't have to worry about getting shot when we left - that's one-up on Ybor.  Other than being cold the whole time, damn doors, it was an awesome place.  We'll be going back.  Happy weekend everyone. 

P.S.  If you click on the title of the post (the part in yellow) it will take you to the Bar Louie website.