Bar Louie – Hyde Park, Chicago Background Information – Bar Louie is a chain restaurant – bar that seeks to recreate the feel of a neighborhood tavern at its various locations. This Hyde Park standby offers seating at the bar and two separate rooms with tables and booths for guests. Flat screen televisions entertain each corner of the restaurant and usually feature sports programming.
Bar Louie a full bar that serves hamburgers, salads, and sandwiches. This location is notable for its Monday specials that feature 35-cent wings. Bar Louie – Hyde Park is best for casual gatherings.
Of course, this South Side establishment has taken upon the elements of both the Bar Louie chain and the surrounding neighborhoods.
Hyde Park is the home of the nationally recognized, academically elite University of Chicago and is also the epicenter of the Black elite and young, upwardly mobile crowd. Black professionals dominate the Kenwood – Hyde Park – South Shore area. Remember, this is the home of President Barack Obama.
Although Hyde Park is a leafy neighborhood, featuring multi-million dollar mansions, luxury condominiums, and a world-class university – the surrounding South Side areas are largely decrepit urban wastelands. These sections have been historically barricaded from Hyde Park largely through institutionalized segregation and city planning. Fast-forward to 2009 and this makes for an interesting mix.
Bar Louie – Hyde Park, Chicago Insider Information
Bar Louie is typically dead during the daytime. Old timers and University of Chicago students may populate the bar and seating areas during the early afternoon. Bar Louie becomes livelier at 6 p.m., when downtown professionals begin to trickle into the area after work, irrespective at age.
Most old timers will exit by nightfall – leaving the young professionals to mingle with the tattooed, white tee shirt set of the surrounding areas. The University of Chicago students have long since vanished by this time. Yes, the library awaits!
The crowd is typically good looking and fashionable per Chicago standards. Whereas, North Side bar wait staff is lined with blue-eyed blondes and cleavage, we must intimate that carrying a big behind is the unquestioned requirement for all females that have applied for work at this Hyde Park Bar Louie.
Bar Louie – Hyde Park is a meat market that draws very aggressive players and playettes. The bar is often lined with late-night cougars (older women, some married) and young hustlers scoping out targets to game. The perimeter booths and tables are often populated with legions of younger, single Black women for “girls night out.” Although the mix of buppies, old school players, and “thugs” may seem intimidating to outsiders, the crowd is very manageable.
Still, all that glitters is not gold.
“Girls night out” may equal “I don’t have a man (for a reason),” flashing a business card does not determine success, and wearing a tee-shirt down to your knees, while sporting shades in the dark and living with your Momma does not make you a thug.
True players and playettes will converge upon Bar Louie – Hyde Park and set up shop for easy pickings.
Ironically, the best way for a man to woo the women that frequent this bar is to show up with a date or female acquaintance. The large amounts of single females at Bar Louie – Hyde Park are particularly brazen and will wink, flirt, and throw themselves at men that appear taken at the earliest opportunity.
The meek, tentative, and lame will be ignored.
Bar Louie – Hyde Park, Chicago Recommendation
The food is average, the drinks are average, the staff is average, and the music is absolutely terrible.
Bar Louie will succeed with minimal effort because of the largely nonexistent availability of late-night options on the South Side of Chicago from South Shore to Roosevelt Road.
Food and beverage prices are reasonable – but this is still bar food.
Bar Louie seems to pipe in music from a franchise-wide play list. The musical selection makes absolutely no sense per the largely African American clientele. Frankly, I am in no mood to be (mis)treated to blaring 1980’s Bruce Springsteen rock and roll music.
Bar Louie is a good spot to meet people, take casual dates, and unwind prior to or after the main event. Knowledgeable guests will also take full advantage of this prime location that is within short walking distance of the Chicago Lakefront.
Couples should plan to arrive during the early evening hours to secure appropriate seating. Bar Louie can be standing room only late at night and walking about aimlessly to flag a table is simply uncool and destroys the mood. Also, possessive boyfriends and girlfriends will not be happy watching their beaus run the gauntlet of aggressive prospectors looking to spit game.
Singles looking to mingle should be prepared to duel with married types pining for side action, fake ballers, stuck up women that must be avoided at all costs, and pity parties of overweight females spewing “Black Men are Worthless Dogs” venom.
Nevertheless, there are always quite a few gems that patronize this establishment.
Bar Louie – Hyde Park Chicago Review and Rating
Bar Louie – Hyde Park is 3.5 stars out of 5.
This place is all about location. The neighborhood, diversity of the Black Diaspora, and walking distance access to the Lakefront are the primary attractions.
Bar Louie – Hyde Park, Chicago Location: 5500 South Shore Drive – Chicago, IL 60637
Bar Louie – Hyde Park, Chicago Telephone: (773) 363-5300
Bar Louie – Hyde Park, Chicago Meals Served: Lunch and Dinner
Bar Louie – Hyde Park, Chicago is Ideal For: Singles, Casual Dates, Cougars
Bar Louie – Hyde Park, Chicago Hours of Operation: 11 a.m. – 2 a.m.
Bar Louie – Hyde Park, Chicago Price Point: This is a full bar. Entrees cost from $10-$16; and sides, appetizers, and desserts range from $3-$10.
Bar Louie – Hyde Park, Chicago Demographics: University of Chicago Students by Day; Middle Class – Bourgeoisie Hyde Park / Kenwood / South Shore African Americans of all ages represent the after-work and early evening crowd; and younger hip hoppers from all areas of the South Side begin to trickle in as the night unfolds.
Getting There: Take U.S. 41 Lake Shore Drive to 53rd Street. Exit and turn left off of the ramp to follow Shore Drive to 55th Street. Bar Louie is in the Flamingo Building store front at South Shore Drive and 55th. The CTA 6 Bus and Metra Electric trains also stop nearby.
Bar Louie – Hyde Park, Chicago Review, Sources:
Bar Louie Official Web Site, http://www.restaurants-america.com/barlouie/#
Bar Louie – Hyde Park Chicago Reviews on Yelp, http://www.yelp.com/biz/bar-louie-chicago-3
Hyde Park, http://www.hydeparksecc.com/community.html
Reference:
- www.restaurants-america.com/barlouie/
- www.hydeparksecc.com/community.html
- www.yelp.com/biz/bar-louie-chicago-3
