I'm really surprised by the lower rankings of this old school Italian charming restaurant. Perhaps these folk are high falutin' New Yorkers that are rating Louie's, but this high falutin' New Yorker thought this place was pretty darned good. I love the Louie toss salad, which was served complimentary with my entree in addition to the warm bread and garlic oil dip. My waitress tried really hard to make me eat bread and carbs, but I resisted for the most part except for a little linguine with my entree. I chose the shrimp and lobster in marinara sauce over linguini. It was a very healthy portion, and lots of meaty shrimp and chunks of lobster. The marina sauce was typical of this area and very tasty. I ordered the calamari pasta originally, and it took about 10 minutes for the server to inform me that they couldn't serve it to me because "it didn't look too good tonight." Now, this is probably a decision the chef should have made earlier in the evening, but kudos to them and to her for being honest about it. The atmosphere is like an old Italian cafe, and has a nice wine list and craft beer list as well. Good place -since 1958.
(4)
Mo M.
Really disappointed in this place! Went for advertised $.99 clam night....told by waiter at 7 pm there are no more clams! But surprise.... The next 2 customers to come in order and get clams....wow...talk about treating new customers badly. The worst part is when asked the waiter lied and said they found them hidden....really? The owner even gave us a dirty look because we complained!
(1)
Anna M.
Louie's is so delicious! Great list of Martinis, you should try the Expresso Martini. Nice entertainment Portions are quite large. Love this place
(5)
Frank P.
Little grungy inside but I like places like that. The buffet was limited but very good. Nice Chianti and good conversation. All in all, I'd go back.
(4)
Jim S.
Very cozy atmosphere Friendly servers. Live Jazz music . Nice portions, reasonably priced. Old Italian world charm. Definelty worth a visit. Checking.. Receive 10% off. Excellente!!!
(4)
Shoshanna G.
One of my favorite places to go in the Lehigh Valley for authentic Italian food. Always consistent, delectable and enjoyable. The shrimp scampi, tomato bread, & pizzas are a few of my faves! The staff is very accommodating and always kind & courteous. A family business that always makes you feel like family when you are there.
(4)
Joe K.
Haven't been here for a few months but the food is just as good as I remember! Lobster specials are awesome and the wait staff is still phenomenal.
(4)
Candi K.
The Lehigh Valley is overwhelmed by little Italian restaurants. This is one of the better ones, IMHO. The atmosphere is clean & cozy. They have a nice bar with good happy hour specials. I prefer to go for lunch - they have lunch-sized portions for a good value, and the buffet is nice (small, but nice - this is no Golden Corral, thank god). Wait staff is friendly. Everything appears to be made in house.
(4)
Julie S.
This is my third time visiting Louie's so I'm now comfortable writing a review. The one standout of all all the things I've tried is the marinara sauce. The sauce is fresh and flavorful and if you were to have it on plain pasta it would make a nice meal. But that's pretty much it. The tossed salad which as a stand alone order is almost $6 is a soggy mess, clearly sitting in a large bowl in the back and served out as needed. For that sort of money it needs to be a much larger serving with crispy lettuce,more tomatoes, olives and definitely more than Gorgonzola dust. The Chicken Marsala instead of being chicken pounded thin served with prosciutto and mushrooms in a flavorful dark brown broth is chicken chunks with pepper chunks served over pasta with little to no sauce. The antipasto plate looks like a collection of jarred or canned vegetables on a plate with a tablespoon of tuna, 1/4 of an egg and 1.5 anchovies. The pasta sampler makes it hard to differentiate between the manicotti and the lasagna with both being a pile of pasta, ricotta and sauce. I could go on but suffice it to say this place would do well to shorten its menu and focus on doing a few things really well rather than a lot very poorly.
(2)
Matthew S.
Louie's is a fantastic establishment. Great quality, and ambiance as well. The oil and garlic with the bread is spot on. Everything there is super high in quality and its a pleasure going back.
(5)
Bob P.
We have been going to Louie's for a long time and decided to make a visit after a long absence. Not sure what happened, but what used to be a very solid red gravy place has morphed into an overpriced place with a touristy feel. It's not bad, but certainly not a value. Pros Very friendly waitstaff. Despite forgetting things and mixing up a bit, waitstaff was exceptional. Food quality is solid. Traditional red gravy fare done well. Portion size is right. Cons WAY over priced. Family of four including pre-teen: $86. Four entrees, 2 apps, 1 iced tea, 1 soda, 2 club sodas. Particularly offensive was rigatoni with garlic and oll menu price of $14.99. I asked to add a bit of chicken and price jumped $7. Really? $7 for probably 4 oz of chicken? I will continue to buy your sauces in the grocery store (which you can buy there along with t-shirts on other tourist stuff), but I cannot come back, sorry.
(2)
May M.
I ordered the steak salad and pasta fagioli. Pasta fagioli wasn't very good and steak salad was ok. Bathrooms were dirty but service was good.
(2)
Waleska M.
My friends told me they had the best eggplant parmesian so I wanted to bring my husband. They open at 11 on Sunday and we got there at 1 I wanted the fried calamari and she said they were all sold out that she just sold the last one the place was empty the salad had too much oregano and the famous eggplant looked so good and tasted good but it was cold in the middle. We asked the waitress if it was premade or frozen she said it was freshly made...yeah right there was no way the middle would have been cold and hard...so I will never go again the server was nice but there was no discount for such bad food ..I would not recommend this place at all..run the other way!
(1)
Cinzia C.
Really Good Stromboli!!! Great place to meet friends at the bar....exceptional servers and bartenders! Great live music!
(5)
Melissa D.
I went here for dinner last night for a belated birthday dinner (not mine). A glance at the menu is a little disheartening. There are very few options that don't involve bread or pasta (read: salad). Most places offer different choices of sides instead of pasta but...not here. I opted for an Antipasto salad while the rest of the table got a standard entree. For the price of the entrees and the perceived quality of what was served (pre-fab Italian food), I'd say the place is overpriced. My salad was awful and soggy. I ate several bites and pushed it away. On a positive, the waitstaff is nice. Bottom line here - you can get insanely better (authentic) Italian food in the Valley from places which charge far less than this place.
(1)
Julie S.
My pizza arrives at the table. The sauce, excellent. The toppings, alright. And then I bite into it. It's a prefab cracker crust. An Italian restaurant that can't make its own pizza crust is the lamest thing I ever heard. It's like the chef doesn't want to cook. At least buy some dough and bake it. Trader Joe's sells a ball of it for 99 cents.That flat cracker thing was so lame. My mom had eggplant parmesan, which was perfectly tasty. But for $16, it should have been over the moon fabulous and perhaps come with a $4 rebate. The salads were way overdressed. Tasty garlic dressing, but it was way over the top heavy. More is not always better. One bright spot though: our server was adorable and extremely competent. Thumbs up, server gal.
(2)
Andrew T.
I was to Louie's several times in the 12th St location as I used to work in the area and the food was OK. I recently tried thew new location off of Lehigh St and was disappointed. We ordered a thin crust pizza and was brought a deep dish with barely melted cheese. As others have said, the crust was not made fresh, it tasted prefab. Neither my fiance or I could stomach finishing a slice. The garlic bread we ordered was OK, however, nothing to right home about. I'd suggest staying away.
(1)
Shoshanna G.
One of my favorite places to go in the Lehigh Valley for authentic Italian food. Always consistent, delectable and enjoyable. The shrimp scampi, tomato bread, & pizzas are a few of my faves! The staff is very accommodating and always kind & courteous. A family business that always makes you feel like family when you are there.
(4)
Katie S.
I love louie's pizza, salad and sandwiches. The pasta, however, is so bland. I am the kind of girl who rarely meets a carb she doesn't like, but Louie's has some of the few. Not the best Italian in the valley.
(2)
Vanessa W.
Louie's has been an Allentown institution for decades, so why, I a local yocal never made it over there I'll never know. I recently visited them at their new location. All I can say is phenomenal. From the soups, to the salad, to the entrees to dessert everything was absolutely outstanding. The sauce was nice - nothing overdone like you commonly find at other Italian restaurants. It's BYOB and prices are reasonable making it a great night out. Two thumbs way way up. I'll be back!
(5)
Joe K.
Haven't been here for a few months but the food is just as good as I remember! Lobster specials are awesome and the wait staff is still phenomenal.
(4)
Mo M.
Really disappointed in this place! Went for advertised $.99 clam night....told by waiter at 7 pm there are no more clams! But surprise.... The next 2 customers to come in order and get clams....wow...talk about treating new customers badly. The worst part is when asked the waiter lied and said they found them hidden....really? The owner even gave us a dirty look because we complained!
(1)
Anna M.
Louie's is so delicious! Great list of Martinis, you should try the Expresso Martini. Nice entertainment Portions are quite large. Love this place
(5)
Frank P.
Little grungy inside but I like places like that. The buffet was limited but very good. Nice Chianti and good conversation. All in all, I'd go back.
(4)
Jim S.
Very cozy atmosphere Friendly servers. Live Jazz music . Nice portions, reasonably priced. Old Italian world charm. Definelty worth a visit. Checking.. Receive 10% off. Excellente!!!
(4)
Todd B.
I'm really surprised by the lower rankings of this old school Italian charming restaurant. Perhaps these folk are high falutin' New Yorkers that are rating Louie's, but this high falutin' New Yorker thought this place was pretty darned good. I love the Louie toss salad, which was served complimentary with my entree in addition to the warm bread and garlic oil dip. My waitress tried really hard to make me eat bread and carbs, but I resisted for the most part except for a little linguine with my entree. I chose the shrimp and lobster in marinara sauce over linguini. It was a very healthy portion, and lots of meaty shrimp and chunks of lobster. The marina sauce was typical of this area and very tasty. I ordered the calamari pasta originally, and it took about 10 minutes for the server to inform me that they couldn't serve it to me because "it didn't look too good tonight." Now, this is probably a decision the chef should have made earlier in the evening, but kudos to them and to her for being honest about it. The atmosphere is like an old Italian cafe, and has a nice wine list and craft beer list as well. Good place -since 1958.
(4)
Candi K.
The Lehigh Valley is overwhelmed by little Italian restaurants. This is one of the better ones, IMHO. The atmosphere is clean & cozy. They have a nice bar with good happy hour specials. I prefer to go for lunch - they have lunch-sized portions for a good value, and the buffet is nice (small, but nice - this is no Golden Corral, thank god). Wait staff is friendly. Everything appears to be made in house.
(4)
Julie S.
This is my third time visiting Louie's so I'm now comfortable writing a review. The one standout of all all the things I've tried is the marinara sauce. The sauce is fresh and flavorful and if you were to have it on plain pasta it would make a nice meal. But that's pretty much it. The tossed salad which as a stand alone order is almost $6 is a soggy mess, clearly sitting in a large bowl in the back and served out as needed. For that sort of money it needs to be a much larger serving with crispy lettuce,more tomatoes, olives and definitely more than Gorgonzola dust. The Chicken Marsala instead of being chicken pounded thin served with prosciutto and mushrooms in a flavorful dark brown broth is chicken chunks with pepper chunks served over pasta with little to no sauce. The antipasto plate looks like a collection of jarred or canned vegetables on a plate with a tablespoon of tuna, 1/4 of an egg and 1.5 anchovies. The pasta sampler makes it hard to differentiate between the manicotti and the lasagna with both being a pile of pasta, ricotta and sauce. I could go on but suffice it to say this place would do well to shorten its menu and focus on doing a few things really well rather than a lot very poorly.
(2)
Matthew S.
Louie's is a fantastic establishment. Great quality, and ambiance as well. The oil and garlic with the bread is spot on. Everything there is super high in quality and its a pleasure going back.
(5)
Bob P.
We have been going to Louie's for a long time and decided to make a visit after a long absence. Not sure what happened, but what used to be a very solid red gravy place has morphed into an overpriced place with a touristy feel. It's not bad, but certainly not a value. Pros Very friendly waitstaff. Despite forgetting things and mixing up a bit, waitstaff was exceptional. Food quality is solid. Traditional red gravy fare done well. Portion size is right. Cons WAY over priced. Family of four including pre-teen: $86. Four entrees, 2 apps, 1 iced tea, 1 soda, 2 club sodas. Particularly offensive was rigatoni with garlic and oll menu price of $14.99. I asked to add a bit of chicken and price jumped $7. Really? $7 for probably 4 oz of chicken? I will continue to buy your sauces in the grocery store (which you can buy there along with t-shirts on other tourist stuff), but I cannot come back, sorry.
(2)
May M.
I ordered the steak salad and pasta fagioli. Pasta fagioli wasn't very good and steak salad was ok. Bathrooms were dirty but service was good.
(2)
Waleska M.
My friends told me they had the best eggplant parmesian so I wanted to bring my husband. They open at 11 on Sunday and we got there at 1 I wanted the fried calamari and she said they were all sold out that she just sold the last one the place was empty the salad had too much oregano and the famous eggplant looked so good and tasted good but it was cold in the middle. We asked the waitress if it was premade or frozen she said it was freshly made...yeah right there was no way the middle would have been cold and hard...so I will never go again the server was nice but there was no discount for such bad food ..I would not recommend this place at all..run the other way!
(1)
Cinzia C.
Really Good Stromboli!!! Great place to meet friends at the bar....exceptional servers and bartenders! Great live music!
(5)
Melissa D.
I went here for dinner last night for a belated birthday dinner (not mine). A glance at the menu is a little disheartening. There are very few options that don't involve bread or pasta (read: salad). Most places offer different choices of sides instead of pasta but...not here. I opted for an Antipasto salad while the rest of the table got a standard entree. For the price of the entrees and the perceived quality of what was served (pre-fab Italian food), I'd say the place is overpriced. My salad was awful and soggy. I ate several bites and pushed it away. On a positive, the waitstaff is nice. Bottom line here - you can get insanely better (authentic) Italian food in the Valley from places which charge far less than this place.
(1)
Julie S.
My pizza arrives at the table. The sauce, excellent. The toppings, alright. And then I bite into it. It's a prefab cracker crust. An Italian restaurant that can't make its own pizza crust is the lamest thing I ever heard. It's like the chef doesn't want to cook. At least buy some dough and bake it. Trader Joe's sells a ball of it for 99 cents.That flat cracker thing was so lame. My mom had eggplant parmesan, which was perfectly tasty. But for $16, it should have been over the moon fabulous and perhaps come with a $4 rebate. The salads were way overdressed. Tasty garlic dressing, but it was way over the top heavy. More is not always better. One bright spot though: our server was adorable and extremely competent. Thumbs up, server gal.
(2)
Andrew T.
I was to Louie's several times in the 12th St location as I used to work in the area and the food was OK. I recently tried thew new location off of Lehigh St and was disappointed. We ordered a thin crust pizza and was brought a deep dish with barely melted cheese. As others have said, the crust was not made fresh, it tasted prefab. Neither my fiance or I could stomach finishing a slice. The garlic bread we ordered was OK, however, nothing to right home about. I'd suggest staying away.
(1)
K W.
I ordered a chicken dish with a lemon-garlic sauce. The chicken was as hard as a rock and the sauce was overly oily. I couldn't eat it, that's how bad it was. Waste of money. Later, saw bunch of "kids" emerge from the kitchen and hang out at the bar. I assumed they were the ones who prepared our meals as we were the last table served that night.. Based on how they presented themselves, I'm not surprised that my food was awful. Poor management at Louie's in my opinion. Too bad. I never had a bad meal when they were at their original location. Never going back!
(1)
Joe L.
Most certainly an Allentown institution. I do miss the old place, which was crammed into various meandering hallways in downtown Allentown, but it's nice to have more floor space and a brick oven here. Plus, there's ample parking. Now, on to the food. It's very, very, good. Your typical Southern Italian staples, like lasagna, baked pastas, and pizza. All of it is very good. I highly recommend the lasagna. Two other must eats: the garlic tomato bread (or just the garlic bread, if you must), and the house salad with gorgonzola. You will be pleased, trust me. There's also well apportioned lunch buffet. Haven't had a bad meal here yet.
(5)
Eric C.
I was at Louie's many years ago when it was still on 12th street and the food was great. At the time you could tell the food had been made from raw ingredients. I finally had a chance to try the new Louie's and was rather disappointed. I ordered the chicken parm. and I could tell the chicken was a frozen breaded perfectly round portion. I suspect it was a standard SYSCO item and although it was not bad it tasted like your average local diner fair. In addition I could see their pre-purchased deep dish pizza crusts in the kitchen and unless they shrink wrap their crusts after they make them I suspect they arrived frozen from some institutional baker. Finally I watched one of their pizza's come out of their so-called wood burning pizza oven. Well the oven was a small electric Blodgett. Nothing wrong with it, but they should advertise honestly. The positives are the staff is very nice, however I don't plan on going back. There are way too many authentic Italian restaurants in the Lehigh Valley.
(2)
Z S.
After a long day all i wanted to do is to have a nice meal...however it didn't happened as i planned it..i ordered a chicken alfredo and all i added was broccoli..well when i finally got it (home) it was a small size, no salt, no flavor for $24!! and i am not kidding it was very small for that amount. I also ordered garlic bread..it took a while to get it but i figured it was going be good bc it was fresh....yeah the bread was sweet???weird...i was very unhappy...i rather to drive to bethlehem and be happy w/ the other italian place i always go to...
(1)
Stephen H.
Have to give this one a "Meh" even though Louie's reputation is well know. I have not been to Louie's for a long time as my wife never really enjoyed traveling into the "Hood" of Allentown. The other day she said, "Let's go to Louie's they have a clam bake special!" So, we went and had two "clam bake specials." Nothing special or "Louie's" about it! A dozen clams, frozen 1/3 piece of corn (even though we were in prime fresh corn season!), 1-small red potato, and 2-pieces of "diner" chicken for $12. Advice for Louie & customers...Stick to the Italian food! I am sure that I will go back for Italian another day,
(2)
Stoge K.
Louie's is truly and Allentown tradition. Louie's, Yoccos and Wally's are the 3 primary places I go to when I visit. There food has not changed in over 20 years and they always have stuck to their original recipe. There is a lot of good stuff on the menu, but some of the things that are a must are: Chicken in Wine Sauce, Stromboli (it is different), Tomato Garlic Bread and their Lasagna! Ask for Ginny...she is my favorite waitress!
(5)
Ethan A.
I have only ever been to Louie's for lunch. Which means I've only ever had the buffet. I can tell you that it's worth every penny, though. Everything is very fresh, very simply prepared. There's no overthinking here, just good, simple, Italian food, like I think my Italian grandmother would have made, had I had an Italian grandmother. Unexpected favorites include: their potato salad, made with a little mayo and nicely savory spiced, not mustard and Miracle Whip; and their roasted chicken, really simply herbed and roasted until it's falling off the bone, just like it should be. Throw ravioli and sausage and peppers on top and you can't lose for lunch.
(4)
Matt R.
I don't remember the date, but I remember the first time I went to the original Louie's on 12th St. I think it was around 1985. The neighborhood was a little safer back then, and I was really impressed by the place. Finally, we found some good sit-down Italian-American food in the Valley (I knew at age 14 that red sauce wasn't made with tomato paste and green peppers and that you were supposed to drain the water from the pasta before serving). There was a quiet atmosphere with a level of friendly and competent service I hadn't seen or felt much since I was a little kid tagging along to the last few classic Allentown eateries that remained (not for long) in the depressed and depressing days of the 70s and early 80s. We came back a lot after that, always bringing our own bottle of Italian table wine (chianti in a basket!) and getting similar dishes. Antipasto shared for three, or the salad with gorgonzola and black olives (I copied that recipe myself for years). Maybe the calamari appetizer (sauteed). Usually one veal dish, one lighter pasta, and something with seafood (scallops parmigiana?). Through high school, visits home during college, and even a few stop-offs on the holidays when I lived in Boston. By the late 90s, though, the 'hood got sketchier and my family got older and a little less tolerent of the city's long downward spiral. It wasn't a place to park on the street and walk around at night. There was a particularly gruesome murder nearby. The owners opened a short-lived spinoff outpost in redeveloped South Bethlehem, which wasn't quite the same, and I moved to the West Coast and forget about the place, assuming it would fade away like most of the other bits of old Allentown. The future of new development and the middle class was in the suburbs, and it looked subdivided, homogenized, and increasingly middle-American. (The Lehigh Valley's location at the fluid edge of New England, Northern, midland, and southern culture is an interesting subject best left to Wikipedia) But Louie's stayed in business, and left 12th St. a few years back for the safer and more spacious southwestern corner of the city (not the suburbs, but you can seem 'em from there). The new place is a bit more corporate-Ital in decor and in the menu page layout (I expected trademark symbols next to the entree names), but the food is familiar Louie's, with the addition of wood-fired pizza, a substantial bar (they now have a liquor license), and an expanded menu. There's a happy hour with free pizza. The oven cranks out decent foccacia, which is served with a garlic and oil dip, replacing the white Italian loaves of years past. We went for old favorites, but tried the "new" fried calamari instead of the sauteed. The new twist involved a cornmeal breading, which tasted great but needed some additional preparation to deal with the grittiness of the grits. The gorgonzola-topped house salad was as good as ever (and a bit larger). Veal parmigiana--the ultimate in Italian-American comfort food--was as good as I remember. The specials were a little fancier, and a soft shell crab pasta was a decent attempt at dishes you find at pricier places. They went with a white sauce, however, which was unexpected for this kind of place but appropriate for the dish. Plain spaghetti and meatballs made everyone feel at home. The wine list had reasonable bottles and a good selection (Pennsylvania's finally catching up in this regard). Oh, and the low-end chianti came in a basket. Prices seemed reasonable even after ten years of substantial inflation. Service was friendly. The dining room wasn't too noisy--no forced chain-restaurant background soundtrack. Just a nice neighborhood restaurant that escaped from the 'hood. Sometimes it's nice to go home every now and then.
(4)
Joe L.
Most certainly an Allentown institution. I do miss the old place, which was crammed into various meandering hallways in downtown Allentown, but it's nice to have more floor space and a brick oven here. Plus, there's ample parking. Now, on to the food. It's very, very, good. Your typical Southern Italian staples, like lasagna, baked pastas, and pizza. All of it is very good. I highly recommend the lasagna. Two other must eats: the garlic tomato bread (or just the garlic bread, if you must), and the house salad with gorgonzola. You will be pleased, trust me. There's also well apportioned lunch buffet. Haven't had a bad meal here yet.
(5)
Eric C.
I was at Louie's many years ago when it was still on 12th street and the food was great. At the time you could tell the food had been made from raw ingredients. I finally had a chance to try the new Louie's and was rather disappointed. I ordered the chicken parm. and I could tell the chicken was a frozen breaded perfectly round portion. I suspect it was a standard SYSCO item and although it was not bad it tasted like your average local diner fair. In addition I could see their pre-purchased deep dish pizza crusts in the kitchen and unless they shrink wrap their crusts after they make them I suspect they arrived frozen from some institutional baker. Finally I watched one of their pizza's come out of their so-called wood burning pizza oven. Well the oven was a small electric Blodgett. Nothing wrong with it, but they should advertise honestly. The positives are the staff is very nice, however I don't plan on going back. There are way too many authentic Italian restaurants in the Lehigh Valley.
(2)
Z S.
After a long day all i wanted to do is to have a nice meal...however it didn't happened as i planned it..i ordered a chicken alfredo and all i added was broccoli..well when i finally got it (home) it was a small size, no salt, no flavor for $24!! and i am not kidding it was very small for that amount. I also ordered garlic bread..it took a while to get it but i figured it was going be good bc it was fresh....yeah the bread was sweet???weird...i was very unhappy...i rather to drive to bethlehem and be happy w/ the other italian place i always go to...
(1)
Stephen H.
Have to give this one a "Meh" even though Louie's reputation is well know. I have not been to Louie's for a long time as my wife never really enjoyed traveling into the "Hood" of Allentown. The other day she said, "Let's go to Louie's they have a clam bake special!" So, we went and had two "clam bake specials." Nothing special or "Louie's" about it! A dozen clams, frozen 1/3 piece of corn (even though we were in prime fresh corn season!), 1-small red potato, and 2-pieces of "diner" chicken for $12. Advice for Louie & customers...Stick to the Italian food! I am sure that I will go back for Italian another day,
(2)
Stoge K.
Louie's is truly and Allentown tradition. Louie's, Yoccos and Wally's are the 3 primary places I go to when I visit. There food has not changed in over 20 years and they always have stuck to their original recipe. There is a lot of good stuff on the menu, but some of the things that are a must are: Chicken in Wine Sauce, Stromboli (it is different), Tomato Garlic Bread and their Lasagna! Ask for Ginny...she is my favorite waitress!
(5)
Ethan A.
I have only ever been to Louie's for lunch. Which means I've only ever had the buffet. I can tell you that it's worth every penny, though. Everything is very fresh, very simply prepared. There's no overthinking here, just good, simple, Italian food, like I think my Italian grandmother would have made, had I had an Italian grandmother. Unexpected favorites include: their potato salad, made with a little mayo and nicely savory spiced, not mustard and Miracle Whip; and their roasted chicken, really simply herbed and roasted until it's falling off the bone, just like it should be. Throw ravioli and sausage and peppers on top and you can't lose for lunch.
(4)
Matt R.
I don't remember the date, but I remember the first time I went to the original Louie's on 12th St. I think it was around 1985. The neighborhood was a little safer back then, and I was really impressed by the place. Finally, we found some good sit-down Italian-American food in the Valley (I knew at age 14 that red sauce wasn't made with tomato paste and green peppers and that you were supposed to drain the water from the pasta before serving). There was a quiet atmosphere with a level of friendly and competent service I hadn't seen or felt much since I was a little kid tagging along to the last few classic Allentown eateries that remained (not for long) in the depressed and depressing days of the 70s and early 80s. We came back a lot after that, always bringing our own bottle of Italian table wine (chianti in a basket!) and getting similar dishes. Antipasto shared for three, or the salad with gorgonzola and black olives (I copied that recipe myself for years). Maybe the calamari appetizer (sauteed). Usually one veal dish, one lighter pasta, and something with seafood (scallops parmigiana?). Through high school, visits home during college, and even a few stop-offs on the holidays when I lived in Boston. By the late 90s, though, the 'hood got sketchier and my family got older and a little less tolerent of the city's long downward spiral. It wasn't a place to park on the street and walk around at night. There was a particularly gruesome murder nearby. The owners opened a short-lived spinoff outpost in redeveloped South Bethlehem, which wasn't quite the same, and I moved to the West Coast and forget about the place, assuming it would fade away like most of the other bits of old Allentown. The future of new development and the middle class was in the suburbs, and it looked subdivided, homogenized, and increasingly middle-American. (The Lehigh Valley's location at the fluid edge of New England, Northern, midland, and southern culture is an interesting subject best left to Wikipedia) But Louie's stayed in business, and left 12th St. a few years back for the safer and more spacious southwestern corner of the city (not the suburbs, but you can seem 'em from there). The new place is a bit more corporate-Ital in decor and in the menu page layout (I expected trademark symbols next to the entree names), but the food is familiar Louie's, with the addition of wood-fired pizza, a substantial bar (they now have a liquor license), and an expanded menu. There's a happy hour with free pizza. The oven cranks out decent foccacia, which is served with a garlic and oil dip, replacing the white Italian loaves of years past. We went for old favorites, but tried the "new" fried calamari instead of the sauteed. The new twist involved a cornmeal breading, which tasted great but needed some additional preparation to deal with the grittiness of the grits. The gorgonzola-topped house salad was as good as ever (and a bit larger). Veal parmigiana--the ultimate in Italian-American comfort food--was as good as I remember. The specials were a little fancier, and a soft shell crab pasta was a decent attempt at dishes you find at pricier places. They went with a white sauce, however, which was unexpected for this kind of place but appropriate for the dish. Plain spaghetti and meatballs made everyone feel at home. The wine list had reasonable bottles and a good selection (Pennsylvania's finally catching up in this regard). Oh, and the low-end chianti came in a basket. Prices seemed reasonable even after ten years of substantial inflation. Service was friendly. The dining room wasn't too noisy--no forced chain-restaurant background soundtrack. Just a nice neighborhood restaurant that escaped from the 'hood. Sometimes it's nice to go home every now and then.
(4)
Katie S.
I love louie's pizza, salad and sandwiches. The pasta, however, is so bland. I am the kind of girl who rarely meets a carb she doesn't like, but Louie's has some of the few. Not the best Italian in the valley.
(2)
Vanessa W.
Louie's has been an Allentown institution for decades, so why, I a local yocal never made it over there I'll never know. I recently visited them at their new location. All I can say is phenomenal. From the soups, to the salad, to the entrees to dessert everything was absolutely outstanding. The sauce was nice - nothing overdone like you commonly find at other Italian restaurants. It's BYOB and prices are reasonable making it a great night out. Two thumbs way way up. I'll be back!
(5)
K W.
I ordered a chicken dish with a lemon-garlic sauce. The chicken was as hard as a rock and the sauce was overly oily. I couldn't eat it, that's how bad it was. Waste of money. Later, saw bunch of "kids" emerge from the kitchen and hang out at the bar. I assumed they were the ones who prepared our meals as we were the last table served that night.. Based on how they presented themselves, I'm not surprised that my food was awful. Poor management at Louie's in my opinion. Too bad. I never had a bad meal when they were at their original location. Never going back!
Takes Reservations : Yes Delivery : No Take-out : Yes Accepts Credit Cards : Yes Good For : Dinner Parking : Private Lot Bike Parking : Yes Wheelchair Accessible : Yes Good for Kids : Yes Good for Groups : Yes Attire : Casual Ambience : Casual Noise Level : Average Alcohol : Full Bar Outdoor Seating : Yes Wi-Fi : Free Has TV : Yes Dogs Allowed : No Waiter Service : Yes Caters : Yes
The immense popularity of Italian cuisine globally isn't unknown. You can find an Italian Pizzeria around every corner of almost every city in the United States. Not to forget that in every house, people enjoy mac and cheese as comfort food. But it would be wrong to believe that Italian food starts with pizza and ends with good pasta as this Mediterranean country has much more to offer other than these two dishes. In Italian Cuisine, there is a high use of fresh tomatoes, all kinds of herbs, great quality of cheese, all types of meat, seafood and fresh handmade pasta. Many find it hard to believe that Italians have been making noodles long back.
Italian and Greek cuisines are always mistaken to be same, but they are poles apart. The primary difference between the two cuisines is the use of cheese in most of the Italian dishes. Italians love to cultivate their own cheese and process them as per their food requirement. It is believed that some cheese is so expensive that cheese producers secure them in lockers.
If you are bored eating the same old pasta or pizza, you can try some of the authentic Italian dishes like Risotto, Polenta, Ribollita, Lasagna, Fiorentina Steak, Bottarga, Ossobuco, Carbonara, Focaccia, Arancini and Supplì. Another item which Italians love to relish every morning is a good cup of Italian Coffee. Once you taste a freshly brewed cup of Italian Coffee, you might not visit Starbucks ever again. Authentic Italian food is made with heart and soul, so go find a restaurant where you can relish Italian cuisine in your city.
Pizza
Pizza is a famous Italian dish savored around the world. The entire credit for the popularity of Pizza in the United States goes to the chain of pizzerias all over the country. While the base and the texture of Pizza remains same across the globe, it's the toppings that differs from country to country. In the United States, you will find the top pizzerias serving pizzas with the toppings of mainly beef, bacon, chicken, ham, and sausage for the non-vegetarians. Other than these famous meat options, Pizzas with veg toppings such as mushrooms, pepperonis, garlic, tomatoes, spinach, etc. are also famous in most restaurants in the United States.
Irrespective of your locality, you will find a variety of different restaurants in your cities offering pizzas of all different types. Pizza is hot favorite among people of all ages in the United States. A large size pizza is enough to feed a family of 3 or 4 at large. Pizza is also the most preferred food whenever a group of friends is hanging out together. Pizza gained popularity in the United States after the American soldiers stationed in Italy returned from World War II.
Over the years, different pizzerias in the United States have developed their own respective regional variations. Pizza gained popularity as the iconic dish in the United States in the second half of the 20th century. Whether you prefer thin or thick crust pizza, you can find a pizza of your preference at the best pizza restaurants in your city.
Todd B.
I'm really surprised by the lower rankings of this old school Italian charming restaurant. Perhaps these folk are high falutin' New Yorkers that are rating Louie's, but this high falutin' New Yorker thought this place was pretty darned good. I love the Louie toss salad, which was served complimentary with my entree in addition to the warm bread and garlic oil dip. My waitress tried really hard to make me eat bread and carbs, but I resisted for the most part except for a little linguine with my entree. I chose the shrimp and lobster in marinara sauce over linguini. It was a very healthy portion, and lots of meaty shrimp and chunks of lobster. The marina sauce was typical of this area and very tasty. I ordered the calamari pasta originally, and it took about 10 minutes for the server to inform me that they couldn't serve it to me because "it didn't look too good tonight." Now, this is probably a decision the chef should have made earlier in the evening, but kudos to them and to her for being honest about it. The atmosphere is like an old Italian cafe, and has a nice wine list and craft beer list as well. Good place -since 1958.
(4)Mo M.
Really disappointed in this place! Went for advertised $.99 clam night....told by waiter at 7 pm there are no more clams! But surprise.... The next 2 customers to come in order and get clams....wow...talk about treating new customers badly. The worst part is when asked the waiter lied and said they found them hidden....really? The owner even gave us a dirty look because we complained!
(1)Anna M.
Louie's is so delicious! Great list of Martinis, you should try the Expresso Martini. Nice entertainment Portions are quite large. Love this place
(5)Frank P.
Little grungy inside but I like places like that. The buffet was limited but very good. Nice Chianti and good conversation. All in all, I'd go back.
(4)Jim S.
Very cozy atmosphere Friendly servers. Live Jazz music . Nice portions, reasonably priced. Old Italian world charm. Definelty worth a visit. Checking.. Receive 10% off. Excellente!!!
(4)Shoshanna G.
One of my favorite places to go in the Lehigh Valley for authentic Italian food. Always consistent, delectable and enjoyable. The shrimp scampi, tomato bread, & pizzas are a few of my faves! The staff is very accommodating and always kind & courteous. A family business that always makes you feel like family when you are there.
(4)Joe K.
Haven't been here for a few months but the food is just as good as I remember! Lobster specials are awesome and the wait staff is still phenomenal.
(4)Candi K.
The Lehigh Valley is overwhelmed by little Italian restaurants. This is one of the better ones, IMHO. The atmosphere is clean & cozy. They have a nice bar with good happy hour specials. I prefer to go for lunch - they have lunch-sized portions for a good value, and the buffet is nice (small, but nice - this is no Golden Corral, thank god). Wait staff is friendly. Everything appears to be made in house.
(4)Julie S.
This is my third time visiting Louie's so I'm now comfortable writing a review. The one standout of all all the things I've tried is the marinara sauce. The sauce is fresh and flavorful and if you were to have it on plain pasta it would make a nice meal. But that's pretty much it. The tossed salad which as a stand alone order is almost $6 is a soggy mess, clearly sitting in a large bowl in the back and served out as needed. For that sort of money it needs to be a much larger serving with crispy lettuce,more tomatoes, olives and definitely more than Gorgonzola dust. The Chicken Marsala instead of being chicken pounded thin served with prosciutto and mushrooms in a flavorful dark brown broth is chicken chunks with pepper chunks served over pasta with little to no sauce. The antipasto plate looks like a collection of jarred or canned vegetables on a plate with a tablespoon of tuna, 1/4 of an egg and 1.5 anchovies. The pasta sampler makes it hard to differentiate between the manicotti and the lasagna with both being a pile of pasta, ricotta and sauce. I could go on but suffice it to say this place would do well to shorten its menu and focus on doing a few things really well rather than a lot very poorly.
(2)Matthew S.
Louie's is a fantastic establishment. Great quality, and ambiance as well. The oil and garlic with the bread is spot on. Everything there is super high in quality and its a pleasure going back.
(5)Bob P.
We have been going to Louie's for a long time and decided to make a visit after a long absence. Not sure what happened, but what used to be a very solid red gravy place has morphed into an overpriced place with a touristy feel. It's not bad, but certainly not a value. Pros Very friendly waitstaff. Despite forgetting things and mixing up a bit, waitstaff was exceptional. Food quality is solid. Traditional red gravy fare done well. Portion size is right. Cons WAY over priced. Family of four including pre-teen: $86. Four entrees, 2 apps, 1 iced tea, 1 soda, 2 club sodas. Particularly offensive was rigatoni with garlic and oll menu price of $14.99. I asked to add a bit of chicken and price jumped $7. Really? $7 for probably 4 oz of chicken? I will continue to buy your sauces in the grocery store (which you can buy there along with t-shirts on other tourist stuff), but I cannot come back, sorry.
(2)May M.
I ordered the steak salad and pasta fagioli. Pasta fagioli wasn't very good and steak salad was ok. Bathrooms were dirty but service was good.
(2)Waleska M.
My friends told me they had the best eggplant parmesian so I wanted to bring my husband. They open at 11 on Sunday and we got there at 1 I wanted the fried calamari and she said they were all sold out that she just sold the last one the place was empty the salad had too much oregano and the famous eggplant looked so good and tasted good but it was cold in the middle. We asked the waitress if it was premade or frozen she said it was freshly made...yeah right there was no way the middle would have been cold and hard...so I will never go again the server was nice but there was no discount for such bad food ..I would not recommend this place at all..run the other way!
(1)Cinzia C.
Really Good Stromboli!!! Great place to meet friends at the bar....exceptional servers and bartenders! Great live music!
(5)Melissa D.
I went here for dinner last night for a belated birthday dinner (not mine). A glance at the menu is a little disheartening. There are very few options that don't involve bread or pasta (read: salad). Most places offer different choices of sides instead of pasta but...not here. I opted for an Antipasto salad while the rest of the table got a standard entree. For the price of the entrees and the perceived quality of what was served (pre-fab Italian food), I'd say the place is overpriced. My salad was awful and soggy. I ate several bites and pushed it away. On a positive, the waitstaff is nice. Bottom line here - you can get insanely better (authentic) Italian food in the Valley from places which charge far less than this place.
(1)Julie S.
My pizza arrives at the table. The sauce, excellent. The toppings, alright. And then I bite into it. It's a prefab cracker crust. An Italian restaurant that can't make its own pizza crust is the lamest thing I ever heard. It's like the chef doesn't want to cook. At least buy some dough and bake it. Trader Joe's sells a ball of it for 99 cents.That flat cracker thing was so lame. My mom had eggplant parmesan, which was perfectly tasty. But for $16, it should have been over the moon fabulous and perhaps come with a $4 rebate. The salads were way overdressed. Tasty garlic dressing, but it was way over the top heavy. More is not always better. One bright spot though: our server was adorable and extremely competent. Thumbs up, server gal.
(2)Andrew T.
I was to Louie's several times in the 12th St location as I used to work in the area and the food was OK. I recently tried thew new location off of Lehigh St and was disappointed. We ordered a thin crust pizza and was brought a deep dish with barely melted cheese. As others have said, the crust was not made fresh, it tasted prefab. Neither my fiance or I could stomach finishing a slice. The garlic bread we ordered was OK, however, nothing to right home about. I'd suggest staying away.
(1)Shoshanna G.
One of my favorite places to go in the Lehigh Valley for authentic Italian food. Always consistent, delectable and enjoyable. The shrimp scampi, tomato bread, & pizzas are a few of my faves! The staff is very accommodating and always kind & courteous. A family business that always makes you feel like family when you are there.
(4)Katie S.
I love louie's pizza, salad and sandwiches. The pasta, however, is so bland. I am the kind of girl who rarely meets a carb she doesn't like, but Louie's has some of the few. Not the best Italian in the valley.
(2)Vanessa W.
Louie's has been an Allentown institution for decades, so why, I a local yocal never made it over there I'll never know. I recently visited them at their new location. All I can say is phenomenal. From the soups, to the salad, to the entrees to dessert everything was absolutely outstanding. The sauce was nice - nothing overdone like you commonly find at other Italian restaurants. It's BYOB and prices are reasonable making it a great night out. Two thumbs way way up. I'll be back!
(5)Joe K.
Haven't been here for a few months but the food is just as good as I remember! Lobster specials are awesome and the wait staff is still phenomenal.
(4)Mo M.
Really disappointed in this place! Went for advertised $.99 clam night....told by waiter at 7 pm there are no more clams! But surprise.... The next 2 customers to come in order and get clams....wow...talk about treating new customers badly. The worst part is when asked the waiter lied and said they found them hidden....really? The owner even gave us a dirty look because we complained!
(1)Anna M.
Louie's is so delicious! Great list of Martinis, you should try the Expresso Martini. Nice entertainment Portions are quite large. Love this place
(5)Frank P.
Little grungy inside but I like places like that. The buffet was limited but very good. Nice Chianti and good conversation. All in all, I'd go back.
(4)Jim S.
Very cozy atmosphere Friendly servers. Live Jazz music . Nice portions, reasonably priced. Old Italian world charm. Definelty worth a visit. Checking.. Receive 10% off. Excellente!!!
(4)Todd B.
I'm really surprised by the lower rankings of this old school Italian charming restaurant. Perhaps these folk are high falutin' New Yorkers that are rating Louie's, but this high falutin' New Yorker thought this place was pretty darned good. I love the Louie toss salad, which was served complimentary with my entree in addition to the warm bread and garlic oil dip. My waitress tried really hard to make me eat bread and carbs, but I resisted for the most part except for a little linguine with my entree. I chose the shrimp and lobster in marinara sauce over linguini. It was a very healthy portion, and lots of meaty shrimp and chunks of lobster. The marina sauce was typical of this area and very tasty. I ordered the calamari pasta originally, and it took about 10 minutes for the server to inform me that they couldn't serve it to me because "it didn't look too good tonight." Now, this is probably a decision the chef should have made earlier in the evening, but kudos to them and to her for being honest about it. The atmosphere is like an old Italian cafe, and has a nice wine list and craft beer list as well. Good place -since 1958.
(4)Candi K.
The Lehigh Valley is overwhelmed by little Italian restaurants. This is one of the better ones, IMHO. The atmosphere is clean & cozy. They have a nice bar with good happy hour specials. I prefer to go for lunch - they have lunch-sized portions for a good value, and the buffet is nice (small, but nice - this is no Golden Corral, thank god). Wait staff is friendly. Everything appears to be made in house.
(4)Julie S.
This is my third time visiting Louie's so I'm now comfortable writing a review. The one standout of all all the things I've tried is the marinara sauce. The sauce is fresh and flavorful and if you were to have it on plain pasta it would make a nice meal. But that's pretty much it. The tossed salad which as a stand alone order is almost $6 is a soggy mess, clearly sitting in a large bowl in the back and served out as needed. For that sort of money it needs to be a much larger serving with crispy lettuce,more tomatoes, olives and definitely more than Gorgonzola dust. The Chicken Marsala instead of being chicken pounded thin served with prosciutto and mushrooms in a flavorful dark brown broth is chicken chunks with pepper chunks served over pasta with little to no sauce. The antipasto plate looks like a collection of jarred or canned vegetables on a plate with a tablespoon of tuna, 1/4 of an egg and 1.5 anchovies. The pasta sampler makes it hard to differentiate between the manicotti and the lasagna with both being a pile of pasta, ricotta and sauce. I could go on but suffice it to say this place would do well to shorten its menu and focus on doing a few things really well rather than a lot very poorly.
(2)Matthew S.
Louie's is a fantastic establishment. Great quality, and ambiance as well. The oil and garlic with the bread is spot on. Everything there is super high in quality and its a pleasure going back.
(5)Bob P.
We have been going to Louie's for a long time and decided to make a visit after a long absence. Not sure what happened, but what used to be a very solid red gravy place has morphed into an overpriced place with a touristy feel. It's not bad, but certainly not a value. Pros Very friendly waitstaff. Despite forgetting things and mixing up a bit, waitstaff was exceptional. Food quality is solid. Traditional red gravy fare done well. Portion size is right. Cons WAY over priced. Family of four including pre-teen: $86. Four entrees, 2 apps, 1 iced tea, 1 soda, 2 club sodas. Particularly offensive was rigatoni with garlic and oll menu price of $14.99. I asked to add a bit of chicken and price jumped $7. Really? $7 for probably 4 oz of chicken? I will continue to buy your sauces in the grocery store (which you can buy there along with t-shirts on other tourist stuff), but I cannot come back, sorry.
(2)May M.
I ordered the steak salad and pasta fagioli. Pasta fagioli wasn't very good and steak salad was ok. Bathrooms were dirty but service was good.
(2)Waleska M.
My friends told me they had the best eggplant parmesian so I wanted to bring my husband. They open at 11 on Sunday and we got there at 1 I wanted the fried calamari and she said they were all sold out that she just sold the last one the place was empty the salad had too much oregano and the famous eggplant looked so good and tasted good but it was cold in the middle. We asked the waitress if it was premade or frozen she said it was freshly made...yeah right there was no way the middle would have been cold and hard...so I will never go again the server was nice but there was no discount for such bad food ..I would not recommend this place at all..run the other way!
(1)Cinzia C.
Really Good Stromboli!!! Great place to meet friends at the bar....exceptional servers and bartenders! Great live music!
(5)Melissa D.
I went here for dinner last night for a belated birthday dinner (not mine). A glance at the menu is a little disheartening. There are very few options that don't involve bread or pasta (read: salad). Most places offer different choices of sides instead of pasta but...not here. I opted for an Antipasto salad while the rest of the table got a standard entree. For the price of the entrees and the perceived quality of what was served (pre-fab Italian food), I'd say the place is overpriced. My salad was awful and soggy. I ate several bites and pushed it away. On a positive, the waitstaff is nice. Bottom line here - you can get insanely better (authentic) Italian food in the Valley from places which charge far less than this place.
(1)Julie S.
My pizza arrives at the table. The sauce, excellent. The toppings, alright. And then I bite into it. It's a prefab cracker crust. An Italian restaurant that can't make its own pizza crust is the lamest thing I ever heard. It's like the chef doesn't want to cook. At least buy some dough and bake it. Trader Joe's sells a ball of it for 99 cents.That flat cracker thing was so lame. My mom had eggplant parmesan, which was perfectly tasty. But for $16, it should have been over the moon fabulous and perhaps come with a $4 rebate. The salads were way overdressed. Tasty garlic dressing, but it was way over the top heavy. More is not always better. One bright spot though: our server was adorable and extremely competent. Thumbs up, server gal.
(2)Andrew T.
I was to Louie's several times in the 12th St location as I used to work in the area and the food was OK. I recently tried thew new location off of Lehigh St and was disappointed. We ordered a thin crust pizza and was brought a deep dish with barely melted cheese. As others have said, the crust was not made fresh, it tasted prefab. Neither my fiance or I could stomach finishing a slice. The garlic bread we ordered was OK, however, nothing to right home about. I'd suggest staying away.
(1)K W.
I ordered a chicken dish with a lemon-garlic sauce. The chicken was as hard as a rock and the sauce was overly oily. I couldn't eat it, that's how bad it was. Waste of money. Later, saw bunch of "kids" emerge from the kitchen and hang out at the bar. I assumed they were the ones who prepared our meals as we were the last table served that night.. Based on how they presented themselves, I'm not surprised that my food was awful. Poor management at Louie's in my opinion. Too bad. I never had a bad meal when they were at their original location. Never going back!
(1)Joe L.
Most certainly an Allentown institution. I do miss the old place, which was crammed into various meandering hallways in downtown Allentown, but it's nice to have more floor space and a brick oven here. Plus, there's ample parking. Now, on to the food. It's very, very, good. Your typical Southern Italian staples, like lasagna, baked pastas, and pizza. All of it is very good. I highly recommend the lasagna. Two other must eats: the garlic tomato bread (or just the garlic bread, if you must), and the house salad with gorgonzola. You will be pleased, trust me. There's also well apportioned lunch buffet. Haven't had a bad meal here yet.
(5)Eric C.
I was at Louie's many years ago when it was still on 12th street and the food was great. At the time you could tell the food had been made from raw ingredients. I finally had a chance to try the new Louie's and was rather disappointed. I ordered the chicken parm. and I could tell the chicken was a frozen breaded perfectly round portion. I suspect it was a standard SYSCO item and although it was not bad it tasted like your average local diner fair. In addition I could see their pre-purchased deep dish pizza crusts in the kitchen and unless they shrink wrap their crusts after they make them I suspect they arrived frozen from some institutional baker. Finally I watched one of their pizza's come out of their so-called wood burning pizza oven. Well the oven was a small electric Blodgett. Nothing wrong with it, but they should advertise honestly. The positives are the staff is very nice, however I don't plan on going back. There are way too many authentic Italian restaurants in the Lehigh Valley.
(2)Z S.
After a long day all i wanted to do is to have a nice meal...however it didn't happened as i planned it..i ordered a chicken alfredo and all i added was broccoli..well when i finally got it (home) it was a small size, no salt, no flavor for $24!! and i am not kidding it was very small for that amount. I also ordered garlic bread..it took a while to get it but i figured it was going be good bc it was fresh....yeah the bread was sweet???weird...i was very unhappy...i rather to drive to bethlehem and be happy w/ the other italian place i always go to...
(1)Stephen H.
Have to give this one a "Meh" even though Louie's reputation is well know. I have not been to Louie's for a long time as my wife never really enjoyed traveling into the "Hood" of Allentown. The other day she said, "Let's go to Louie's they have a clam bake special!" So, we went and had two "clam bake specials." Nothing special or "Louie's" about it! A dozen clams, frozen 1/3 piece of corn (even though we were in prime fresh corn season!), 1-small red potato, and 2-pieces of "diner" chicken for $12. Advice for Louie & customers...Stick to the Italian food! I am sure that I will go back for Italian another day,
(2)Stoge K.
Louie's is truly and Allentown tradition. Louie's, Yoccos and Wally's are the 3 primary places I go to when I visit. There food has not changed in over 20 years and they always have stuck to their original recipe. There is a lot of good stuff on the menu, but some of the things that are a must are: Chicken in Wine Sauce, Stromboli (it is different), Tomato Garlic Bread and their Lasagna! Ask for Ginny...she is my favorite waitress!
(5)Ethan A.
I have only ever been to Louie's for lunch. Which means I've only ever had the buffet. I can tell you that it's worth every penny, though. Everything is very fresh, very simply prepared. There's no overthinking here, just good, simple, Italian food, like I think my Italian grandmother would have made, had I had an Italian grandmother. Unexpected favorites include: their potato salad, made with a little mayo and nicely savory spiced, not mustard and Miracle Whip; and their roasted chicken, really simply herbed and roasted until it's falling off the bone, just like it should be. Throw ravioli and sausage and peppers on top and you can't lose for lunch.
(4)Matt R.
I don't remember the date, but I remember the first time I went to the original Louie's on 12th St. I think it was around 1985. The neighborhood was a little safer back then, and I was really impressed by the place. Finally, we found some good sit-down Italian-American food in the Valley (I knew at age 14 that red sauce wasn't made with tomato paste and green peppers and that you were supposed to drain the water from the pasta before serving). There was a quiet atmosphere with a level of friendly and competent service I hadn't seen or felt much since I was a little kid tagging along to the last few classic Allentown eateries that remained (not for long) in the depressed and depressing days of the 70s and early 80s. We came back a lot after that, always bringing our own bottle of Italian table wine (chianti in a basket!) and getting similar dishes. Antipasto shared for three, or the salad with gorgonzola and black olives (I copied that recipe myself for years). Maybe the calamari appetizer (sauteed). Usually one veal dish, one lighter pasta, and something with seafood (scallops parmigiana?). Through high school, visits home during college, and even a few stop-offs on the holidays when I lived in Boston. By the late 90s, though, the 'hood got sketchier and my family got older and a little less tolerent of the city's long downward spiral. It wasn't a place to park on the street and walk around at night. There was a particularly gruesome murder nearby. The owners opened a short-lived spinoff outpost in redeveloped South Bethlehem, which wasn't quite the same, and I moved to the West Coast and forget about the place, assuming it would fade away like most of the other bits of old Allentown. The future of new development and the middle class was in the suburbs, and it looked subdivided, homogenized, and increasingly middle-American. (The Lehigh Valley's location at the fluid edge of New England, Northern, midland, and southern culture is an interesting subject best left to Wikipedia) But Louie's stayed in business, and left 12th St. a few years back for the safer and more spacious southwestern corner of the city (not the suburbs, but you can seem 'em from there). The new place is a bit more corporate-Ital in decor and in the menu page layout (I expected trademark symbols next to the entree names), but the food is familiar Louie's, with the addition of wood-fired pizza, a substantial bar (they now have a liquor license), and an expanded menu. There's a happy hour with free pizza. The oven cranks out decent foccacia, which is served with a garlic and oil dip, replacing the white Italian loaves of years past. We went for old favorites, but tried the "new" fried calamari instead of the sauteed. The new twist involved a cornmeal breading, which tasted great but needed some additional preparation to deal with the grittiness of the grits. The gorgonzola-topped house salad was as good as ever (and a bit larger). Veal parmigiana--the ultimate in Italian-American comfort food--was as good as I remember. The specials were a little fancier, and a soft shell crab pasta was a decent attempt at dishes you find at pricier places. They went with a white sauce, however, which was unexpected for this kind of place but appropriate for the dish. Plain spaghetti and meatballs made everyone feel at home. The wine list had reasonable bottles and a good selection (Pennsylvania's finally catching up in this regard). Oh, and the low-end chianti came in a basket. Prices seemed reasonable even after ten years of substantial inflation. Service was friendly. The dining room wasn't too noisy--no forced chain-restaurant background soundtrack. Just a nice neighborhood restaurant that escaped from the 'hood. Sometimes it's nice to go home every now and then.
(4)Joe L.
Most certainly an Allentown institution. I do miss the old place, which was crammed into various meandering hallways in downtown Allentown, but it's nice to have more floor space and a brick oven here. Plus, there's ample parking. Now, on to the food. It's very, very, good. Your typical Southern Italian staples, like lasagna, baked pastas, and pizza. All of it is very good. I highly recommend the lasagna. Two other must eats: the garlic tomato bread (or just the garlic bread, if you must), and the house salad with gorgonzola. You will be pleased, trust me. There's also well apportioned lunch buffet. Haven't had a bad meal here yet.
(5)Eric C.
I was at Louie's many years ago when it was still on 12th street and the food was great. At the time you could tell the food had been made from raw ingredients. I finally had a chance to try the new Louie's and was rather disappointed. I ordered the chicken parm. and I could tell the chicken was a frozen breaded perfectly round portion. I suspect it was a standard SYSCO item and although it was not bad it tasted like your average local diner fair. In addition I could see their pre-purchased deep dish pizza crusts in the kitchen and unless they shrink wrap their crusts after they make them I suspect they arrived frozen from some institutional baker. Finally I watched one of their pizza's come out of their so-called wood burning pizza oven. Well the oven was a small electric Blodgett. Nothing wrong with it, but they should advertise honestly. The positives are the staff is very nice, however I don't plan on going back. There are way too many authentic Italian restaurants in the Lehigh Valley.
(2)Z S.
After a long day all i wanted to do is to have a nice meal...however it didn't happened as i planned it..i ordered a chicken alfredo and all i added was broccoli..well when i finally got it (home) it was a small size, no salt, no flavor for $24!! and i am not kidding it was very small for that amount. I also ordered garlic bread..it took a while to get it but i figured it was going be good bc it was fresh....yeah the bread was sweet???weird...i was very unhappy...i rather to drive to bethlehem and be happy w/ the other italian place i always go to...
(1)Stephen H.
Have to give this one a "Meh" even though Louie's reputation is well know. I have not been to Louie's for a long time as my wife never really enjoyed traveling into the "Hood" of Allentown. The other day she said, "Let's go to Louie's they have a clam bake special!" So, we went and had two "clam bake specials." Nothing special or "Louie's" about it! A dozen clams, frozen 1/3 piece of corn (even though we were in prime fresh corn season!), 1-small red potato, and 2-pieces of "diner" chicken for $12. Advice for Louie & customers...Stick to the Italian food! I am sure that I will go back for Italian another day,
(2)Stoge K.
Louie's is truly and Allentown tradition. Louie's, Yoccos and Wally's are the 3 primary places I go to when I visit. There food has not changed in over 20 years and they always have stuck to their original recipe. There is a lot of good stuff on the menu, but some of the things that are a must are: Chicken in Wine Sauce, Stromboli (it is different), Tomato Garlic Bread and their Lasagna! Ask for Ginny...she is my favorite waitress!
(5)Ethan A.
I have only ever been to Louie's for lunch. Which means I've only ever had the buffet. I can tell you that it's worth every penny, though. Everything is very fresh, very simply prepared. There's no overthinking here, just good, simple, Italian food, like I think my Italian grandmother would have made, had I had an Italian grandmother. Unexpected favorites include: their potato salad, made with a little mayo and nicely savory spiced, not mustard and Miracle Whip; and their roasted chicken, really simply herbed and roasted until it's falling off the bone, just like it should be. Throw ravioli and sausage and peppers on top and you can't lose for lunch.
(4)Matt R.
I don't remember the date, but I remember the first time I went to the original Louie's on 12th St. I think it was around 1985. The neighborhood was a little safer back then, and I was really impressed by the place. Finally, we found some good sit-down Italian-American food in the Valley (I knew at age 14 that red sauce wasn't made with tomato paste and green peppers and that you were supposed to drain the water from the pasta before serving). There was a quiet atmosphere with a level of friendly and competent service I hadn't seen or felt much since I was a little kid tagging along to the last few classic Allentown eateries that remained (not for long) in the depressed and depressing days of the 70s and early 80s. We came back a lot after that, always bringing our own bottle of Italian table wine (chianti in a basket!) and getting similar dishes. Antipasto shared for three, or the salad with gorgonzola and black olives (I copied that recipe myself for years). Maybe the calamari appetizer (sauteed). Usually one veal dish, one lighter pasta, and something with seafood (scallops parmigiana?). Through high school, visits home during college, and even a few stop-offs on the holidays when I lived in Boston. By the late 90s, though, the 'hood got sketchier and my family got older and a little less tolerent of the city's long downward spiral. It wasn't a place to park on the street and walk around at night. There was a particularly gruesome murder nearby. The owners opened a short-lived spinoff outpost in redeveloped South Bethlehem, which wasn't quite the same, and I moved to the West Coast and forget about the place, assuming it would fade away like most of the other bits of old Allentown. The future of new development and the middle class was in the suburbs, and it looked subdivided, homogenized, and increasingly middle-American. (The Lehigh Valley's location at the fluid edge of New England, Northern, midland, and southern culture is an interesting subject best left to Wikipedia) But Louie's stayed in business, and left 12th St. a few years back for the safer and more spacious southwestern corner of the city (not the suburbs, but you can seem 'em from there). The new place is a bit more corporate-Ital in decor and in the menu page layout (I expected trademark symbols next to the entree names), but the food is familiar Louie's, with the addition of wood-fired pizza, a substantial bar (they now have a liquor license), and an expanded menu. There's a happy hour with free pizza. The oven cranks out decent foccacia, which is served with a garlic and oil dip, replacing the white Italian loaves of years past. We went for old favorites, but tried the "new" fried calamari instead of the sauteed. The new twist involved a cornmeal breading, which tasted great but needed some additional preparation to deal with the grittiness of the grits. The gorgonzola-topped house salad was as good as ever (and a bit larger). Veal parmigiana--the ultimate in Italian-American comfort food--was as good as I remember. The specials were a little fancier, and a soft shell crab pasta was a decent attempt at dishes you find at pricier places. They went with a white sauce, however, which was unexpected for this kind of place but appropriate for the dish. Plain spaghetti and meatballs made everyone feel at home. The wine list had reasonable bottles and a good selection (Pennsylvania's finally catching up in this regard). Oh, and the low-end chianti came in a basket. Prices seemed reasonable even after ten years of substantial inflation. Service was friendly. The dining room wasn't too noisy--no forced chain-restaurant background soundtrack. Just a nice neighborhood restaurant that escaped from the 'hood. Sometimes it's nice to go home every now and then.
(4)Katie S.
I love louie's pizza, salad and sandwiches. The pasta, however, is so bland. I am the kind of girl who rarely meets a carb she doesn't like, but Louie's has some of the few. Not the best Italian in the valley.
(2)Vanessa W.
Louie's has been an Allentown institution for decades, so why, I a local yocal never made it over there I'll never know. I recently visited them at their new location. All I can say is phenomenal. From the soups, to the salad, to the entrees to dessert everything was absolutely outstanding. The sauce was nice - nothing overdone like you commonly find at other Italian restaurants. It's BYOB and prices are reasonable making it a great night out. Two thumbs way way up. I'll be back!
(5)K W.
I ordered a chicken dish with a lemon-garlic sauce. The chicken was as hard as a rock and the sauce was overly oily. I couldn't eat it, that's how bad it was. Waste of money. Later, saw bunch of "kids" emerge from the kitchen and hang out at the bar. I assumed they were the ones who prepared our meals as we were the last table served that night.. Based on how they presented themselves, I'm not surprised that my food was awful. Poor management at Louie's in my opinion. Too bad. I never had a bad meal when they were at their original location. Never going back!
(1)