I've always been a fan of Lou&Harry's as a broke college student. You can't go wrong with free taco Fridays and free pizza Saturdays ... ha.
Besides that, I've had a lot of other random things from the menu. Big portions, great lunch specials. Not five-star quality but a solid place with lots of options.
It feels like a bit of hike now that it's moved north of campus. I came here twice recently for a pretty early lunch. It's absolutely dead save for some police officers and business people.
The televisions are somewhat dizzying though, especially when they're all on different channels. It's like sports overload.
I've been here many times with friends and each time my experience has been more and more disappointing. We finally decided not to go back even though it is convenient. The food is generally not very good and seems to be primarily your standard Gordon Food Services frozen stock. I do realize that this is a sports bar but other similar places in the area have far better food. Additionally, food here is more expensive than in other places, or the portions are smaller. The pizza is probably the safest thing on the menu and isn't bad.
Regarding the service: the staff was apparently hired for their ability to wear shorts because I have experienced terrible service countless times here--forgetting to take a person's order, not bringing refills, getting orders wrong, etc. As the place is often empty I don't really understand this. Once or twice I have gotten great service, but this has generally been the exception rather than the rule.
We bought a DealChicken deal for here and headed out to use it. I was frustrated to find out I didn't read the fine print of the deal closely enough- they issued it in two separate vouchers that can't be used on the same visit. My fault for not checking, but it seems kind of gimmick-ey on Lou and Harry's end to get people to come twice (I've ordered other things from DealChicken that didn't come this way, so I know it's not on their end).
We got a pizza to share that was actually pretty good. No beers on this visit, although their list of what they have on tap seemed pretty lengthy so I'll probably check it out next time. Our waitress was really nice and kept drink refills coming.
My main problem with this place is that I'm not sure what they are going for. The drinks and food aren't cheap, which isn't really conducive to a college crowd. The food isn't exactly gourmet though. The atmosphere and TVs are really nice, but the location is out of the way and I'll admit I regularly forget this place is here.
I stopped in for a take our since I had a coupon. The coupon only covered certain entree's but the lady at the front was able to accommodate my preference and allowed me to pay the difference in the price. The food is ofcourse very good but I had a an opportunity to experience great customer service as well !
Review Source:I was surprised when our friends asked us to meet them for drinks at Lou & Harry's. Â After some quick questions I learned they had opened a sports bar. Â I was still confused, but willing to go since I love Lou & Harry's regular locations.
I was disappointed a little. Â First there was a live band. Â Why is it that live bands feel their music must be deafening loud. Â I do not understand. Â Bars are social settings. Â People want to talk to each other. Â You could not do that this night.
The other issue is this place has not found its identity quite yet. Â The crowd was a rough mix of very diferent types of people. Â Not the types you would expect to be together. Â There was a dramatic range in age and socioeconomic status. Â Eventually that drives away one or all of the gropus.
Our server was friendly but not good at her job. Â Several drink orders were mixed up. Â She came around eratically and not often enough. Â There were six people in our group, five or which were drinking. Â Yet the designated driver was still charged for the diet soda. Â It is only $2, but most places encourage the use of a dd.
This is a large place with a lot going on. Â There are a lot of activities you can try. Â There are also a ton of televisions. Â This is probably a decent place to watch some games.
We did not try the food.
LouHa's is a bar in a strip mall by the Chandler apartment complexes in what would otherwise be the Middle of Nowhere, Michigan, and is basically a study in suburban excess. It is enormous, but the few times I've been on a weekend night, it was practically empty. You ever get to a bar right at the beginning of the night when they first turn up the music and turn down the lights, and it's kind of awkward because no one is drunk enough to dance, but the music is so loud you can't have a conversation?
It was like that. But at 1 am. Blech.
The one time I saw LouHa's packed to the gills was for a Monday Night Football game. It surprised me to walk in, but it made sense, because it does have tons of TVs and seating. Unfortunately, they were incredibly understaffed and our waitress was in way over her head. Yes, they have a great microbrew selection, but it is not the place or atmosphere conducive to enjoying them. Too bad.
This new location is amazing inside... televisions are every where, including the largest sports television in the area that I can think of, the bar is unbelievably huge, there are plenty of tables, awesome DJ's on weekend nights, and every thing looks modern and cool... but for all of its grandeur, this LouHa's goes wasted and bare. I feel bad for it.
I feel like the owner(s) has/have done every thing possible to make the an exciting new spot for college kids, and there's always some kind of game or giveaway when I go... but for whatever reason there are never any people here. I don't want to dance by myself!
Let me start by saying the TVs and bar in this place are amazing. That said, the owners are clearly hoping to recoup the costs of the remodel through the food and drink prices. Â The food prices don't appear too bad, but what you get for the price is kind of sad. Â 5-6 fried pickle spears (the frozen bagged kind) for about $7 and a small cup of hummus with a couple of cut up pitas for also around $7. Â
I really like the Lou Ha's near Frandor for lunch, and we also used to frequent the other two East Lansing locations for lunch. Â This one just misses the mark.
Again, I have to give it to them for the atmosphere - it looks super cool in there. Â But I don't know what college kid is going to pay $6-$7 for a tall craft beer. Â They have an incredible MI and other craft beer selection - but the prices on these are definitely the highest in town. Â The drink specials they have posted are for domestics, which I'm sure the college kids are drinking anyway. Â But then why bother having 20+ taps of great beer at abysmal prices? Â
Also, we played a couple of the games - $1 for a game of skee-ball that lasted about 1 min. Â You get about 6 balls and no additional balls for high score. Â For a buck, that's kind of a short game. Â Same with the pinball - 50 cents for 2 pinballs. Â
Maybe today's college kids have more money than I had to spend at their age. Â But my estimation would be someone's going to spend about $40 per person here for a couple of beers and a meal. Â For frozen food from Gordon's - that seems pretty pricey to us. Â
The bad part is - my husband and I really wanted to like this place. Â It's on nearly on our way home from work, and we do the happy hour thing at least once a week. Â I can't see us going back, at this point.
Like any new location, this Lou & Harry's has a way to go. The food is still the great food from the other locations but the service has a ways to go before it is up to their normal level.
Stop in for a great Greek salad or a drink and enjoy the huge bar they have at this location but don't stop in on a lunch break, you'll be lucky to make it out of there in an hour.
They also have added DJs for some nights which is cool. I think it just needs to find it's place still and once it does it'll be a fun spot to hang out.