RICHIE’S EXPERIENCE

Where: Captain Lou ’s (WAIT, WHAT!!!??!?!?)

Meal: Had the Bang Bang Shrimp, The Captain’s Dip, and a Smokey Margarita.

Bill: Came to $28 before my big boy tip.

“.........But wait Rich, didn’t you guys go to Admiral Jack’s? Didn’t they get the most votes?”

If this is what you’re asking yourself, you would be correct. However, even though Admiral Jack’s was the popular vote, we had some folks that voted for us to go to Captain Lou’s in our social media poll.
We aren’t cool with letting our readers down, so we had this badass idea right out the gate to HIT THEM BOTH UP!!!! We still respected the voting, but decided that the winner would actually get the first visit and review, and the other one would be a pleasant surprise for you guys!

If you read the Admiral Jack’s review, you already know how I feel about my Feast Mode ladies and their beautiful brains. I already warned you that they had some sweet ideas, and this one happened to be my favorite. It started out as a true poll, but then we were like “we could pull off two in one night, let’s just see what happens...” Two bars in one night with the main intention of eating at both. In some ways this is completely nuts, I mean, who the hell can eat that much food?!? US, that’s who!! So, because we love you guys, we did the dang thang! I skipped lunch to pull this off, and to make it interesting, I tried to order the same things to eat at both spots. Let’s see what happened at our second dinner stop of the night.........

Atmosphere and Vibe

We had us a pleasant and scenic walk from Admiral Jack’s over to Captain Lou’s, and we did this for a couple of reasons. One reason was to mentally trick ourselves into thinking we were burning off some of the food we just had, and the other reason was to avoid having to re-park. I decided to tell you this because they are on opposite sides of the river, and it’s actually a pretty awesome walk. The weather was pretty perfect for visiting these spots, and added to the ambiance of the experience.

Captain Lou’s is on the river tucked right up next to the bridge that takes you to the north side of town. It’s a rather historic location if you’re familiar with it, and has always been a dope spot to go have drinks on warm summer nights. It’s almost completely outdoors, and has 2 physical bars on the premises.

The vibe is well.......an outdoor dockside bar vibe. This certainly isn’t a bad thing. It’s a great view, and has a feeling of busyness. It’s definitely drink and music oriented, and you expect to eat to give you fuel for more drinking. It was busy and there was a line to get in, so we waited until there was a table open and swooped in like some sexy buff vultures!!

Food

My plan was to get close to (if not exactly) the same meal here that I ordered from Admiral Jack’s to give them sort of a head to head battle. I sort of messed this up right out of the gate with my drink (LOL). I legitimately had intentions of blindly ordering a Paloma, but the ladies were looking over the drink menu, and my eyes landed on a couple of sexy words laced together: SMOKEY MARGARITA! Mezcal is a dark secret love of mine, so I had to go with that. I won’t even beat around the bush, it was my jam! Aubree wasn’t a fan of it, but that didn’t stop me from smashing it! Kudos to the bartender (Jared) for handling business on the libation end!!!

As far as food goes, I already heard one of the ladies order the perch (and I knew I was gonna snag one of those) so I ordered the Bang Bang Shrimp. I gotta give you guys the honest experience, cuz that’s what you signed up for when you opened this review up to read it. FOR THE RECORD...*** I am not in the market for bashing anyone, and that’s not what these reviews are about *** Much love and respect to our waitress (she was doing a great job, and Lou’s was packed).......but for whatever reason, my shrimp order wasn’t made with the rest of the food. Our waitress brought the food out to us, and I was given an apology that mine was not ready. I WAS however, offered a nice fresh Captain’s Dip order right on the spot during this explanation and apology (on the house), and I was NOT mad about this!!! It’s a smoked fish dip with seasoned pita chips to carpet ride these bites into your face!!! It wasn’t on my radar when I ordered my food (because again, I was doing a little comparison with Admiral Jack’s), but it was DEFINITELY more than enough apology for my shrimp being delayed! I’d totally recommend this dip if you are into whitefish/cream cheese style dips, and those pita chips were seasoned with some love!

.........so after a little while my Bang Bang Shrimp comes out. It was good, but I really loved that I ordered their Bang Bang to compare it to Jack’s Boom Boom (yo, I legit just love saying their names too LOL). They are made totally different, but you get a similar flavor experience. Lou’s has bigger shrimp, they are tempura battered and fully coated with the sweet spicy sauce instead of drizzled, and came with ranch to dip the shrimp in. I have no complaints, they really were good! With regards to personal preference, I do prefer a thinner crispy coating with the sauce drizzled on, but I would never say no to these shrimp at all. They had perfect heat, and the batter WAS on point. Needless to say, I did have take home boxes, but they didn’t half step on day-after indulgence either.

Wrap Up

WE DID IT!!!! Finally got to eat face to face with my ladies again, and we made it count in a major way by squeezing 2 spots in this time!! I hope we kind of surprised you guys too, I know our poll made it sound like we were just going to pick whichever was the popular vote. I’m not gonna lie, there were some HANGRY moments throughout the day until we could get our grub on, but it was worth it!

Captain Lou’s gets the ACTIVATED approval from me. I know times are weird right now, and places are getting back into the groove with everything. I also know that spots aren’t always getting the employee numbers back in full strength either, and with a packed night like the one we visited Lou’s on, things can happen. I mentioned that my food didn’t come out in a timely manner with everyone else’s, but you know what.......they did your boy right! I got to try something totally not on my radar at no cost, and when my food came out, I liked it! Lou’s is normally a spot people go to with drinking and dancing on their brain, but I give them credit for having some BANGers on their menu (get it? cuz of the Bang Bang Shrimp? ...nevermind LOL)!

Aubree being the absolute cutest

Bang Bang Description

Smokey Margarita Description

Richie's Bang Bang Shrimp

Richie's Seafood Dip

Richie's Smokey Margarita

$1 Bills fill the inside bar

Everyone signs the bill they leave and it’s so cool to look at all these while waiting for the bathroom!

STEPH’S EXPERIENCE

Meal: Perch Basket with tater tots + Frozen Rum Runner w/ a Floater

Bill: $30 even, before my tip

I’m going to start my write up out by stating that Captain Lou’s is one of my fave spots to hit up for a night out with my ladies. The nightlife vibe is def one of the best in town and DJ Peanut Butter Paul is my absolute fave! However… when it came to our feasting experience…

Atmosphere:

Richie did a great job describing the vibe of Captain Lou’s so I won’t say much. Only thing I found weird was that the upper bar was not following social distancing guidelines at all but the lower bar had every other table empty. Aubree asked a server about this and no real explanation was given as they seemed just as confused about the reasoning.

Regardless, the overall vibe was summertime easy living and the place was popping! The weather was perfect for sitting outside and I was looking forward to round 2 of good food and strong drinks with my favorite Taste Buddies! We even had a family of birds above our table, so it was like a tipsy National Geographic.

Food & Drinks:

Jared was bartending so I knew the drinks were going to be worth the money (if you know what I’m sayin…). I decided to go head-to-head with Admiral Jack’s and order the Frozen Rum Runner from Lou’s as well. Lou’s has an option of getting your drink with a “floater,” which is basically an extra shot poured on top of the drink. Was it a delicious drink? Yes. Was it refreshing on a warm summer evening? Also, yes. However, it didn’t match up to Jack’s at all. The Lou’s Rum Runner tasted like they used a pre-made bottle mix whereas Jack’s was very fresh and more original.

For dinner, I ordered the perch basket as this was highly recommended during the voting. I didn’t get it cajun style and maybe that’s where I went wrong. I have no other word to describe the perch and tots other than “bland.” I liked the size of the perch strips and it was definitely a generous portion (even without having a first dinner), however, it just didn’t taste like anything. It didn’t seem like there was really any seasoning and it was just… there. I really have no other ways to describe it and I hate feeling like I’m bashing people so… I’m just going to leave it there.

Overall:

Vibe? A+

Captain Lou’s is one of my favorite summer nightlife stops for a reason. The drinks are refreshing, I get my money’s worth, and the staff is always friendly and on-point (other than Richie’s food being forgotten but that’s the only time I’ve ever had an issue there).

Food? Feast Mode Deactivated.

As much as I hate to say it, Captain Lou’s gets my first “Deactivated” when it comes to food. Maybe it’s because I just had a BOMB meal at Admiral Jack’s less than an hour before. Maybe the kitchen was having an off-day. I’m not sure. All I know, is I was unimpressed.

View from the drawbridge

Our Bird Friends

Steph's Perch and Tots

Steph's Frozen Rum Runner

Aubree strutting her stuff in the bottom bar

Drink Menu

Food Menu

Sign when entering the bottom bar

Top Bar

COVID WHO?!

AUBREE’S EXPERIENCE

Meal: Mozzarella Sticks, Southwest Eggrolls, Chicken Tacos

Bill: $37 before tip + $8 tip = $45 total

Let’s get started on Lou’s. First off let me say I am not bashing Lou’s! We are thankful to all the restaurants doing their best to be open with all the hurdles 2020 has given us. Part of our Feast Mode oath is to be honest with you all so here it is. Most of you know this place is for late night shenanigans and after experiencing their menu firsthand, keep it that way---unless you are feeling tipsy.

Upon arrival, there is no hostess. There were two ways to enter the place and because of covid they have signs that clearly marked which are for entry/exit, but people being people, they were lined at both the exit and entrance spots to enter and with no hostess or system in place to take names down for a wait it was confusing. After trying to get someone’s attention and finally succeeding we were told that it is seat yourself and just wait for an available table. Starlin and I went to one line, Richie and Steph stayed in the other. After about 15 minutes, a table opened up and we grabbed it. We waited until we saw a server go by and asked if she could clean it off. Once we were seated we ordered drinks. I got the “Sunsetter Mule” which is ruby red vodka, fresh limes, and ginger beer. That was absolutely delish! I have made my own at home since with the flavored vodka.

They don’t have a kid’s menu just FYI. Starlin ordered the mozzarella sticks, I ordered the Southwest Eggrolls for an app and the Chicken Tacos for my meal. One of my besties; Lindy, had raved about how good the eggrolls were and she didn’t lie. They were pretty good, deep-fried with a crispy outside filled with black beans, corn, red peppers and cheese (it said there was chicken in them but I didn’t see or taste any which was fine with me). They reminded me of those SW eggrolls at a Chili’s restaurant. Served with a spicy ranch that was good, but it had a watery consistency so not the greatest. Ranch whore disappointment.

I’ll just get it out with this, the Chicken tacos were terrible! We are talking soggy flour tortillas, diced chicken that was hardly seasoned, shredded cheese (it could have been American?), lettuce, tomatoes, and sour cream. I am pretty sure the tortillas were microwaved or they sat in the window for a while before they were brought out. They were served with stale tortilla chips and jarred salsa in a mini cup. Starlin loved his mozzarella sticks, but I mean how can you ever go wrong with fried cheese?! I tried Steph’s perch it was tasteless, same for her rum runner-poor woman. Richie’s food wasn’t done when our’s was brought out so he was given some whitefish dip with pita chips which was tasty and our server was very nice and apologetic.

The atmosphere is nice and open plus being on the river is entertaining since you can watch the boats go by. Try to get a table along the edge of the restaurant to see the action. Where we sat the only action to watch was a nest of baby birds right above a sign and the mama kept flying in and out of it-so cute! It isn’t the cleanest place, but I’m sure it is tough to keep it clean being a seasonal place and right on the water like they are. The bathrooms right upon entry are in rough shape and could use some work-ladies just be sure to squat.

To sum it up, our server was great, being outside on the river is always a plus in my book, my drink was yummy, fried foods a yes, but I am going to have to say no to anything they actually prepare there-unless of course you are feeling tipsy.

Overall rating: Deactivated