We went to louies backyard on march 30 2008. It was the worst experience in a restaurant I have ever had!! We stayed next door at the coconut beach resort(great place) and heard alot of great things about the restuarant. we decided to go for lunch because the reviews for lunch were better than dinner. When we got there, the staff was very unfriendly and acted like we were interupting them when we asked to be seated. When we got our water, broccoli was floating in the glass. We then got rolls and butter, there was hair, yes hair in the butter. I ordered the coconut waffles which tasted like they were cooked with my husbands ribeye. And as for the ribeye sandwich, my husband could not eat it because it was sooooo full of fat. When the waitress asked us how the meal was we stated the ribeye was fatty, as she stated "Well thats a ribeye and ribeyes are fatty" and walked away! we were shocked!! she then came over and took our plates. Next thing you know some women, who did not introduce herself, came over and started yelling at us in her new jersey accent. "Ribeyes are a fatty cut of meat and for the lunch menu to keep the cost down we have to use a cheaper cut of meat!" What!!! I told her it was excessively fat and that he could not eat the meat. she stated "I just had the ribeye yesterday and it is fatty, we charge 35.00 for the meal at dinner" she continued to argue with us and finally my husband stated "listen were are not going to argue with you lady" and she stormed off. the bill came and as were were getting our money together this same women grabbed the bill out of our hands stated "Im takin the ribeye off your bill" and stormed off. she came back a few minutes later and literally slammed the receipt on the table and walked off. later we learned this woman was the "manager" HA!! Do not waste your time on this horrible establishment. horrible food horrible service!!!

I went to Louies Backyard for dinner at the recommendation of a bartender at a local pub. It was absolutely wonderful. I had a table outside with views of the ocean and the beach. I ordered the special of the night which was Red Snapper. The presentaion of the food was perfect and delicious. I added to my meal a piece of key lime pie that was also outstanding. The waitstaff was very attentive to my needs and prompt in refills, more bread, water, and clearing plates almost immediately. The few reviews that where written that were bad are obviously isolated incidents. The meal was a little pricey. I think $14 for a salad is a little much.

We have stayed at Key West many times over the years but had never eaten at Louie's Backyard.
We have traveled the world and are very willing to spend a large amount of money for a wonderful meal, service and view.
A friend of mine suggested we try Louie's Backyard and the Gardens Hotel where we are staying confirmed that it would be a nice place to eat. We went there for lunch on April 22nd. There were four of us. I told the server that I had numerous food allergies and wanted the rib eye sandwich with no butter, bread, etc. Just the steak and fries.
She brought me an order of ribs with no sauce! I told her that no, we had a communication problem, I had ordered the rib eye just like my husband. There is no way I could eat ribs so I handed the plate back to her, expecting her to say, sorry about that and bring me what I had ordered. She just stood there and said no that I had ordered the ribs with no sauce. Well it keep going back and forth and it was obvious that she was not going to correct HER error. By this time, it was quite a scene and I said just forget it and she set it back down in front of me. Thankfully my husband ate the ribs instead and I had what I originally ordered - his steak. We were totally appalled at her reaction to the mistake. she made Even the woman at the next table, said, I heard you and you ordered a rib eye. Never once did she apologize or thank my husband for coming to the rescue by eating my ribs. We won't be back and we certainly won't be referring anyone else to Louie's Backyard. To top it off, we were charged for refills on our diet cokes and the bill was over $100 for lunch!
At the Westin the day before, another person in our party had ordered a salad with no cucumbers, the salad came with cucumbers on it and the server quickly took it back to the kitchen and a salad sans cucumbers arrived quickly with her apologies.
By the way, the diet coke refills at the Westin Bar were complimentary!

I almost feel like Key West is my home. I have been to Louie's Backyard forever. There is where I met Norman Van Aken and my first lesson at Floribean cusine. This time I decided to take my extented family there. No more. I was so dissapointed. The food was mediocre and the service is done better at Denny's. Be sure check you bill before you pay they overcharged my husband $64.00 for the wine. Maybe it was the full moon or maybe because it was Saturday night... it doesn't matter, if so lower your prices. I HAD wonderful meals there and the location is the best on the island. This time it was sad. If a restaurant with this reputation can not maitain the quality it is time to regroup.