Louie's in Port Washington to close for renovation
The historic restaurant Louie's has been a fixture in Port Washington since 1905. Credit: Danielle Finkelstein
If you’d like to enjoy the sunset from the deck of Port Washington’s Louie’s Prime Steak & Seafood, you’ve got until Oct. 6. After that, the iconic restaurant will close for a complete renovation that owner Jerry Sbarro said would take six months.
Sbarro and Jorge Madruga bought the property in 2022. The plan always was to renovate but the partners had to juggle the procurement of numerous permits with the desire to stay open during the warmer, busier months.
"I grew up in this town and I live here now," Sbarro said. "One of the reasons to buy Louie’s was to update it, do something really special on the water. We are giving it a completely different look — warm, inviting, more glass." The capacity will not change; the restaurant will still seat more than 300 people, in multiple dining rooms inside and on a deck that projects into Manhasset Bay.
Louie’s was founded in 1905 by Louis Zwerlein as a cocktail-serving barge in the bay. It moved shoreside during Prohibition and was expanded to its current footprint by the Zwerlein family who sold it in 2002. When Martin Picone and Mike Guinnane bought it, they changed its name to Louie’s Grill & Liquors.
Sbarro also owns Rothmann’s Steakhouse in East Norwich as well as Matteo’s in Huntington and Roslyn Heights. Soon after he took over Louie’s, he changed the name to Louie’s Prime Steak & Seafood to signal a new emphasis. But while "Prime Steak" may come first in the name, he said that the menu would remain "about 50/50 steak to seafood."
Louie's, 395 Main St., Port Washington, 516-883-4242, louiessince1905.com. Open Monday to Friday 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., Saturday 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., Sunday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
