New Louis Boston

How sad. The location and building were the best reasons to go there. Vox, was that your Aston Martin perpetually parked out front?

Originally Posted by mafoofan

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How sad. The location and building were the best reasons to go there. Vox, was that your Aston Martin perpetually parked out front?

No, but I was there at least a couple times a week because the old restaurant...the Al Forno outpost...was one of my lunch spots.

I still miss the fresh-baked cookie plate. That and a bit of Laphroig was always a great way to face the rest of the afternoon.


- B

Originally Posted by voxsartoria

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If you had put Gary Drinkwater in charge of the the same legacy, maybe things would be different.

- B

I've attacked the issue from that direction, and shop with Gary. It's (almost) a rare day now-a-days that I don't wear something I purchased from him.

Originally Posted by voxsartoria

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At any rate: some photos.

Yikes. That's not even a pale shadow of its former self.

--Andre

My impressions of Louis Boston last May after not having visited the store
in over 15 years. It's personality had already changed.

Louis:
A huge disappointment. I had been there before, and to their short-lived
New York branch. My taste runs semi traditional and I favor tweeds and
the like. I am a former Chipp and Norman Hilton customer but in recent
years have bought Isaia, Belvest, and Battistoni- all with natural shoulders.
Louis is a airy, sunny store with very little inventory. Compared to Wilkes
Bashford, which may be going under, it seems empty. Most of what I saw
was summer/casual. They couldn't show me a Belvest suit in 44R - not
an exotic size. Most off-putting was the sales-person... a skinny stubbled
youth of indeterminate gender wearing torn jeans and a T shirt.
Not the type who should be selling tailored clothing. Reminded me of the
creeps who staff the San Francisco Barney's.

The photos Vox linked are very unimpressive. I realize it is a temporary space, but consumers want and expect a positive experience and that will be a challenge under the circumstances.

I used to love visiting Louis, but it has been in a state of decline for a while and now seems like it is near the end.

Suspect many guys in Bos who care about clothes travel to NYC for business frequently and do any shopping there...much easier to find good tailors, better selection of OTR stuff like ties, cufflinks, etc in NYC

Same dynamic in SF where many kids would shop at Wilkes PaloAlto (that SF store was just too transgender even in its profitable years) after first ditching their khakis or whatever...but quickly migrated to tailors in NYC (or in some cases London and Paris as well), as many also frequently travel to NYC/London/EU for business anyway

I didnt even know it was open yet, I will have to go by and check it out this week... no denim at all? what do they have for sneakers/shoes?

Originally Posted by voxsartoria

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No, but I was there at least a couple times a week because the old restaurant...the Al Forno outpost...was one of my lunch spots.

I still miss the fresh-baked cookie plate. That and a bit of Laphroig was always a great way to face the rest of the afternoon.

It's odd to think of a Providence restaurant with a Boston outpost, but I suppose Al Forno is a special case. We never ate at Louis Boston, though. I assume the food was pretty good? Hard to imagine a nicer space to enjoy lunch in Boston.

Originally Posted by comrade

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My impressions of Louis Boston last May after not having visited the store
in over 15 years. It's personality had already changed.

Louis:
A huge disappointment. I had been there before, and to their short-lived
New York branch. My taste runs semi traditional and I favor tweeds and
the like. I am a former Chipp and Norman Hilton customer but in recent
years have bought Isaia, Belvest, and Battistoni- all with natural shoulders.
Louis is a airy, sunny store with very little inventory. Compared to Wilkes
Bashford, which may be going under, it seems empty. Most of what I saw
was summer/casual. They couldn't show me a Belvest suit in 44R - not
an exotic size. Most off-putting was the sales-person... a skinny stubbled
youth of indeterminate gender wearing torn jeans and a T shirt.
Not the type who should be selling tailored clothing. Reminded me of the
creeps who staff the San Francisco Barney's.

Aren't these the types at every Barney's? Anyway, I remember the sort at Louis Boston. Not only did they appear out of place, but they were terrible salespeople. It was impossible to get anyone's attention and they always appeared indifferent, almost hostile, when approached.

The last time I was at Louis Boston, it was five or six years ago, and I'm sure it was already a shadow of its former self. It seemed that there was much more emphasis on bringing in up-and-coming street fashion brands than on the classic, tailored stuff. It felt a lot like . . . Barney's.

Originally Posted by mafoofan

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It's odd to think of a Providence restaurant with a Boston outpost, but I suppose Al Forno is a special case. We never ate at Louis Boston, though. I assume the food was pretty good? Hard to imagine a nicer space to enjoy lunch in Boston.

I preferred the Louis Al Forno outpost to the mother ship, so I thought it was pretty good. The successor restaurant was pretty good as well in its first guise (in a Momofuku-ish way), but in its second guise was cheapened down and sucked. Then they closed it.


- B

Originally Posted by mafoofan

Click to expand...

It's odd to think of a Providence restaurant with a Boston outpost, but I suppose Al Forno is a special case. We never ate at Louis Boston, though. I assume the food was pretty good? Hard to imagine a nicer space to enjoy lunch in Boston.

At the corner of Mass Ave and Boylston, Boloco has a nice new space, so...

Originally Posted by mafoofan

Click to expand...

It's odd to think of a Providence restaurant with a Boston outpost, but I suppose Al Forno is a special case. We never ate at Louis Boston, though. I assume the food was pretty good? Hard to imagine a nicer space to enjoy lunch in Boston.



Aren't these the types at every Barney's? Anyway, I remember the sort at Louis Boston. Not only did they appear out of place, but they were terrible salespeople. It was impossible to get anyone's attention and they always appeared indifferent, almost hostile, when approached.

The last time I was at Louis Boston, it was five or six years ago, and I'm sure it was already a shadow of its former self. It seemed that there was much more emphasis on bringing in up-and-coming street fashion brands than on the classic, tailored stuff. It felt a lot like . . . Barney's.

Certainly true of Barneys in SF, except for one guy in the suit dept who really knows his stuff.
He is the former owner of a now defunct high end mens boutique, Billy Blue. Wilkes in SF ,
(and Palo Alto) may be a bit creepy, as has already been noted, but the staff are knowledgeable
and well-dressed.

Originally Posted by voxsartoria

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Honestly, Louis sounds doomed to me. I predict that they hold the line for another year, and then start chasing cheaper goods down the slippery slope before going bust.


- B

Frankly I'm surprised they lasted this long. Out of the over 10times I have been in the store in the past 6 years I have been in there, I received superior customer service, too say nothing of even sub-par service only once, and that was last year whilst perusing the Kiton section. Frankly I always thought that LB was chasing after BG, but could never catch up.

Originally Posted by voxsartoria

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Pearlstein's daughter is not the big thinker in the way that he was. Since she took the reigns, Louis has been tottering on the momentum of being the top of the luxe heap in Boston menswear. All her departures from the Murray ethos have been derivative of other stores, whether French, New York, or even up the block at Bilzerian.

If you had put Gary Drinkwater in charge of the the same legacy, maybe things would be different.

- B

You can say that again!

I haven't been in Louis ... Wilkes Bashford ... Barney's (the main one is all that counts in my opinion), Bergdorf Goodman Men, etc. in years. Is there any reason to visit any of these? Are there others that should be visited?