The Back Door

It’s not just a clever name, this place is literally a backdoor of some strip mall. My buddy whose a local took us here because its known to close really late and have «stiff drinks», sounds good to me. Place had a good crowd even pretty late into the night. All of us headed to the back, where there’s some carnival games which was cool for a lil bit. In the end the bar just was not as lively as we hoped. There are some better options out there.

Our favorite bar in Louisville. We come here and it’s diverse and no one is ever on some BS. Great late night food and awesome staff. Good vibes.

Ordered the «Hot Chick» — which is grilled cajun chicken breast with bacon and pepper jack cheese. Served on a Kaiser roll with habanero mayo. I was afraid this would be too spicy for me with the mayo, but it actually wasnt at all, which pleasantly surprised me. it came with house made chips which were great.
Then my friends ordered a bunch of chicken wings — the two hottest flavors of course which I think were called Hot and Burner. I stayed away from the Burner and had one of the Hot. The wing itself was excellent, but that sauce was a little too much for me. I would pick one of the milder ones if I were ordering.
The only complaint I would have is in obtaining the food we ordered. First off it is an extremely long wait (and we had been there early when the place was not even half full) and actually I would not have minded that so much because if you are talking with a couple of drinks or using the game room in back the time would seem to go by quicker. But then you have to go to the back room to pick up your food from the counter and thankfully there were three of us, so someone was able to watch the table and our stuff while we went back there. I guess i am paranoid, I dont know. But that’s my only issue in an otherwise 5 star review.

I had my first bad experience here last weekend, on the day of the Highlands St. Patrick’s parade.
In fairness, the bar was packed and I’m sure they were stressed. But that’s a challenge all bars face on holiday weekends.
Busy nights like this test an establishment’s logistics, and sadly, last Saturday confirmed what I already knew about Back Door but had never experienced so blatantly; the management fails its staff night in and night out.
The people who work here are wonderful and friendly. And they can only do so much to curb the problems this bar has, that management has refused to improve.
For starters, the wait time on drinks is super long. It’s consistently true. I’ve been here dozens of times and this is always the case… but on a busy night, it’s painful. We waited for more than 20 minutes to ORDER our drinks. Despite only ordering beers, it took 5+ more to actually get the drinks. The staff was working hard and doing everything they could. But with an outdated POS system, every order placed or tab closed takes twice as long. There also appears to be a lack of structure behind the bar. I can’t verify this. But everyone appears to be doing everything at the same time.
There are 3 defined areas along the bar top to order drinks. You’d think this would speed things up. But it only creates bunched areas around the room.
On a slow night, ordering food isn’t too difficult. But on a busy night, it’s chaos. We waited behind 6 or 7 people to get our order placed. When the orders are ready, they’re placed on a surface near the ordering window and your name is called. No one is watching the food while it sits there. On a slow night that’s no problem. On a busy night, you might get your food snatched by someone not wanting to wait in line. Despite not leaving the general area of the ordering window, this somehow happened to my group’s order. So after 10+ minutes in line and 20+ waiting on food, we had to wait for them to make the food again.
A better system would improve this. Back Door’s owners/​management don’t appear interesting in improving their processes, though. I’m shocked because it wouldn’t be difficult. Giving a customer a number to bring to the ordering area when the order was ready would solve this. You wouldn’t need to shout names over the PA system. There are multiple other low-​tech solutions that come to mind. Customer service seems low on management’s priority list.
Again, the staff did all they could. They offered to re-​cook the food as quickly as possible and offered their apologies. But it’s not their fault; they can’t handle all that is being asked of them AND verify who ordered what.
I like this bar. People are friendly. The staff is gregarious. The pool tables are fun and the patio is relaxing. But these logistical issues don’t appear to be going away. I’ll continue to come and spend my money here, because I like the atmosphere (as many others that come here do). Thusly, there’s probably no financial incentive for management to fix these issues… I guess I’m part of the problem.
My take-​away; I won’t be back here on busy nights. They won’t notice the tiny dip in sales but I’ll at least feel like a valued customer somewhere else.

Simply put, The Back Door may have a funny name but is certainly forever a staple of my nights out in Louisville. Open late until 4am, you can either decide to start your night out here by enjoying the very strong and very cheap drinks (I recommend the Long Island Iced Tea, you won’t be disappointed), end your night by soaking up the alcohol with hot chicken tenders and fried pickles, or simply stay from start to end and enjoy a few games of pool and foosball. Make some new friends, try some tasty cocktails, play a game or two, and make sure you don’t miss out on The Back Door.

This is my favorite bar in Louisville. If Louisville had a version of Rick’s from Casablanca, it would be the Back Door. If you’re new to Louisville, or if you’ve been here for a long time, do yourself a favor and stop into this place.
The drinks are strong. Back when I first graduated from college and I still lived like a cheapskate, I used to just get LITs (Long Island Iced Tea) at the Backdoor. It’s poured perfectly and is a great strong drink if you’re starting a night out with your friends. The draft beer selection is average, there are always some fancy ones here and there, but it’s mostly domestics and your run of the mill imports.
The bar food is the best dive bar food in the city. I have eaten late night food at the Back Door more times than I can count. I’ve tried all kinds of different things on their menu, and every single time, it’s good. If you like chicken wings, just do yourself a favor and skip Bdubs and head to the Back Door, you won’t be disappointed.
The atmosphere is casual and inviting. There are three rooms in the Back Door and an outdoor patio for smoking. The front room holds the bar, the majority of booths in the place, and tables for seating. The back room has four pool tables, more seating, and the food ordering window. The room adjoining those two has a projector screen where the big sports games are shown and two ski ball booths and two dart boards.
Overall, this place is a Louisville staple. It’s the perfect place to start a night or end it. Take your friends, take your dates, or even take your mom. You are definitely going to have a good time.

A typical Friday night in my earlier 20s consisted of a quick trip, strong drink, delicious food and running into practically everyone I know in Louisville at the Backdoor.
My fiancé texted me Friday and said, «I want food and a beer from the Backdoor.» I said, «let’s do it!» So we found ourselves at the Backdoor on a Friday, at around 8pm. Much to our surprise, the bar was already crowded. We circled for a seat for a few minutes until we heard someone call us over to their booth, who were about to leave. We then took their booth, began watching the all star basketball game projected on the big screen and ordered food and a beer.
We were leaning toward wings, the obvious choice at the Backdoor. But we went with Ultimate Nachos. Cheese on the side. They are still a great choice for something fun, delicious and satisfying! They were about $ 10 and my fiancé and I shared them and ate them like we weren’t having another meal for days.
There are always drink specials. That evening it was gin and mixer of choice for $ 3.75. You won’t ever regret the drink special.
The crowd was good, and as the night went on into the early hours of 1−2a as our booth filled with friends, beers, cheese fries and bombers (all top food picks in my opinion) and easy to share with a group of people.
They have ski ball, darts and pool for active entertainment options. Along with about 6 televisions dispersed around the bar playing various sporting events. The staff is warm and they keep order. Also, first timers… Take note of the line system at the bar. Don’t cut and be patient. It works. Promise. Cheers to many more nights at the Backdoor, maybe I’ll see you there, more than likely I will.

When in doubt always head to Backdoor, really should be called Old Faithful. This favorite will never disappoint and the Hot Wings and Fries are perfection.

The Back Door will always be my favorite bar. They have excellent food at decent prices and cheap, very strong drinks. Ask about their drink specials! They often have pretty good ones. I will say that crowd mostly consists of older people, but don’t let that stop you from checking this place out if you are in your 20’s. They have several pool tables and a good amount of seating, but it often gets loud and packed, so get there earlyish for a good seat! Make sure to have your ID out before you walk through the door because they will IMMEDIATELY card you when you walk in. PS try the jalapeño poppers, the hot chick, and the turkey and pesto sandwich :) all are great!

There are many reasons you would want to go to «The Back Door.» I’ll number them for ease of reading.
1.) Cheap stiff drinks.
2.) Best bar food in town. Period. You MUST try the wings.
3.) Diverse crowd keeps it interesting.
4.) Pool tables if you’re into that.
5.) Huge covered «outdoor» smoking section that opens up into the bar (when someone goes in or out the door) and makes it smell like an ashtray on busy nights.
6.) As I previously mentioned, the food is excellent and comes out super fast, but because the kitchen is always so busy please know that you WILL leave the bar smelling like grease whether you eat anything or not.
7.) Lots of TVs for watching sports.
8.) Walls are covered with super cool hand painted portraits of regular bar patrons.
9.) I love this place so much I would give it 5 stars, but one star gets docked for the consistently bad smells.

Backdoor is the perfect late night spot. It has everything you’d ever need: 1) delicious cheap food, 2) strong cheap drinks, and 3) great people watching.
1) delicious cheap food:
I cannot go to backdoor without ordering Cajun fries and honey bbq wings – it’s a must. They are so incredibly delicious. I would even go to backdoor during the day for them
2) strong cheap drinks:
At some places, cocktails are mostly soda and a splash of alcohol. It’s opposite at backdoor. You will get mostly alcohol and a splash of mixer. If you’re like me, one drink will be enough. However, if you’re a little more ambitious, have a couple of their drinks and you will have an interesting and forgettable night
3) great people watching:
Everyone comes to backdoor. You will see people of all different walks of life here having fun. They definitions of fun very-​playing pool, arcade games, darts, drinking, yelling, singing – whatever. It’s great!

We came here last week to just hang out with a couple of friends before finals make us horrible people. It was a thursday night but the place was not too busy. We order garlic buffalo wings which was delicious! If you are into nachos, get the supreme version. Its shareable. the portion is HUGE!
The drinks here is awesome! They pour very heavy :) Very chill and laidback place. If youre familiar with the highland area, the «beef jerky» guy comes in here and then!

Best bar food in the whole city. Love their sauces. Love the bartenders.
Stiff cheap drinks
Lots of pool tables
SKEEBALL
amazing L.I.T.‘s
Great patio
Great memories over the last seven years
Great people watching
THE BEEF JERKY GUY
Sometimes you get so drunk here that you don’t remember half the shit you said the next day
Ten stars for back door.

Man this is a CLASSIC dive bar! As good as it gets-​cheap drinks-​real mixed bag of clientele –everybody real nice (well it is the KY State-​people here tend to be very genteel to begin with) and a place out back where I can smoke my cigar – I mean a really big two level smoker’s deck – nice for us sinners.
Food was great-​Bombers must be tried-​they are good-​nachos a huge greasy combination of a big sloppy mess – yeah man they are good. Service was great-​my kind of joint. Right on good ol’ Bardstown Road.
Oh yeah-​happy hour till 8-​two Newcastle drafts for like 7 bucks? You can’t beat it man! Good booze selection-​Bulleit Bourbon-​guess all this bourbon is par for the course in Ky but it’s pretty nice to see for an old Florida Gator.
Bit leery-​seems The Mouse knows an awful lot of people in here. Hmmm… nah! lol!
Well I will be back!

I’ve been going to The Back Door for more years than I can to think about. It’s an institution like the Outlook Inn just down the street. Having a long history with this establishment, I value it for what it is — a dive bar (or a local, if you prefer posher titles). The Back Door has been consistent for me over the years with strong & economical pours, good bar food, and nice folks.
Does it get crowded? Yep. Does it sometimes seem like you may never get to the bar? Oh, yeah. Do the booming, food announcements sometimes scare the hell out of me by their intense, volume levels? Sure do. Having said that, this is the Highlands. Bars get loud. On most weekends and event/​game nights, you should expect a crowd and a wait. What you should not expect, and rarely get for that matter, are food & drink prices this low in this neighborhood.
No, The Back Door isn’t the cleanest and the ambiance is nothing special — kind of dark, man cave meets basement wreck room. What you get is a bunch of people enjoying games of pool, sports on TV, or conversation with friends while enjoying stiff drinks and tasty food for a reasonable price.
There are spots the the Highlands that I patronize for their lovely aesthetics and expert mixology. This isn’t one of those places. Appreciate The Back Door for what it does well and you’ll understand these four stars.

The drinks are strong and decently priced. The crowd really isn’t for me, but my husband loves it. Other people must too because it is often hard to find a place to sit!
Bartenders are friendly and husband says the wings are really tasty!

Great local dive bar with good bar food and strong drinks! Pool and games make this place a great stop along your bar hop or a good place to chill all night. Just don’t put your drinks down on the pool table or face the wrath of the pool police!

In 2002, cool little bar. Now just a trendy hangout.
Takes for ever for a drink. Loud.
Almost as many «bouncers» as bartenders.
Slow. Slow. Slow!!!

One important ratio: low prices/​stiff drinks. The outcome? Best dive bar ever, and this is coming from a non-​dive-​bar-​kinda-​girl. When my husband suggested we meet friends at Back Door, I immediately put on my «ummm…I don’t know how I feel about dive bars» face (if there is such an expression). Having visited some other similar places about Louisville, I know that scene isn’t my prime place. But I went, on the promise of cheap drinks and a good crowd.
I was so wrong. Man, was I really wrong. The place is actually pretty spacious, well ventilated, and with a diverse crowd. I was happy to see locals intermingling with students. Bikers with hipsters. Older folks and younger folks. The bar staff is nice and quick, and their pours are the heaviest in town. They usually have a few sports games on, and there’s food (good food, too!) We loved sitting outside during the summer, and we love sitting inside. That particular night, we ended up staying three hours or so, and I’d go back in a heartbeat. This place is really a gem, so don’t let the outside look or the location fool you into going somewhere else. It’s the perfect place for a group of friends to go, get a cheap drink, and actually hear each other talk. A win in my book!

So… after a birthday dinner across the street, my friend said we were going to the bar for some drinks. She had been telling me about this bar for days. Said they made stiff drinks and they were cheap. So… of course… I was all in!!!
After trekking across the mall parking lot, we walk behind some building and up a ramp to god knows what kind of place. But hey, I’m not opposed to a good dive bar if it’s worth it.
So, we went in, id’s were checked and we headed to the bar. Think we spent about $ 12 on three drinks and boyyyy was it strong! They don’t skimp on the liquor at all. They’ve got bar food, tables and chairs, pool tables, and I think some arcade games. But… ummm divey may be a nice term for it. At the bar, as I am waiting for the drinks I’m taking off my coat and go to lean on the bar. Oops, dont do it! There’s someone’s nasty chewed up gum on the bar.
I guess the place is popular, because it was packed. No problem, I can fit into almost anywhere. Except when there is no seating and a collection of shifty looking people in close proximity. Lol
Okay, my anxiety may have gotten the best of me. However, I don’t mind going back. It’s a vibrant place and the energy is charged. The drinks are strong and the people aren’t rude — whether or not they look appealing. Lol. I think with the right preparation (maybe some sanitizer on my part) I could have an almost drunken blast here.