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View a database that includes artifacts, photographs, and documents in the History San José collection which relate to Lou’s Village Restaurant in San José, California.
Share Your Memories
“My son always wanted to go to Lou’s for Mother’s Day to have lobster.”
-Barbara Johnson
Menus
In its sixty years, the menu at Lou’s Village changed to accommodate diners' preferences and dining trends. When it opened in 1946, the menu featured a wide variety of choices from shish kebab or stuffed tomato surprise to three-decker sandwiches or barbecued Virginia ham with raisin sauce.
In 1952 the menu at Lou’s was still diverse and offered many selections. The Continental De Luxe Dinner included the 
smorgasbord or hors d’oeuvres, green or Caesar salad, soup, and a choice of twenty entrees. The most expensive items on the menu were broiled filet mignon or New York cut steak for $4.25. The smorgasbord offered forty-four choices for $1.85 a plate.
In the late 1960s, Lou’s Village slowly changed the focus of the menu toward seafood. Gloria Muller noticed that San Jose was lacking a high quality seafood restaurant and suggested Lou’s fill the void. Lou’s Village began to specialize in seafood, a concept that Lou’s became known for until it closed in 2006. All of the dishes were freshly prepared in-house. The banquets served food direct from the chef to the customer.