LEO/LHB: Let's get Social at 732 ... What? I can't hear you!

[Robin Garr]

LEO's Eats with Louisville HotBytes.com

As soon as I read about 732 Social coming to East Market Street, I knew I was going to love it. It would be as urban as urban could get, chic and trendy yet "green" as grass, and it would spit in the face of the recession, boldly stepping out where a string of lovable but short-lived eateries have failed.

Here's the scenario: Brothers Steven and Michael Ton of Basa join Chef Jayson Lewellyn, late of Jeff Ruby's. They present quality fare - lots of small plates, and some large ones, too - that goes beyond mere fusion to blend the flavors of Europe, the Americas and Asia. They set it forth in the certifiably trendy Green Building, making adaptive reuse of well-worn barn wood and subtle tones, of course, to keep it close to the earth.

And, as the name suggests, they sought to build a consciously "social" environment, with tightly spaced tables and a community vibe that would encourage diners to converse with their neighbors and maybe even share bites or make new friends.

What a concept. Sure enough, when 732 Social finally opened around the end of March, it started packing diners in, and it's been slammed ever since.

It sounded like a perfect place for my wife, Mary, and me to invite our friend Lucinda to join us. Lucinda is a foodie and a wine geek, and we had been looking for an opportunity to get together, dine and drink and talk and laugh until wine came out our noses.

As it turned out, 732 Social scores on most of those points. The food was outstanding, the mood was delightful, and we loved the wine and beer lists, not to mention - at least in theory - the Depression-era cocktails.

But the "social" goal fell short for us. This place is popular, it is crowded, and it is noisy. Very, very noisy - hard edges, big-crowd-in-a-small-room noisy. So noisy that we had to lean close enough to yell at each other as we cupped our hands behind our ears, which isn't really all that conducive to friendly conversation. We'll try that again another day soon in another, quieter place.

But the food and drink? Oh, my.

Read the full review: Because there's an apostrophe in the URL, this link to the review on LEO stops at a landing page one stop short of the full review.
http://www.leoweekly.com/dining/review- ... social-732
You can click from there to the review, or read it on LouisvilleHotBytes.com.

732 Social
732 E. Market St.
583-6882
http://www.732social.com
Robin Garr's rating: 88 points

I had the same noise problems at Basa. Is this some social engineering strategy to make tables turn over? I really dislike it and avoid restaurants where I can't hear people across the table.

I have to say that we had had NO noise issues at 732 when we were there. Granted, it was a Tuesday or Wednesday, but the place was full for the most part--maybe one 2 top and 2 or 3 bar seats open.

I suppose our fellow diners were just a little more subdued than yours, Robin. I also suppose that on a Friday or Saturday there are likely more people just standing around waiting or drinking.

We did sort of have that problem at Basa, but we were there on Valentine's Day, and it was full to the brim.

All that being said, we loved 732.

[Robin Garr]

We loved 732 too, Brad, and I hope the review reflected that.

Nevertheless, on a Friday night, the noise level was as I described it. And I guess it frustrated me a little because we really had wanted to spend a social evening chatting with our pal about all manner of things, and that just wasn't happening in that environment. We ate, we drank, we lip-read a little, and then we talked later on after we left.

I have to say that we had had NO noise issues at 732 when we were there. Granted, it was a Tuesday or Wednesday, but the place was full for the most part--maybe one 2 top and 2 or 3 bar seats open.

I suppose our fellow diners were just a little more subdued than yours, Robin. I also suppose that on a Friday or Saturday there are likely more people just standing around waiting or drinking.

We did sort of have that problem at Basa, but we were there on Valentine's Day, and it was full to the brim.

All that being said, we loved 732.

We loved 732 too, Brad, and I hope the review reflected that.

Nevertheless, on a Friday night, the noise level was as I described it. And I guess it frustrated me a little because we really had wanted to spend a social evening chatting with our pal about all manner of things, and that just wasn't happening in that environment. We ate, we drank, we lip-read a little, and then we talked later on after we left.

Completely understandable, Robin. I probably would have been a little annoyed had that been our plans for the evening and then had to deal with that level of noise. It's good to know that if we go on a weekend, we should expect a more boisterous (loud) experience.

I must have a real problem. I wasn't smitten with the place. The decor was okay, but nothing architecturally unique or progressive. It had nice wood and lots of glass. The chairs were rather uncomfortable. I sat at the bar and the service seemed rushed and certainly not warm or fuzzy. Their rum selection was weak and the bartenders were obviously miffed that I ordered something that was not one of their signature cocktails or something they deemed passe - rum. The best stuff they had was Captain Morgans which isn't a very good rum.

The food was good, but not great. No offense, it was not in the Seviche or Le Relais class in my opinion. I must say I felt the same way about Basa. I like Asiatique better. Thus, I had a mediocre experience at 732 Social. I hope I am not offending anyone with my opinions. Thanks.