Louie’s set to open this spring

Lifestyle

Seacoast restaurateur James Woodhouse plans to open Louie’s, a new Italian restaurant, in the former Green Monkey space on Pleasant Street this spring.

“We’re really excited about joining the existing exceptional restaurant scene in Portsmouth, and we’re hoping to add to that with rustic, authentic Italian food,” he said. He expects the restaurant to open sometime in late April or early May.

Louie’s will offer fresh pasta made in-house and the menu will include produce  from local farms, Woodhouse said. A certified sommelier, Woodhouse said he’s also working on a wine list “with some affordable, great selections … accessible to everybody.”

Woodhouse grew up in Greenland and is a co-owner of Gigi’s Italian Restaurant in York Beach. He also spent 10 years in the U.S. Virgin Islands running Zozo’s, an Italian restaurant, before coming to Boston, where he worked at No. 9 Park prior to opening Gigi’s in 2013.

“We’re not going to be exclusive or all that formal,” Woodhouse said of Louie’s. “It’ll be upbeat and casual.” — Larry Clow