Liberty Barbecue - Barbecue-Focused Southern Cuisine on Leesburg Pike in Falls Church, from the Owners of Liberty Tavern

[FunnyJohn]

Liberty Barbecue, the newest enterprise of the Liberty Tavern/Lyon Hall/Northside Social folks, had its Grand opening last night in Falls Church.  Located In the space most recently occupied by Famous Daves on Broad Street.  The schedule for the rest of December is unclear, but they say in January they will be serving both lunch and dinner 7 days a week.  Full bar with a small but adequate wine list, and, of course, a nice selection of beer.  Wi-Fi is also provided.  I had a quarter slab of ribs which were very meaty, perfectly cooked, but could have used a touch more smoke.  The sauces need some work -- appeared to be commercial rather than house made.  They had a band, but I didn't stick around to hear the music (I arrived at 5 when the doors opened, and the music wasn't starting til 9 -- call me a light-weight, but I had to go home).  The place is totally concrete so if you're sensitive to noise, better bring ear-plugs.

All-in-all this is a welcome addition to central Falls Church, and I expect they will have as much success as their other ventures have enjoyed.  Wishing the best of luck in the New Year!

[dcs]

Restaurant Review: Liberty Barbecue, by David Hagedorn, February 19, 2018, on arlingtonmagazine.com.

[Ericandblueboy]

Very mediocre bbq.  The brisket was neither fat nor lean, lacked smoke flavor.  The pork ribs were tender but lacked smoked flavor.  The fried chicken, supposedly brined, could’ve used more flavor. I did eat all of the cole slaw, only because I feel compelled to eat veggies.  Not even close to Texas Jack in terms of quality.

i’m also amazed at how may families with infants and tiny kids were out eating dinner on a weeknight. 

[arlingtonkabob]

13 hours ago, Ericandblueboy said:

i’m also amazed at how may families with infants and tiny kids were out eating dinner on a weeknight.

You should see Peaking Gourmet Inn in FC. It's jam packed every weeknight

[dcs]

Liberty proves that good barbecue is a group project, by Tim Carman, March 20, 2018, on washingtonpost.com.

[nonawkward]

Went early (I thought) on a Sunday evening, just before 6. Our party of two was seated at what we were told was the last available table, a tall six top, near the door and host stand. When no one had come by our table after about 10 minutes, I asked the hostess, who had just returned to the stand, if we needed to order at the counter. (There is a large takeout counter on the right.) She assured me we had a server. It was another few minutes before he came to the table.

I tried to order one of the frozen cocktails (a whiskey sour slushie…because why not?) but was told the machines weren’t on. I will note that was not mentioned when I actually ordered but rather our waiter shared that detail when my friend asked about the seasonal cocktails that were mentioned on her menu (but not mine). I ended up with a beer.

We both ordered a two-meat platter with brisket and char siu pork belly. Platters come with two sides; we both had mac and cheese, she had cole slaw and I had collard greens. I really enjoyed both meats. They were well seasoned and had a good crust. The brisket was moist although bits of the pork (not next to the fat layer) were drier. The mac and cheese was made with orecchiette, had a saltine topping and was incredibly rich. Definitely not the liquid-y cheese sauce variety. The collards were good and had a significant amount of meat (I think the menu said ham hock) in them. They were fantastic with a good dousing of the Carolina (vinegar) sauce.

All of the parties that had congregated around our table (because of its location) during our meal were seated by the time we finished.

I’m assuming the (fairly minor) service issues were just growing pains and I will return to try the ribs and pulled pork. That being said, I don’t think it’s as good as Texas Jack or Myron Mixon.

[Ericandblueboy]

A couple of Fridays ago I got to visit just after it opened (11 a.m.) and got myself some brisket and ribs.  I requested moist brisket and they complied.  Both meats were very tender and juicy.  I've got no problem with the texture are all.  Too bad I think they're still  lacking in that BBQ flavor.  For example, there's plenty of black pepper and salt but something is missing (I'm no expert so I don't want to go barking up the wrong tree).

[ktmoomau]

That looks good.  A bunch of their social media posts have been a bit odd- sandwiches with like a white sauce on top of some sort and others just didn't make me say serious bbq, but that looks like it might be worth a try.

[Ericandblueboy]

The white sauce should only be an option on the smoked wings.

• SMOKED CHICKEN WINGS

  spicy chipotle or Alabama white sauce, celery, blue cheese

[Bob Wells]

4 hours ago, ktmoomau said:

That looks good.  A bunch of their social media posts have been a bit odd- sandwiches with like a white sauce on top of some sort and others just didn't make me say serious bbq, but that looks like it might be worth a try.

White sauce on barbecue is definitely a thing in Alabama. (Like yellow in SC and clear in eastern NC).

[ktmoomau]

3 minutes ago, Bob Wells said:

White sauce on barbecue is definitely a thing in Alabama. (Like yellow in SC and clear in eastern NC).

Oh, I know that, but if you are a bbq, and this is the picture you post, I just don't know what to think about your actual bbq: 

 

[Bob Wells]

5 hours ago, ktmoomau said:

Oh, I know that, but if you are a bbq, and this is the picture you post, I just don't know what to think about your actual bbq: 

LOL Gotcha. Personally, I find the entire idea of "white sauce" to be on the revolting side. (At least on anything besides poultry.)

[hopsing]

This morning I got an email from Liberty Barbecue about their online ordering.  I thought this would be perfect for the July 4 holiday.  I had read mixed reviews so I ordered with some trepidation.  Turns out everything was delicious.  High marks for the pork belly (Asian style), brisket and ribs.  Husband really liked the mac and cheese.  I was wondering how people could eat this food and not give it raves.  My theory is this:  they were slammed this evening so all the food was super fresh.  I can imagine if things are slow, diners may get old food.  I can see how that can taste dry.  I hate getting old food.  So next time I go there or carry out I will have to figure out when is a busy time. 

Some reviews complain about the food not being smoky.  I tasted some faint smoke esp. in the charred bits and it was good enough for me.

My only nit was that online ordering says it is ready in 15 minutes.  It takes 15 minutes for us to drive there.  However, upon arrival, they said they were slammed and it would take another 15 minutes.  Why not change the ordering website to give a realistic estimate?  I could have come 15 minutes later if they had told me.  Nevertheless, we will return!!!

[Marty L.]

On 6/2/2018 at 4:59 PM, Ericandblueboy said:

A couple of Fridays ago I got to visit just after it opened (11 a.m.) and got myself some brisket and ribs.  I requested moist brisket and they complied.  Both meats were very tender and juicy.  I've got no problem with the texture are all.  Too bad I think they're still  lacking in that BBQ flavor.  For example, there's plenty of black pepper and salt but something is missing (I'm no expert so I don't want to go barking up the wrong tree).

I was just there tonight, prompted by the Carman rave and good experiences in the past at their other joints.  Afraid I have to concur:  The brisket was very moist, and certainly the best thing we ordered.  But it wasn't all that flavorful, and certainly not as delicious as the brisket I've had at Hill Country.  The other items, alas, ranged from mediocre (pulled pork; ribs) to virtually tasteless (pulled chicken; mac & cheese).  Decent and fairly priced beer selection, though.

[Ericandblueboy]

oi, some really bland pork ribs today.  Also I intentionally ordered some turkey so I wouldn't eat it (okay, I had one bite - dry).  Great diet - order things you don't want to eat.  

Yah it's cheaper to order 2 meats & 2 sides as a combo than just 1 meat and 2 sides a la carte.

[DPop]

I'm with Eric here.  I went today and got the 3 meat platter and went with the brisket, pork belly, and spare ribs.  I'm always amazed when people can take fatty meat and make it relatively flavorless.  The brisket was impossibly dry; it had the texture of something that sat out for an hour after cooking. Only a very thin ring of fat around the outside, and no discernible seasoning or flavor outside of black pepper.  Where is the smoke?  The ribs were better and definitely the best thing on the platter, very moist but again no smoke and too light on the seasoning.  The pork belly was incredibly moist, but completely devoid of flavor and needed to be dipped in the spicy barbecue sauce they had on the table for any taste.  It was unbelievable that a place that only does barbecue would not season their meats before or after cooking them, but that clearly happened here.

[BklynBoy]

I have been there a couple of times. As noted above, the BBQ is meh, just not smoky and the brisket is dry. What is terrific however is the fried chicken.

[DonRocks]