"Taste of Liberty": Bistro produces tasty cuisine that's American, and plenty more"
By Bonnie Walker
New Braunfels - Liberty Bistro, with its warm atmosphere and understated theme of American history, is a pleaser, whether your vote goes red or blue.
We headed to the restaurant, located beneath the 1929 City Hall building, on a cold night just before Christmas. With holiday lights all a-twinkle outside, and a warm greeting inside, the ambience was as enticing as the scents in the air.
The wine list and appetizers were of primary importance, so we ordered sparklers, then briefly wrestled with the decisions facing us on the menu of small plates. A collection of spreads, a marinated ancho chile with guacamole and the bistro's Firehouse Shrimp were our favorite candidates, and all were winners.
The guacamole turned out to be a soothing counterpoint to the rest of the dish - marinated chile, with citrusy jolts from lemon, and brief flashes of smoked chile and garlic. The perfectly cooked shrimp, with garlicky sauce, was hard to beat, but the spreads were my favorite. These were roasted garlic, hummus, eggplant, and fig and olive tapenade cleverly presented on a long, thin plate. Each was delicious.
Casual is the watchword at Liberty Bistro. The servers seem well-versed on menu items. They're friendly and, for the most part, quite smooth. Our servers on both visits talked to us just enough and if any mistakes were made they were cheerfully corrected.
While awaiting salads and a couple of the larger plates we'd ordered, we considered the thought that went into the interior. The red and blue colors were not primary colors red and blue, but a fashionable brick red and a deeper-than-sky blue. We enjoyed the line of old black-and-white photos of American presidents along one wall. A few appeared to have been hand colored, so some of the old blokes were wearing red ties.
Liberty Bistro doesn't beat you over the head with the patriotic theme - and that might be because its attention seems more focused on making good, contemporary American cuisine. "American" includes a goodly selection of Latin and Spanish flavors as well.
Our order of perfectly roasted, meaty lamb chops with a savory crust couldn't have been better; the tenderloin filet was expertly grilled. The freshly made crab cake, ordered as an entrée, was one of the best we'd had in the past year.
The wine list is well-rounded, offering a fair number of wines by the glass. These include recognizable favorites as well as some surprises. Our Amisfield Pinot Noir, from New Zealand, was one.
After Jan. 1, we were back for lunch. It was a trifle more busy, but just as comfortable. We started with warm soups, including a clear but flavorful broth-based chicken soup and a creamy "T. Jefferson's Tomato Bisque."
Our order of the Tapas Pizza, with warm curls of Serrano ham, manchego cheese, arugula and a spritz of lemon, from the wood-burning oven, was just about perfect. The only drawback was an odd, chemical-like flavor that came from the crisp crust. It wasn't overwhelming; it just distracted from what was otherwise a perfect combination of flavors and texture.
We loved the Salmon Club Sandwich. The layers of toast were cold and hard, as if made hours before. But the fillings made up for it. Buttery slabs of smoky fish, with capers and a dash of lemon held down the first layer while egg salad crowned off the second. A fruit salad on the side, with a drizzle of yogurt dressing and oatmeal topping, was a good option, too.
The olive oil-dressed yellowfin tuna in the tuna sandwich on a whole-wheat roll was not the mayo-drenched classic. It was good, but the roasted potato salad featured cold, limp little bits of potato that had gone soggy.
John Hancock Chicken, which is wittily noted as the "signature" dish, was tender and moist.
Wild salmon grilled to perfection and served on top of freshly cooked spinach was good. Even better, the citrus butter was served on the side, as we'd asked.
The desserts were excellent. We'd definitely return for the crème brulee, its tender texture ever-so-lightly infused with flavors of sage and blackberry tea, and the silky panna cotta, served in a martini glass and topped with a gleaming, garnet red puree of berries. While a Dr. Pepper Cupcake was just so-so, we loved the chocolate pot de crème served in a coffee cup, topped with a swirl of whipped cream.
In the final analysis, we'd suggest you shrug off the bit of a drive to New Braunfels for rewards as good as you'll find at Liberty Bistro.