The Liberty: A Dive Bar Like No Other

It's amazing to think that The Liberty, a dive bar on the East Side, has become one of the most popular spots in town for industry people. Despite its rough exterior, the bar is a favorite among those who know and love it. We've had the pleasure of meeting Casey and Vicky, the owners, who are not only amazing people but also embody the spirit of The Liberty.

Casey is the owner of this iconic bar, and he's been working in town for a long time. Everyone knows him, and his outgoing personality has created a loyal following that immediately gravitates towards him. When Casey decided to open The Liberty, he knew it would be a hit with the people who already knew him. And indeed, they did – with enthusiasm. As one patron noted, "You meet Casey and you wanna be his friend immediately." His charisma is undeniable, and everyone wants to be around him.

Inside the bar, the atmosphere is lively and fun, with patrons chatting and laughing together like old friends. The Liberty's bathrooms are a particular topic of conversation, with some people joking about the size of the stalls and how they seem to take up an entire wall. Casey has promised to expand the bathrooms soon, but for now, customers make do.

As we chatted with Casey, we couldn't help but notice his iconic hairstyle – a look that's become synonymous with The Liberty. His passion for the bar shines through in every conversation, and it's clear why he's so beloved by his customers.

But what really sets The Liberty apart is its dedication to serving top-notch food and drink. Behind the scenes, Tom is hard at work making gravy, a task that's not without its challenges. As one patron quipped, "I mean, are they hot?" Despite the occasional misstep, Tom's commitment to quality is evident in every dish that comes out of the kitchen.

In fact, The Liberty has decided to take things up a notch by opening a poutine bar, complete with multiple types of cheese and toppings. We're talking about fries, pork cheeks slow-cooked to perfection, and a variety of cheeses – from Cotija to blue cheese to orange cheese (yes, that's a real thing!). And don't even get us started on the gravy – it's going to be served alongside a traditional gravy, as well as a redeye gravy with a hint of coffee.

The idea behind this poutine bar is simple: take all your favorite foods and layer them together for maximum flavor. As Casey put it, "You gotta layer it, yeah? It's all about the layers." And that's exactly what we're going to do – create a culinary experience that will leave customers wanting more.

As we wrapped up our conversation with Casey, he mentioned his love of cheese (no surprise there!). But we were also treated to some news: The Liberty is now open on the other side, and it looks like they're serving goat. We can't wait to try it out for ourselves.

The Liberty may not be the prettiest bar, but it's certainly one of the most beloved. And with its loyal following and dedication to quality food and drink, it's clear that this place is here to stay – at least as long as Casey and Vicky are behind the helm.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enThis is what I do to mygirlfriend's brothers.>> Oh, God.>> I mean, honestly,oh you have big tits...>> Let's go makesome God damn gravy.Come on, seriously.I'm Callie Speer, andI'm the pastry chefat Swift's Attic.So Swift's isa restaurant that'sdowntown Austinwe are the upstairsof an old sort ofmeat packing planthistorical building.So it kinda givesus a fun vibe we dosmall plates, we'rea small plate style.So it's definitelyshared portion.The ta, you know, thetable typically would getmultiple thingsoff of our menu.They're all built toshare very easily.And we like to do a lotof whimsical things.This thing issomething wecall it's a polenta cake,butit's something that welike to call cone bread.Cuz we're fromthe South I've lived inAustin my whole life.So I've worked heresince I was a teenager.I got a job in a kitchen,that was my dad's friendthat opened a restaurantand I did all of like.The bitch work,basically I started outactually working savory.And we had thispastry case where wehad this lady thatwas doing it.Couldn't really do it anymore they're like, oh,what do you think?You wanna, like,switch over?I'm like,that could,that could be awesome.I like the art of it andthe science of ita little bit moreI think was what.Munchies.>> Peaked my interest tokinda change over anddo pastry.My favorite on the menu,that is a basil sherbet,with coconut milkpanna cotta.And it hasa peanut butterpowder on the bottom.Some curriedRice Krispies.And some lime,like a kinda pop oflime gel at the end.With some micro Ilike to do, also,throwbacks of things, or,you know, things thatpeople have a nostalgiaabout and recognize.I did a chocolate mousse,it's sitting on topof a chocolate soil withsome Captain Crunch icecream, and then finishit with a little bit ofblueberry to do the, kindof like Crunch Berries.Just a sort of a.And that was sort ofmy answer to like wehave to do a chocolate.Like a seriouschocolate let's doa chocolate dessert I'mlike all right well we'redoing crunch berriesthis is going tobe great .>> Well ourdining scene here in townfor sure has exploded,like especially overthe past couple of years.We used to we hadnothing, like forthe longest time therewas like one fine diningrestaurant and that wasit, and if you wanted toget a good review inthe paper you had tohave white tableclothslike fine dining service.And then over the lastfew years, We have seenthis element of a lot ofit honestly is the peoplethat have worked herein town for so long.Most of these people allkind of came up togetherand they all just starteddoing their own thing.Which was awesome.They went, worked inthese placesall together.Cuz there wasn'tvery many, you know,there weren't verymany options.And really,we were just a group ofpeople that liked to havea lot of fun with themenu this is my husband.>> Hello.>> Love him.hi.>> Speak into her tits.That's wherethe microphone is.>> Speak,speak into my tits.So I have two girls soI don't go out a wholelot at all, usually.Super, superspirit fingers.Last night I brought outwith me Mat Clouser,who's our executive chef,Zack Northcutt,who is our sous-chef, andAbby Yates,who's also our sous-chef.Matt and Zack, I'veknown both of them foralmost ten years.And really noteven because Iever worked with them.But my husband did andother people, andMatt worked with myhusband a while ago.And, we are friends.>>>> You're drinkinga little too slow.You're reallybeing a Debbiefucking downer here.>> Right?>> So we left Swift'syesterday, and we walkedover to The Back Space.Which is justa couple blocks downthe street from us.>> I really wantto trip you.>> Don't trip me.That's so rude.>>>> Backspace isa kinda teenytiny like hole inthe wall pizza placethat is also Ifeel like surprisingpeople don't notice it.It's there all the time.Then you walk in andyou're like wowthis looks awesome.Backspace is ownedby Shawn Cirkiel,who I worked with.Many years ago he was,that's where Iworked before I cameover here, Swifts.Any part of me thatis any good at what Ido now, is definitelybecause of him.We ate some pizza anda whole bunch ofother awesome stuff.Jefferey, the chef there,he's great.He came out and hungout with us some too.So that was.A super fun.They're really greatabout doing all the likeantipasto like smalldishes Sprizer, sprazer.They're so good and sohot it's like my kid,I'm like mm.Oh, my God.Mm.Mm.>> There are lambmeatballs.>> Yes.>> Good times.Lamb meatballswith a little bitof pecorinoromano on top.>> Yeah, thank you.>> Awesome.Thank you.These meatballsare the jam.They really are.They're the shit.>> You'll neversay that again.>> The jam?>> They're the jam.>> They are the.Jam.These meatballsare the jam.It's like space jam.Almost as space jamyas the jersey we'regonna wear out tonight.We're going to Justine's.Justine's is a frenchbistro over onthe east side of town.It's super far onthe east side aroundreally nothing.They're known for theirlively atmosphere forsure I would say.>> Irreverent attitudes.>> Uh-huh.And Casey, who's a goodfriend of all of ours,is the chef over there.He's expecting us and Iwould imagine that shouldbe a pretty good time.>> Justine's is a placeI never wanna leave.>> No, he was justactually saying thatJustine's is the placethat every single time hehas to have have hiswife come pick him up.>> Or drag me out, yeah.As soon as I.>> He's like thisis amazing .>> They give me the highglass treatment forthe andthat's just it for me.That's my, that's my jam.That's my truth.>> Your truth jam?>>That's my truth jam.>> Welcome.>> Hi, thank you.>> And we broughtpizza for the kitchen.Wonderful.I can help you takethat to the kitchen.>> Awesome.>> I can also guideyou to your table.>> Thank you.>> Hey.Hey..>> How are you doing?>> .>> Nervous?.>> I'm Casey Wilcox.I'm the executive chefat Justine's in Austin.We do French food.Kind of pseudo Frenchfood on, on some levels.But classics onthe other end.We definitely knowthey're throwinga party .>> Like every timeI go in there Ialways feel like we'rein some, you know?Like the 40s orsomething.Like you just go and itfeels like so fun and solike whimsicalin there andthey really try to makethe experience not onlyabout the food, andthe food being great,but making it just.Feel, feel fun andfeel exciting.We ate a whole mackerelthat he brought out, andI think we gotshots of that.He brought it outto the table, andhe was like literallythis just walked inthe door 15 minutesago so that was,that was neat we also atea curry dish there that Ithought was great,with cauliflower.He did like a beef bacondish that was justphenomenal, andso surprising.>> Soit's the naval plate.All the burnt ends fromme roasting the baconare in,in the cabbage as well.In the, in this mix isa little bit of cabbagethat you salt to kind ofbleed the water out of sothey don't get soggywhen they're cooked,and radishes, mustardseed, caraway, andthen just a littlebit of cream and egg.So that kind of holdseverything together.Then the cabbage, tryto get one of these tokind of cup a little bitand hold some sauce.So it looks niceon the plate.>> I think that wasprobably, with everybody,the hit of the evening.>> Who's the guy that wasoutside the windowat Justine's?>> I don't know.They know him.I didn't know him, buthe was like, stressingme out a little bit.I'm sure, at some point,they've all workedtogether somewhere.>> Oh yeah.I wanted tocall up Tracy Martin.Munchies.>> Getting up in here.>> I mean, it's like,it's kinda incredible.Cuz there's just likethis mirror room they'relike, this is amazinglike we have this shed onthe property.And that's what it was.Like we have thisshed on the property.We don't know whatto do with it.Let's layer itin mirrors.>> Let's layer it inmirrors.>> Like.What?>> Paint that shit gold.>> How, how am I supposedto do my cocaine, though,if it's on the walls.>> Make it rain..>> Avi's crop dustingus in the booth.Can we please go?>> .>> Act, act nonchalant.Act nonchalant.Avi just crop dustedus in the booth.My lady..>> You're wreckingmy shots.>> We're goingto The Liberty,which The Liberty is.The Liberty'sThe Liberty.What do you even sayabout The Liberty?>> It's a fuckingskeezy ass dive bar.>> Like, the Liberty'samazing.>> It's a localwatering hole,it's a skeezy dive bar.>> It smells.>> It's amazing.>> We've known it.Then work with Casey andVicky the owners.>> Casey and Vicky thatown it are amazingpeople.They are so, so great.It's just this like,kind of like,gritty, divey bar overon the East Side,but it's so popular andit's definitely, like, ofall the bars that all theindustry people go to,that for sure is one.You can't walk intoThe Liberty withoutknowing at leasta dozen people thatare gonna be in there.>> So this is Casey.>> Howdy guys!>> He's the owner here atthe Liberty.We're just talking aboutyour bathrooms andhow big you buildthe bathroom stalls.Casey wasthe manager ofa very popularbar here in town.He's worked in town fora long time, andeverybody knew him, andhe's just the most,like, outgoing, most.Just relatesto everybody.And everybody, you know,like, you meet him andyou wanna be hisfriend immediately.Like, he's just great.So when he decidedto go open this bar,he just had thisfollowing of people.That immediatelythey're gonnago in there and love it.And support him.Because he is whohe is haveyou seenthe balls on her?I mean, I'm just serious.Pull, pull, pull themout, Abby forchrist's sake,just pull them out.>> I wish I had a lemonin my pocket right now,so I could belike .>> I wish I hada dollar forevery time you showedyour fucking balls.>> Really wealthy.>> Gravy, gravy, gravy,cheese, cheese, cheese.>> Yeah,we're going with you.>> Hey!>> Let's go, guys.Care fancy!.>>The other side.>> Not going backto make gravy..>> That's right,we are not goingback to make gravy.>> Give us somedirections, Tom Tom.>> I am going back tomake gravy, God dammit.Right now, this sucks..>> Bitch Ialready made your gravy.Shut the fuck up.All you gotta do is frysome goddamn tater tops.>> I mean, are they hot..>> I did all yourshit for you.Fuck you.>> And then we came backto Swiss and everybodywas a a hot mess Ifeel like for sure..>> Mom?Mom?Mom!Mom, let us out!>> And went backinto the kitchen.>> You don't,you don't think I shoulddump the whole thing?Oh my God, I love it.Cook to live.Cook't olive?.>> We're doinga poutine bar.Which, poutine,typically,is, I mean, really.>> Batik and Indian.>> Honestly.Lot of frack andCanadian.>>>> Like,we're gonna dopoutine our way.So we're gonna do fries,like a big old buffet,pork cheeks that havebeen slow cooked,goat slow cookedthe same way.We're going to domultiple types of cheese.>> All kinds of cheese.>> Cotija cheese, likeall sorts of blue cheese.>> Yeah.Got orange cheese.>> Orange.That orange cheese.>> Near the best.>> We're gonna doall sorts of.Cheese, which ismy favorite food groupever, cheese.And then we'regonna do gravy,which we're gonna dolike a regular gravy, andthen we're gonnado a redeye gravy,which has a littlebit of coffee in it.>> Move!>> I mean, really,like, what better,after you've had a nightout of drinking than,like, fries andgravy and meat.>> You gotta layer it,yeah?>> You gotta layer it.>> It's all aboutthe layers.>> Thatcheese melted on it..>> Consado..>> We're going goat?It's goat, right?>> Yeah, that's the goat.\n"