The Liberty Tap Room

The Liberty Tap RoomThe Liberty Tap Room
The Liberty Tap RoomThe Liberty Tap Room
Bar, Eatery, Beer-to-go

237 N Prospect St
Reading, Pennsylvania, 19606-1467
United States

(610) 743-3228 | map
thelibertytaproom.com
PLACE STATS
Average:
3.95
Reviews:
11
Ratings:
24
pDev:
16.71%
View: Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by micropale:
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Rated by micropale from Pennsylvania

3.75/5  rDev -5.1%

Nov 05, 2014
More User Ratings:
Photo of JNForsyth
Reviewed by JNForsyth from Pennsylvania

4.13/5  rDev +4.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.25 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5
Nice little bar, decent selection of local and national distro stuff. Bartender was helpful and attentive, typical bar atmosphere with plenty of sports on the TV's above the bar. Had an Italiano burger which was excellent, everything else that came out of the kitchen looked great. Will return for the food alone, beer selection is a bonus.
Oct 05, 2016
Photo of MarkChristof
Reviewed by MarkChristof from Pennsylvania

4.16/5  rDev +5.3%
vibe: 3.75 | quality: 4 | service: 3.75 | selection: 5 | food: 4
The local bar I go to the most regularly. Get's a mixed crowd, but for the most part great people. Food is normally good, but can be inconsistent. Most importantly however, they always a great selection of beer!
Nov 02, 2015
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Reviewed by mildlybitter75 from Pennsylvania

3.95/5  rDev 0%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 3.5
I really enjoy this place. I'm not into hoppy beers so they always have something decent for me to try in their coolers. Last time I had a monks blood and a few brown ales . The service is pretty good here and the crowd is very mixed. My only compliant is some of the beers are way too pricey and there is always some annoying cover band playing crappy 90s hits. Ugghhhh! The food is really decent and not too pricey, I recommend the pub pretzel, and the wings are really good also. All in all I highly recommend this place !
Oct 24, 2015
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Rated by Psupunk from Pennsylvania

3.75/5  rDev -5.1%
Tap Selection is awesome, bottle prices are extremely overpriced, and food is bar food.
Nov 17, 2014
 
Rated: 4.5 by Rob_Starnes from Pennsylvania

Jul 23, 2014
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Reviewed by JTO_Read_PA from Pennsylvania

2.41/5  rDev -39%
vibe: 2 | quality: 2.5 | service: 2.25 | selection: 3 | food: 1.5
Food has gone downhill since it opened....poor selection, entrees are not good...wings are only decent food they have on the menu... beer selection is solid, but expensive and service is poor. I would drive the extra 10-15 to go to West Reading instead... not a fan... loud music inside is terrible...stick to a piano type bar
Jun 24, 2014
 
Rated: 3.93 by Barleycorn from Pennsylvania

Jun 06, 2014
 
Rated: 2 by mulrich from Pennsylvania

Mar 25, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by Kegatron from Pennsylvania

Feb 28, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by tommyguz from Pennsylvania

Feb 13, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by barneysdad from Pennsylvania

Feb 09, 2014
 
Rated: 5 by Une_Petit_Citrouille from Pennsylvania

Feb 04, 2014
 
Rated: 5 by IPAchris from Pennsylvania

Jan 27, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by DLSheidy from Pennsylvania

Jan 23, 2014
 
Rated: 4.5 by dwalktheelder from Pennsylvania

Dec 17, 2013
 
Rated: 3.75 by GeoffreyM from Pennsylvania

Oct 21, 2013
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Reviewed by OwsleyStanley from Pennsylvania

3.83/5  rDev -3%
vibe: 3.75 | quality: 3.75 | service: 4.25 | selection: 4.25 | food: 2
Go for the bottle shop, stay for a few drafts and drive somewhere else when you get hungry. The beer is the highlight, but the people who work there add a lot to the experience. So many nice servers, but so much mediocre food. If you stick with the wings and pizza, you'll be okay. If you stray, salt away.
Jul 21, 2013
Photo of Dannynoonan123
Reviewed by Dannynoonan123 from Pennsylvania

4.56/5  rDev +15.4%
vibe: 3.75 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.75 | selection: 5 | food: 4
Went there for the first time the other night. At first I was concerned aboit a small selection but when I found the "beer room" I was pleasantly suprised. Awesome staff and great wings. I reccomend this to anyone coming to the Reading area.
Apr 04, 2013
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Reviewed by ArrogantBastage from Maryland

4.08/5  rDev +3.3%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 3.5
Stopped in for lunch while my wife and I were in town for the Chilly Cheeks run event, brutal. Liberty Taphouse has a pretty good beer selection on tap and an even better selection in bottles. The staff was knowledgeable and helpful in making suggestions on beers, which is a big plus in my book. The food was good but could use a few small tweaks to be great. I was pleasantly surprised that we were able to get bottles to go there and made sure to take advantage of that before we headed out. Definitely recommend this place to anyone that is in or will be in the Reading area for lunch/dinner.
Jan 16, 2012
Photo of DaveHack
Reviewed by DaveHack from Pennsylvania

4.2/5  rDev +6.3%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 3.5
My first visit here on 7/2/11, on my way to Reading Phillies game. I've been to their other bar in Allentown many times.

When I first walked in, I noticed space, nice big open space. There is a large bar and a big dining room. I had the children in tow, so off to the dining room we went.

The beer list was quite extensive. I'm always paranoid that some awesome beer was added within the last 5 mins and is not listed. I asked the waitress if this list was 100% current, and she assured me it was. My GF ordered a St. Bernardus 12. The waitress actually cane back with a beer and a recommendation for her second beer. I got a Bear Republic Apex and could not decide on one of 2 IPAs for my second. I asked and was given a sample of each, appreciated that. Prices were decent if not great.

The only food we got was a pizza. These are phenomenal at the Allentown location. I was a little disappointed, as it was really under cooked. It was still good, but could've been great.

Overall, I would definately return. Oh yeah, thumbs up on being Mon smoking!
Jul 04, 2011
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Reviewed by pourcurator from Pennsylvania

4.22/5  rDev +6.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 3.5
I think Liberty Taproom place is a great addition to the area, and even a beer bar the likes of which were sorely needed in Reading. The selection is excellent, and the staff very knowledgeable about the beers available. The daily happy hour takes the prices from reasonable to excellent from 5-7 pm every day.

It is currently still in soft launch, so we're forced to extrapolate a little bit, but atmosphere is clean and nice with good beer stuff on the walls, but little special on the interior. The patio looks like it will be a great location for outdoor beer drinking.

Food is basically the same as at the sister restaurant in Allentown, which is to say solid, above-average bar fare at decent prices.

Some people do not like the televisions that are prevalent throughout the place, but given the sports-watching proclivities of the area, I understand it and will enjoy it when there are games on.

One reviewer complained of beers on the draft list being kicked by the time he or she was there. I was actually there within a day or two of that reviewer, and I would say every beer that is kicked is replaced by an equally good or rare beer. Of course, if you really want a Flower Power and it's replaced by the porter, that's little consolation, but that's an issue at any bar; good beer goes fast. Nonetheless, I do hope they figure out some way to keep tap lists updated; perhaps with the tv screens or an extensive "up next" section.

All in all, for the moment, it's the best pure beer bar in the Reading area. Selection and prices are better than Canal St., the only real competition. Of course, Canal Street is a very different place, with higher-end food, pricing, and atmosphere. As I said, I think the Liberty Taproom will be a much-needed fixture in Reading's craft beer scene.
Jun 21, 2011
Photo of ShanePB
Reviewed by ShanePB from Pennsylvania

3.95/5  rDev 0%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 4.5
Liberty TapRoom is located a few minutes off 422 in the Exeter / Mt. Penn area, and is a nice addition to the rather bleak craft beer scene in the Reading area. I visited with a few friends on the second day of opening last week.

There are actually two parking lots and neither were very full when we went (this was a Tuesday night). Upon entering, I was immediately carded at the door. It kind of reminded me of going to some dive bars in college, oh well no biggie but those few precious bar seats could have been snagged by the time my entire party was finished being carded, swiped and looked at up and down.

Once inside, you're greeted with the horseshoe bar directly in front of you, with an ample amount of seating around. An array of tap handles line both sides, as well as mounted televisions. I like the fact that they had a TV dedicated to the draft list, as well as a printed version inside the menu. It seemed nice, but I can quickly see how this place is going to fault by not updating the paper menu inserts quickly enough. You see, it looks like it's part of the menu, so for them to cross off which beers aren't on for every single menu is tedious and won't work. This will unfortunately lead to customers getting bad information about which beers are still on. Considering it was the second day of opening, I didn't run into this issue but can foresee this happening.

The craft beer selection was really impressive, especially for the area. There were really solid choices and a few gems you rarely see on tap. A nice selection, though they seemed to be very heavy on the Saisons and Witbiers. I guess, 'tis the season but nonetheless. All the prices for the beers were extremely reasonable and served in the proper glassware. Very well done. Their bottle shop has a great selection too of both 750 ml, 650 ml and 12 oz bottles. The prices are very reasonable and the 20% off the "bombers" definitely helped ease the prices (they seemed a bit higher but the discount helped bring them back to an acceptable price range). My only WTF, is the pool table located directly in the middle of the bottle shop. This seems completely out of place and rather messy. It's kind of like they had no other place to put it, so they threw it in the middle of the bottle shop. Very odd...

The only menu item I've sampled here were the "jumbo" wings with the white heat sauce. Jumbo? Not really, those are how wings should be but holy hell they are delicious. Perfectly cooked and crispy breading and enough sauce to cover each wing and have some left over. Absolutely delicious.

Overall, I had a pretty pleasant impression when I arrived. There were 3 bartenders on which helped with the load and provided quick, snappy service. Their knowledge of the beers on tap seemed to be somewhat lacking but, hey, they've only been open for two days! I would definitely revisit and would be interested to see the crowd and service on a busier night. For now, it's a great alternative to Canal Street, 3rd & Spruce and Union Jacks if you're in the area.
Jun 19, 2011
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Reviewed by yourefragile from District of Columbia

3.16/5  rDev -20%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3 | selection: 3
Visited on a Friday night a few days after their opening.

Parking is an issue when the place is full, with the lots on both sides of the building filled with hovering cars and a number of illegal spaces created.

Bar is very crowded and first impression is that they simply slapped some Troegs and Victory signs over the Coors and Miller signs of the previous tenants. Still, a nice open, airy space and fortunately non-smoking unlike their first bar, the Tavern on Liberty.

There are multiple large screen TVs above the bar paging through the tap list. There are also printed out menus with the tap list. Unfortunately when I visited both were out of date and my first 5 choices from each were kicked. There wasn't any indication of what had replaced them and the bartender wasn't sure what the new kegs were.

The prices listed (regardless of whether they were in stock) were more than fair for the area, and specified whether the beer as served in a goblet or pint. Didn't get to check out the bottle shop as it was pretty crowded in there as well with a pool table in the middle of the room. However the bottle shop wins by default of there not being any good alternatives in Berks County for singles and six packs.

Overall, the selection was hard to gauge since anything interesting had kicked (Tongue Buckler, Guava Grove, Flower Power, Voodoo's new saison) and there wasn't a list of new stuff that had gone on (I was told Anderson Valley Summer and 60 min were two of the new ones...). I was happy to see such large crowds immediately upon opening but I'll be giving them a few months before revisiting to work out some of these type of kinks.

If you're in the Reading area, Union Jacks is still choice 1a for a craft/import specific beer bar. I'm concerned that Liberty is going to try to cut the difference of being a general purpose sports bar (it looked like 8 of the taps were locked into Miller, Coors, PBR, Negra, etc) and a niche craft bar without doing either well. Reminds of McGrady's in Bethlehem. Sure they have 30 "craft" taps but no one in their right mind would go there for a craft beer. You go there to eat wings, get drunk, play shuffleboard and get in a fight.

As it stands, this failed to meet my threshold for "good for the area", which is sad since their sister bar in Allentown is definitely "good for anywhere".

Edit: Checked in again recently and saw they were advertising a bottle of Founders CBS for the winners of their weekly Beer Pong tournament. No comment. Otherwise, had a better experience then my early visits. Taplists were up to date, parking was easy and bartenders were more knowledgable. Still isn't my first choice in the area, but check their tap list on their Facebook page (not web site) and decide if it's worth a visit.
Jun 19, 2011
The Liberty Tap Room in Reading, PA
Place rating: 3.95 out of 5 with 24 ratings