Bai Long Store

Bai Long Store is not a store.  It is a magnificent restaurant. It is difficult to believe it has taken this long to return. This is our first visit during this time in Australia. We have been three times previously and each time has been excellent!

This visit is better yet. We are dining with Bronwyn and Neil. The men begin with beers. Neil is the more adventurous this time. His beer is green. It is interesting and worth a try.

First up CJ's favorite, eggplant with a Guinness batter and Sichuan caramel drip.

Second share plate is salmon and kingfish sashimi with truffle soy, wasabi puree and pickled beetroot.

We apologize but the food was so good, we often had it eaten before CJ realized he'd not taken a photo. Don't blame the restaurant for poor plating, blame our gluttony and their excellent preparations. For the remainder of the meal we had prawn dumplings with XO shallot chips and ginger vinegar; crispy prawn with creamy spicy mayo, wasabi, and a green salad; Peking duck bao with cucumber, spring onion, pickled onion, hoisin sauce, and spicy mayo. These were all small plates for four.

 The one large plate was crispy tempura barramundi with spicy tartare.

The food was excellent as always. This service was better than ever. They serve this entire large restaurant with only three people. They are always the same three. There is a tiny Asian woman with a great personality who can't be 80 pounds dripping wet. If she turns sideways she disappears. Jerry isn't much larger. He has a great personality and is a hoot. At one point when talking about the beer Neil is drinking, he informs us that the third waiter/bartender got wicked drunk on it the previous Sunday. He's talking to us about one of the dishes and as natural as can be tells us that sometimes the kitchen screws it up. Jerry was on a roll this night.

How they manage to wait the place with only the three of them and manage to take time out to chat is beyond us.

Jerry not only takes this picture but when CJ asks if he has unfiltered sake, which they do not, Jerry decides to provide us with a complimentary glass of sake each, just to see if we like it. We do.

 

It took us seven months to get to Bai Long Store. It won't take seven months to get back.