Ozmouse does Longrain Melbourne!

[ozmouse]

LONGRAIN MELBOURNE

(apologies for length. original text was used in email to sydney-siders. cleaned up abit for this forum.)

Considering Longrain’s long awaited arrival by industry folk and myself, I actually had a 'unscheduled' visit last sat night. (Note: I am not in the above-mentioned group. I don’t carry any credence other than eating at Longrain Sydney approx 1 year ago, and labelling it some of the best food I have eaten in Australia!)

Longrain finally opened in November, and considering the hype prior to its arrival, the opening has been VERY low-key imo. Certainly the xmas holiday period and all it entails helps override anything it in wake. That is the main reason I never got there before the end of the year - just too busy and just too full from holiday excesses!

Last weekend, we were supposed to be parked down at the beach. I was planning a nice meal at home - fish and giaconda chardonnay was as far as I got - when I got the call Friday night from BF: “I forgot I had arranged to play tennis Sunday morning, so could you come into town for sat night? Let’s go out for a nice dinner. Your choice!”

WOO HOO! He did not know what he just said! Well I was on the phone in a flash, but excitement quickly turned to disappointment. Taxi – after 10. Ezard – after 9pm. Interlude – NO! Mo Mo – closed. GRRR plans were not going my way…..

But of course Longrain was in town! And of course they don't accept reservations! This is not a favourite industry practise of mine, but it will work in my favour this evening. So I got all decked out in my trendiest shirt (read: pink) and pants (very tight after xmas season) for a big night out at melbourne’s newest and one of australia’s best reviewed dining establishments!

Longrain is located at the top end of china town - an area with quite the dining pedigree, with many culinary finds in the nearby alleyways, and the chinese legends that dominate the street. I think Longgrain will fit in just fine!

Large bi-fold open windows had the vibe of the joint spilling into the street, even as we approached the building. The large rectangular warehouse is half dining room and cocktail bar, with open kitchen along the back wall.

Longrain's signature 3 long dining tables were along the left side and from memory 4 round tables of 8 (with lazy susans in the middle) parallel to that (did I read somewhere these tables can be reserved?)

A length of wall and the U shaped bar creates the space for cocktail lounge on the right hand side. Industrial space with modern colour splashes sums it the look (apologies to designer for description). I'm sure the glass tiles that look like shimmering green fish scales had some money spent on them. The noise and people provide most of the atmosphere.

From the start, service seemed hassled for most of the night. Yes it is a frenetic environment, but the wait staff should temper that, not add to the chaos imo. We were not greeted at the door, then hurriedly approached when we got to the bar. A 45-minute wait would have us sitting at 8pm. Not bad for a sat night. No seats in any of the nooks and crannies, so we perched at the bar where we could.

We had to wait for the fabulous cocktails Longrain is renown for i.e. more harried staff, (but the one bartender had biceps worth watching shake cocktails!) Being a wine snob (and a cheap b*stard), I cringe at $14 cocktails, however, in hindsight, these are 1st class drinks, using 42 degree vodka et al and quality ingredients. Compared to the pedestrian stuff that is passed off around town at $10, these were very good bevvies. Nice start and I was in the groove!

We were just about to order a second cocktail, (I think it was going to be something with watermelon in it), when we were called to our table. It was less than the 45-minute wait. But we then had to wait for the host to rustle up our credit card from the bartenders.

I was near-sighted for the weekend after leaving my glasses at work on the friday. I was dismayed when we were sat at the end of the last table at the back of the restaurant - the whole restaurant was a blur from there! But as it was pointed out, it was the best spot in that situation, as I was able to check out every single person that went to the bathroom that night!

While we did not have the bevy of beautiful people I encountered in sydney, I think there were 4 heavily pregnant women dining there that night. Don’t know what was going on there, might have been mothers groups or something (and they went to the toilet a lot)! Next to us, a newsreader from one of the big stations.

We were greeted straight away professionally and personably, but after this initial greeting, the rest of the service was minimal or harried (i.e. wine gulged into glasses)

On the way into town, I was saying for such an anticipated visit to a restaurant, it was weird that I already knew what I was going to eat: “betel leaves - pork hock - fish curry - gewürztraminer to wash it down. But we would not be able to fit in the egg net”.

"Like hell" BF said. "How could I know what I wanted?" "The menu could be different?" "What if there were other pork dishes?" (he cant go by pork)

"I will make certain we have something different."

FOOD

betels leaves with smoked trout and eggs - Perfect little gems. explosion of thai flavours and freshness. with the smokiness of the trout lingering.

grilled scallops in shell - with similar thai flavours as above. barely cooked scallops with charred tops and bottoms served on the shell. While it was similar to the taste above, they are just mouthfuls, so it was like another longrain hit I had waited so long for!

freshly opened oysters with ginger chilli . - served with the second half of shell. (very important point imo). so fresh. Tiny. Hot (from chili). Reminded me again why you get passionate about oysters.

caramelised pork hock with chilli vinegar - the star of the evening. one of the ozmouse’s top 10 dishes. different format to the one I had in sydney. (could be better. hmmm. don't know.) it was cubed and deep-fried with the 5 spice caramel sauce and the chilli vinegar served separate. all crunchy on the outside and luscious sweet meat (and fat) underneath. then add the layers of sweet, hot and sour on top of that! YUM YUM YUM.

swordfish in green curry - perfectly cooked fingers of fish with a curry sauce with a depth of flavour and 5th dimension that I can’t define. (BF said last time he can remember that taste was eating royal cuisine 15 years ago in Bangkok).

steamed rice - another star of the evening. perfect foil for the food. glossy individual grains. fragrant. Steaming. I ordered more.

Huia Gewurztraminer - NZ . very nice indeed. at the beginning I thought it was very austere. But in hindsight, with the explosion of flavours in your mouth, this wine was more than capable of taking the heat and spices. so not austere at all. very happy with this choice.

It was a great night of food and wine. Long awaited arrival, with high expectations, but it all delivered for me. I would like the room a little less rowdy. but, I guess it is a fun place to eat and drink.

I was a little disappointed in the service. Not that they failed to deliver (actually wrong food did get delivered to us), but as mentioned, I just got this sense of being too busy to deliver attentive service. We walked out the door without a salutation.

BF thoroughly enjoyed it. Stating it was a perfect place for socializing and eating. By the way, he tried many combinations off the menu prior to ordering, but in the end could not get past the pre-empted offering I had envisioned. But as he says... wait till next time …he will order. And here is another reason you go with people... to have more opportunities at the menu.

As it would have it, while we were eating, the couple opposite us left, and BF said, “Hugh Jackman and Deb will join us for dinner”. They did not. Instead a friend of the BF’s he had not seen in 6 years sat down. Lots of gos to catch up on there …

If you like thai food and a fun night of dining, I say make your may down to Longrain. Take a group and scam one of those round tables. It will be a great night out.

But I’m thinking, next time…. a single seat at the bar, and a whole pork hock to myself……

[PCL]

Ice broken...

Thanks mouse. Great review. If only my weekend's dining out was so memorable. More on that later.

I think I have also found a good way to pitch 'original' thai vs Longrain thai... there's a little place near the corner of Victoria St & Punt Rd, a small nondescript neighbourhood thai joint... so underrated, great control of chilli / spice / herb / flavours, closest to Bangkok street food I"ve found thus far. Could be a lunch evening combo....

[Dim Sim]

Ice broken...

Thanks mouse. Great review. If only my weekend's dining out was so memorable. More on that later.

I think I have also found a good way to pitch 'original' thai vs Longrain thai... there's a little place near the corner of Victoria St & Punt Rd, a small nondescript neighbourhood thai joint... so underrated, great control of chilli / spice / herb / flavours, closest to Bangkok street food I"ve found thus far. Could be a lunch evening combo....

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might have to get someone to take me there soon , the food you described sounds just what I would like to eat, that Huia is one of my favourites too. Birthday is coming up. I hope all my friends are reading this.

PCL, the place you mentioned , it couldn't be Ying Thai, could it ? that is one my my favourite thai place, I like it when they don't scale down the chilli to suit mild palate ( we counted 10 birdeye chillies in the bottom of the soup bowl once after my friend finished his bowl of tom yum ), I like the pork Larb and the deep fried fish with chilli jam, there is another one in Lygon Street too.

[Shinboners]

Thanks for the review ozmouse. I can't wait to try Longrain.

But of course Longrain was in town! And of course they don't accept reservations! This is not a favourite industry practise of mine, but it will work in my favour this evening.

It's not a favourite of mine either, but since I can usually get to a restaurant by 6 to 6.30, it often works in my favour.

And I would think that in the case of Longrain, it'll work in favour of the punters who are going there to eat rather than to be seen.

PCL, the place you mentioned , it couldn't be Ying Thai, could it ? that is one my my favourite thai place, I like it when they don't scale down the chilli to suit  mild palate ( we counted 10 birdeye chillies in the bottom of the soup bowl once after my friend finished his bowl of tom yum  ), I like the pork Larb and the deep fried fish with chilli jam, there is another one in Lygon Street too.

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Yeah, it sounds like Ying Thai. The last time I went there, the food was ferociously hot - so much so that I couldn't finish my food. Oddly enough, in previous visits, their use of chillis didn't bother me that much. Anyway, after building up my tolerance to chillis with bowl after bowl of Vietnamese chilli-beef soup, I'm ready to give Ying Thai another spin.

[PCL]

Ying Thai it is. What a find. I'm so pleased. I'm also pleased that Longrain is only a block away from work. Lunch specials do they do one Yoda wants to know.

[Tim White]

Oddly enough we were there the next night - courtesy of our staff christmas party - Ozmouse did leave us enough Pork Hock!!

Overall, a casual but fine dining experience with first class food and a very good wine list.

Over dinner we argued the toss over the perfect size table for Longrain - and we think 5-7 people is just about right (just as well as there were only 5 of us). This means you get enough of a taste of a dish without not getting enough.... It also means you can share a couple of bottles of wine from the wine list.

Its not cheap by ordinary standards but given that everything is done from scratch - they make their own coconut products etc - its remarkably well priced

5 meant that we were seated on the end of one of the long benches - at the street end - with the window open, a perfect place - just the buzz of the kitchen and the buzz of chinatown in the background. 7 would have been perfect for one of the tables with the built in marble lazy susan (who was she and why did she make one??)

Opening cocktails were devoured and as for what we ate...

Betel leaf topped with smoked trout chilli garlic galangal & trout roe

Betel leaf topped with prawn peanuts roasted coconut & ginger

Eggnet with pork prawns peanuts & sweet vinegar

Braised beefshin with a mint coriander & chilli salad

Soft shell crab with pomelo green chilli & a caramelised peanut nahm jim

Caramelised pork hock with five spice & chilli vinegar

Salt & pepper silken tofu with stir fried Chinese broccoli & snow peas

Rice

washed down with Gruner Veltliner

The Dessert Sample plate (including sago pudding, black rice, palm sugar, etc)

washed down with tea and Muscat Beaumes de Venise

For me the winner was the tofu. Large cubes of silky tofu dusted in rice flour, salt and white pepper and deep fried - absolute magic; rich unctuous yet with a warm bite of white pepper to start

We'll be back - probably far too often

Highly recommended

Check out Longrain Website for sample menus, winelists and directions

[jango]

Fabulous reviews.

Tim, are you the Tim White you wrote the wine article in The Melbourne Magazine? Excellent writing.

[Tim White]

Fabulous reviews.

Tim, are you the Tim White you wrote the wine article in The Melbourne Magazine?  Excellent writing.

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No sorry - he is taller, older and thirstier - check out his webpage

[PCL]

I caved. The opportunity arrived, and at 12.30 today, I walked the 500m or so from the office to Longrain and took a seat with 2 others at one of the long tables. In my mind were the words "Sydney Invasion of Melbourne."

And it wasn't too far from the truth. Snubby maitre'd figure, too tight shirts, mincing walks. We sat, we observed, and ordered some sparkling wa-dah.... and a Victorain riesling. Kingfish and salted pork salad, pork hock and Wagyu brisket curry. Can't fault the food. Waited too long though. So we had another bottle of wine instead.

Wagyu curry was like how good brisket, in this case, exceptional brisket, should be. Sauce was just the right consistency and balance.

Salad was a bit run of the mill thai, but everything worked. Cucumbers never tasted so good to this self-confessed cucumber hater. Fish fillets were a bit skinny and under seasoned and the salted pork garnish kind of overwhelmed, but still good. Paddled it up with loads of rice.

Pork hock. Enough said. Certainly a highlight. Will be on top ten list for a while.

Do it.

[PCL]

The love affair continues for this punter.

I've made 2 return visits fo Longrain so far, and it looks like there will be more. Such is life when the place is only a stone's throw from the office.

One visit was for an anti-valentine's dinner with two lovely ladies, yes, we played it up, why wouldn't we? Cocktails all round, bloody good. Food? Bloody good. Hocks, duck curry, oysters and scallops. Didn't even have to think about it.

Second visit, after work drinks. Mojitos all round, say 5 rounds or so, and loads of fish cakes. Thanks be to above for project related entertainment.

I personally think they've got it just right, though I did hear that someone did write in to The Age recently to complain about service. In my opinion, uppity hostesses and waiters and waitresses take a back seat to good food and drink.

[PCL]

No sign of uppity wait staff this pleasant autumn lunchtime.

Massaman (sp.??) Lamb curry was light and tasty.

Scallops on the shell with herbs and chilli... sweet.

Half serve of hocks!!! Now that's thinking!

Rice.

Glass of rose, and pinot gris.

Noice...

[Shinboners]

Noice...

←

Must be. What's it now? Four times in one month?

[deco75]

Headed off to Longgrain last night. We did wait a while for table but that gave us the chance to enjoy some of the excellent cocktails. Maybe a little to much enjoyment, hic !!!

There was a great atmosphere on the communal tables with the commonwealth games on, lots of rugby discussions.

The food was great shared some of the pork hock, crispy crab and the kingfish and prok belly dish. The cispy soft shell crab was a winner and will definately be back for more.

To be honest the night was a bit of a blur, damn those cocktails, and im feeling it a bit this morning.

An excellent night out, i get the feeling the night would be well determined by the atmosphere at the tables. My advice get in quick while the games are on

[Redbank]

Hello,

This is my first post,

Unfortunately my first experience of Longrain was not convincing.

Service was a touch slow (we were celebrating a chefs leaving) hospitality staff can be a little precious on that first drink.

The food at best was patchy, the pork dish was way over cooked and the swordfish dish was ho hum.

Desserts however were great.

Personally I would happily visit one of the local Victoria St restaurants twice for the money.

Don't believe the hype.

[PCL]

I love the hype.

Twice in a week. Lunch both times. Give me hock, and hock me again, and please, pretty please, with sugar on top, another serve please.

Many people have complained that the hocks are dry/overcooked etc. In my experience, when the place is packed, the hocks are good. When the place is near empty, the hocks are good.

The wagyu briskey curry continues to please.

The crispy fried trout salad is an total gem. I love how most of the crisp fried fish dishes come with the entire spine of the fish crisp fried to a state where you can just munch on the whole lot happily and safely.