Bistro Mekong, Castlecrag

Bistro Mekong has a delicious South East Asian menu and currently have a delicious sharing menu which is inspired by the flavours of Myanmar.

Bistro Mekong will offer a special tasting menu focusing on a different South East Asian regions. Between November and February the spotlight will be on Myanmar then Vietnam (Feb-Apr), Thailand in (Apr-Jun) and Cambodia in Jun-Aug. 

The special tasting menu required at least 4 people and will cost $59 per person. The Head Chef is Tiw Rakarin specialises in South East Asian cuisine and is known for his flavoursome dishes that are perfect for sharing.

So this delicious Myanmar sharing menu is available for dinner however I was visiting at lunch time and wanted to see if I could try any of the dishes. So they were so lovely to offer the sharing menu but they had to substitute some of the dishes. 

I start off with the Vietnamese pancake which comes out in a bright yellow colour. As Matt is allergic to shell fish he eats one with tofu and I enjoy one filled with prawns and bean sprouts. The hoi sin satay sauce usually eaten with rice paper rolls is the accompanying sauce. In traditional Vietnamese restaurants, the Vietnamese pancake usually comes with a tangy fish sauce. I enjoy the savoury and slightly crispy Vietnamese pancake.

I also sample the Grilled Glacier Toothfish which has spiced pumpkin, truffle oil and crispy noodles. The toothfish is silky smooth and surprisingly really tasty with the spiced pumpkin. The cabbage drenched in truffle oil also is a contrasting texture to the toothfish. I've never had pumpkin with toothfish before and this dish quickly disappeared. It was delicious. I recommend! A very modern Asian dish.

I also smack my lips as the Smoked Trout with roasted chili, onion, lime zest and crispy chickpea mix is presented on a crunchy cracker. I've had these before and I really enjoyed the burst of flavour in my mouth. The dish was exactly as I remembered with delicious flavours lingering my tongue. 

I also eat the Chicken Vietnamese Salad in a tangy fish sauce. The pulled chicken is served up with bamboo shoots, chilli, lime and coriander. This is a familiar tasting salad. This salad is full of chicken.

I am starting to feel full but cannot resist getting into these King Prawn Tempura with caramelised onion and coconut salad. The tempura is quite thick and crispy. I quite enjoy the salad but decide to cut the skin off so I can enjoy the king prawn flesh.

I leave the next main to Matt as I'm getting quite full. He loves pork belly and this pork belly is slow cooked with peanuts and pickled ginger. The sauce looks bright and very spicy.

The final main is Bistro Mekong's signature which is the Beef Cheek curry which has sweet potato and pumpkin with pickled ginger and is served with home cooked roti. The beef is melt in your mouth and subtly sweet. Despite being super full, I gorge on this delicious dish. It's beautiful.

I leave dessert to Matt. He enjoys this banana pudding in a dark sugar syrup. We are also treated to a delicious pistachio panna cotta which sits in a sugar syrup as well. A bit of sweetness to end the lovely banquet of food. 

Summary: I enjoy my second visit to Bistro Mekong. All the food at Bistro Mekong is absolutely bursting with flavour and is delicious. The regional tasting sharing menus would be great in a group setting. 

Price: $59 per person (minimum of 4) for the sharing tasting menu

Location: 5/100 Edinburgh Rd, Castlecrag NSW

Opening Hours: 

11am to 3pm, 5:30pm to 9:30pm daily

Weekend Food Escapes dined as guests of the venue or their representatives. All photos, opinions and words are my own.