Longtime Restaurant & Bar

LONGTIME RESTAURANT AND BAR HAS CLOSED IN NOV 2019 & BECOME sAme sAme IN A STUNNING NEW LOCATION IN ADA LANE. MEANTIME THE OLD VENUE HAS TURNED INTO A FUNCTION SPACE BY THE SAME OWNERS.

When it comes to Thai restaurants in Brisbane, Longtime Restaurant and Bar, tucked away in a Fortitude Valley laneway, is in a league of its own.

From the ambient vine and bulb lit laneway where a vintage golden Tuk Tuk greets diners and drinkers, to the dim basement dining hall with exposed red brick walls, varnished timber bar, plantation shuttered windows, vine clad chandeliers and leather booths, entering Longtime is to leave Brisbane behind.

Similarly the food is not your average Brisbane Thai offering, but rather an inspired menu of creative contemporary Thai dishes derived by executive chef Ben Bertei (ex-Longrain Melbourne and Spirit House, Yandina), Thai chef May who hails from the Thai Royal Palace in Bangkok as a chef for the Thai royal family and Angelo Valente who crafted his kitchen skills with Gordon Ramsay.

Punters are welcome to drop in to Longtime for a drink and some bar snacks or sit down and partake in the exquisite offerings from the best Thai menu in town.

Bar snacks are street food style with a dose of refinement and include delicacies like Betel Leaf with Prawn and Crunchy Rice, Fresh Oyster Shooters (natural or Bloody Mary) and Soft Shell Crab Bao with Apple Slaw.

Salads here are a must try – the Pomelo Salad with caramelized prawns, coconut, fried shallots and chilli jam is fit for (and served to) a Thai king, and the Banana Flower Tossed is a sweet and sour coconut dressing with organic grilled chicken is to die for.

Soups and Lons include Rich Penang Pork and Peanut Lon with puffed rice crackers and along with the Spicy Tom Yum and Tom Kha Gai Spicy Coconut Soup comes an Exotic Mushroom and Dry Smoked Chilli Soup.

When it comes to the Curries, don’t leave town without trying the exquisite Coconut and Turmeric Curry of Moreton Bay Bugs, Asian Celery and Kaffir Lime and from the Meats section, while crowd-pleasers are the Whole Crispy Fish with Salted Yellow Curry Coconut Sauce and Pickled Cucumber Dip and Succulent Smoked Chicken served with Longtime Sweet Chilli Sauce.

In addition there are Noodles and Rice Dishes like Smokey Red Rice Stir Fried and Rice Noodles with Black Squid Dumplings, Salmon Roe and Aromats.

Dessert at Longtime is almost a drawcard on its own, with choices like Charred Dark Chocolate Pikelets with Mint Ice Cream and Smoked Chocolate Sauce and Pineapple Ravioli with Custard Apple Ice-Cream, lemon Grass Gel and Fresh passion Fruit.

If it’s all too hard to choose, banquets at Longtime Restaurant and Bar start from $50pp for the Vegetarian option and wine matching is available.

The wine list is especially curated to best match Thai food and the result is the 3 R’s figuring heavily – Riesling, Rose and Rhone (ie. Wines from Rhone Valley, France, such as Grenache). As well there are white varietals and sparkling wines and the entire list is derived from the leading wine-growing regions from Australia and around the world, including France, Italy, Germany, Argentine, Austria and New Zealand.

As well as wines, Longtime does some great Asian-inspired cocktails infused with fruit and top shelf spirits and with names like Love You Longtime, Tom Fun, Bangkobbler and Lost My Phone in Samui.