One of my favourite places for Southeast Asian cuisine is Longtail. Their food is always delicious and always consistent, and today’s visit was no exception. Located in the food court of New Westminster’s Quay, they have been a long-standing institution. The first of its kind and the most authentic of the restauranteur’s like projects.
Their wall of mass ingredients speaks to what goes into their woks, and the scent of it over fire drifts out into the courtyard, beckoning you forth. Today we basically ordered the entire menu to gorge between 3 grown women, and we love every bit of it.
When given the option I always order Thai milk tea, there is nothing else like it and its mellow flavour with sparse caffeine compliments all the punchier dishes to come.
If you ask the staff or any loyal customer, the Longtail wings are the ones not to miss, and are possibly one of the best wings in the city. And after this recent reminder I can see why. They are crispy and salty with a great tamarind coating. I bet you can’t just eat one.
The Shrimp rolls were basic wonton wrapped spring rolls, but stuffed with a whole shrimp so their tails are sticking out. These were crispy and had plenty of flavour when dipped into the generous amounts of sweet and mildly spiced sauce, provided on the side.
The Roti was perfection, fried crispy sheets of folded dough self-dipped into a side of curry. Not typical is this chunky, peanut butter forward curry that you spread. Definitely traditional, but a rendition I could get behind.
I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the Gai-lan and pork belly, served over steamed rice, topped with a fried egg and fried onion crisps. This was as comforting as it was satisfying. Well balanced with the fatty pork, runny egg, and crunchy greens. I would crave and order this again.
Today’s daily curry was a yellow coconut milk curry with stewed chicken. Sweet and spicy, a traditional and familiar flavour that I do crave from time to time, and will definitely return to Longtail for.
Another classic they do with authentic ease is the Pad Thai with prawns. Tangy tamarind, bits of chewy pork, crispy beansprouts, and crushed nuts for crunch. This absolutely delivered on all expectations.
The Stir fried eggplant plant is another home cooked sort of dish that you don’t expect to like as much as you do. I loved that each eggplant segment kept their purple hue and looked as appetizing cooked as it does raw. Each piece tasty and fragrant with a fishy undertone.
The Singapore noodle with tofu used thin vermicelli strands that easily grasped the curry powder’s essence. This was mild in flavour with the citrus zest of the lime really accentuating the spices in contrast.
The Pad Sew Uu Beef had plenty of char and heat from its time in the wok. Lovely chucks of tender fatty beef, crisp vegetable stems, and slippery noodles. This is one of my favourite dishes done very well by Longtail. The chili on the side didn’t really add anything nor was it needed.
An absolutely delicious meal I got to relive in writing this post, and a restaurant I will continue to recommend not only for some of the best Thai/Malaysian style cuisine, but as my favourite restaurant in New Westminster. If you have yet to visit, be sure you bookmark this as your next meal out.
Longtail Kitchen
810 Quayside Dr Unit 116, New Westminster, BC V3M 6B9
(604) 553-3855
longtailkitchen.com
