So! The bar is relatively new, there are no photos online and it was too dark by the time we arrived to take our own photo! Google street view is normally my backup but it still has the location as the business it was before the bar opened - so until I can get a proper picture, this blurry placeholder will have to do!
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When? - 22nd of September, 2011
Where? - The Long Road, 338b Keilor Rd, Niddrie
Price? – $16
Barry? - No
Website? - twitter.com/longroadbar
Reviewers – Cale, Grace, Lee, Luke, Ness, Nikki, Stefo, Tony Q[/info]
Those who live in the Essendon/Niddrie area will know that pickings are rather slim when it comes to bars on Keilor Road, Apart from The Lincolnshire Arms on the corner there is veritably no place on the entire shopping strip to wet one’s whistle.
The Long Road is a brand newcomer to the area, I noticed it opening up about 6 months ago but never really took an interest, thinking it nothing more than one of the many cafe’s that dot the street, It wasn’t until I was on Urbanspoon one evening looking for a place to grab some dinner that I noticed that it is listed on there as a ‘Sports Bar’.
My interest was piqued, I checked the menu to make sure they had a parma, and we headed down to visit the Keilor Road newbie - The Long Road. (Why it is called ‘The Long Road’ I am unsure, perhaps the owners are massive Nickelback fans)
We arrived at the Long Road and took our seats, They have a pretty basic setup but it does the job nicely, The folding glass foors along the front of the building opens the place up on a warm summer eve and the wood fire towards the back would keep you toasty warm on a cold winter one, Its basic, but has a good atmosphere.
We ordered our chickeny delights and awaited their arrival - The two LCD screens that I assume are normally there to show sports (hence ‘sports bar’) were running an episode of ‘Fear Factor’ instead - entertaining, yet watching Joe Rogan serve a 19 year old college student blended sheeps brain and horse testicle isn’t exactly ideal dinner entertainment.
Before too long our parmas arrived…
Everything about this parma screams home made, from the hand crumbed real chicken breast, to the home made napoli on top. The chicken was succulent, the crumbs were spot on and the ham was top quality without overpowering the meal. My only criticisms to this parma would be that mine was a tad overcooked (you can see the burnt patches in the above picture) They were a little light on cheese and the napoli, despite being home made, fresh and delicious, could be a bit watery (or ‘soupy’) at times, however these are only minor hiccups in an all around tasty meal!
The chips were standard pub chips, well cooked and a decent serving, however they didn’t really wow any of us, they were unseasoned and lacked any solid flavour, nothing bad, but at the same time they didn’t really stand out either.
The salad was a disappointment, It was a tiny garden salad of lettuce, onion, capsicum and tomato. It’s not that it was bad, there was purely nothing of it, after one forkfull it was all but gone and it was rather apparent that it was just there for show
I was impressed by the Long Road, calling it a ‘sports bar’ might be a bit of a stretch, but the atmosphere is great and the outdoor seating on busy Keilor road would be a great spot for a beer and a people watch on a warm Sunday afternoon.
The parma itself was great, the chicken breast was top quality and you can tell a lot of effort went into its creation and if not for a couple of minor glitches it would be top rung. The sides however let this parma down big time - if just a bit more attention was paid them them it would be a winner, but if you are after a quality meal at a very reasonable price ($16) then The Long Road is definitely worth checking out, I’ll certainly be going back for another in the near future.
Parma - 7.00
Chips - 5.06
Salad - 4.38
Value - 6.75
Total - 6.04
The search continues…
