Northern Beaches

Mekong Merchant - Avalon

Residents of the Northern Beaches (/North Shore) don’t have to trek out to Marrickville, Enmore, or Cabramatta to have a fantastic Vietnamese Bánh Mì - there’s a place in Avalon that’s smashing it.

Wrap ya laughing gear around that! The photos and words don’t do it justice.

Wrap ya laughing gear around that! The photos and words don’t do it justice.

Located near the heart of Avalon shops (near the Avalon RSL - using landmarks for locals) Mekong Merchant is a little place that has some amazing Vietnamese dishes.

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Menu (as of August 2019):

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Crispy Pork Belly Bánh Mì ($12.00)

other filling options are: BBQ Pork, BBQ Chicken, Lemongrass beef or Marinated Tofu (all $10.00)

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You get a choice of which type of Bánh Mì you want, but after a previous visit I know that I’ll only ever be ordering the Crispy Pork Belly one. It’s full of delicious crispy pork and crackling, along with your traditional Bánh Mì fillings.

The problem is, that about halfway through eating it you’ll experience a sense of sadness that you're going to be finishing it soon. You’ll briefly ponder if you can eat two without becoming sick but dismiss that as gluttony.

Check. It. Out.

Check. It. Out.

Beef Pho ($16.00)

beef noodle soup

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The pho is really great. Flavourful, fresh, hot, but one downside that my wife shared was that it doesn’t come with a lot of noodles. I definitely snuck 4-5 spoonfuls of broth joyfully.

Rice Paper Rolls ($4.50 each)

Choice of: BBQ Pork, BBQ Chicken, Lemongrass Beef, Marinated Tofu.

BBQ Pork rice paper roll

BBQ Pork rice paper roll

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PROS:

  • Amazing Bánh Mì

  • Pho is delicious

  • Perfect food options for the beaches

CONS:

  • Only open until 3:00pm (wish they were open for dinner)

  • Food items can sell out towards end of day if popular.

  • You may experience regrets that you didn't order some as takeaway.

OVERALL:

We love Mekong Merchant, in fact when we were discussing where to eat in Avalon I counter suggested we get Vietnamese from here and we both agreed that was the best option.

DETAILS:

Address: 53 Avalon Parade, Avalon Beach

Phone: 02 9918 3547

MAP:

 


Bonus - takeaway

My wife was smart enough to order some rice paper rolls as takeaway, and I was very envious a few hours later when she tucked into them.

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The Collaroy - Collaroy

There aren’t too many times when I write the name of a restaurant or cafe and think - well that’s a little redundant. Good thing the Merivale group like to keep the names simple. Having been to The Newport a few times, I was curious to see what The Collaroy had to offer.

The view from the restaurant level (deck).

The view from the restaurant level (deck).

A smaller secondary bar, that must be staffed during peak periods.

A smaller secondary bar, that must be staffed during peak periods.

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Menu (as of July 2019);

(Click on image to view larger version)

Rigatoni ($27.00)

Tube pasta, lamb ragu, tomato, rosemary, parmesan

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This was one of the dishes I was trying to decide whether to order or not. I’m thankful that my sister in law picked it - she has great taste! It was a delicious ragu and came with copious amounts of fresh parmesan.

Linguine ($28.00)

Narrow flat pasta, bug meat, parsley, lemon, chilli, garlic, breadcrumbs.

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My wife is a seafood pasta fan (but must always come with extra chilli). This Linguine was great, I’ve always wanted to try a pasta with Pangrattato (breadcrumbs). I think this might have also been the first time I have eaten Bug meat that I can recall.

Grilled Beef Asado ($34.00)

Chimichurri, beer battered onion rings.

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I picked the Beef Asado because it was something unfamilar to me. When I was ordering, the server suggested I should get a side because it’s essentially “just meat”. I was surprised that this was Beef Short Rib - something I’m fairly familiar with from Korean food. It was delicious, though for $34.00 they might have provided a few more pieces of meat (6-7 on the plate?). If you aren’t sure what I mean by ‘short rib’, I took another photo;

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Italian Pork Schnitzel ($28.00)

Cabbage slaw, hazelnuts, lemon aioli.

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A impressive schnitzel that is definitely not your typical pub special. This bad boy was much bigger than the photo makes it seem. It was also fairly thick and juicy.

Fries ($10.00)

Aioli

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A big bowl ‘o fries for the table. Very moreish and enjoyed by all.

Broccoli ($13.00)

Almonds, sheep’s milk feta, confit garlic.

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This is the side that I picked to counter my beef dish. It was really tasty and must’ve been a huge piece of broccoli considering how long the stalk was.

Bonus : Bar

I was pleasantly impressed at the range and stock the bar had. I when tasked with picking a beer I had to opt for my favourite (Stone & Wood).

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PROS:

  • Great food, attentive and friendly staff

  • Well stocked bar

  • Great view

CONS:

  • Parking is problematic.

  • Dinning area is only open from 12pm

  • Some dishes are pricey for what they are.

OVERALL:

It was nice to say I’ve been there, but I probably wouldn’t go back unless I was showing some people from out of town the area.

Details:

Address: 1064 Pittwater Rd, Collaroy NSW 2097

Hours: Mon/Wed/Thur 07:30-00:00, Fri/Sat 07:30-03:00, Sunday 07:30-23:00

Phone: 02 9114 7366

Site: Merrivale/TheCollaroy


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