Little Norfolk Bay Bistro & Chalets — Restaurant in Tasman

We visited late in the afternoon on a chill, rainy day as the fish chowder sign outside tantalised us and we were feeling peckish during our long road trip home. While the service and atmosphere were lovely, the food was average. We ordered the fish chowder ($19) and a side of bread ($7) to accompany as it did not come with any - the chowder lacked fish and flavour while the bread included 5-6 small, thinly cut slices which were cold and chewy - not what we expected. The beef brisket burger and the fish and chips ($29 each) were fine but the salads it came with were not to our taste. Although it was a just quick stop for some meals to share between 5 (as we already had lunch earlier in the day), we were surprised at the portions, which were smaller than what we would expect of most restaurants and the pricing. Overall, we felt quite underwhelmed but were happy to support a small business however we could so we wish them the best and hope others who visit have a better experience ☺️

Ps. I have edited my review to include more details in response to the...

We have driven past this place so many times and then we recently saw their roadside signs for fish chowder and thought we had to try it! We didn’t have huge expectations since the peninsula is a sleepy place with simple food but oh boy we were surprised at how good the food was here! We ordered the 3 course menu but all agreed this was a misnomer as it really was a lot of smaller courses that let us sample many dishes - more like an 8 course degustation than a 3 course meal! Of course the highlight was the amazing (large!) parrot fish and I agree with other comments that a small bowl of rice would have perfectly complimented it. The octopus with jalapeño and olives was a creative combination of flavours too - very tender. The quail was my least favorite but I’ve never much been a fan of quail anyway. The fresh warm bread was super crunchy on the outside and soft in the middle and we enjoyed the fish pate that came with it. All in all we were very impressed with the food and we will be back! Great value too and local wines were...

Ordered house bread and their speciality dish: steamed parrot fish in a sesame sauce.

As an Asian (largely cantonese), I thoroughly enjoyed the execution of the steamed fish. The sauce complimented the natural flavours of the fish, without being too salty.

Plenty of spring onions for crunchiness and colour. Doneness of the fish was perfectly timed too.

The fish itself was definitely satisfying (in terms of portion size). Of course it was going to be fresh. But this has to be the freshest fish I’ve had in years. The meat had a nice tender and creamy texture to it. Being Asian, we ate the whole thing.

In gist, the chef knew what they were doing. It’s a classic and common dish (easily benchmarked with Chinese restaurants). And it was everything a steamed Chinese fish was supposed to be, but using the best (not an understatement) ingredients.

House bread was lovely too.

PS: a tad bit more sliced ginger could further spice things...