Feasting on German food out west - The Bavarian Rouse Hill

Establishment: The Bavarian, various locations
Cuisine: German restaurant
Allergy information: A range of options are dairy, egg, seafood, nut, soy, sesame and gluten free. A build your own salad or wrap option also means you can select safe ingredients from a large selection of leaves, proteins, vegies and more
Suggestions: the crackling pork belly, with chips instead of mash, and some extra sauerkraut for a well-filled belly

A sample of the kind of meaty fare you can expect at The Bavarian

Over the years, I've been lucky enough to build up a nice list of places where I can reliably eat without worry and The Bavarian holds a happy place on it as one of its earliest entrants.

I was introduced to the place by my friends years back. On my first visit, I stuck to chips to be safe (after quickly checking they weren't cooked with any seafood) as was pretty much my way whenever I went anywhere new.

See, at this point, I was in my mid-twenties and I hadn't really branched out to many places yet so I was still just going with the most clearly safe options on menus. Even by the mid-00s, I would still find most attempts to explain the allergies more stressful than helpful. At worst, I'd get eye-rolls and skepticism and this had been happening since I was little so my painstakingly shy self would run with what was easiest. I'd occasionally make an attempt to query the menu when I'd get up a bit more nerve, though the requests were still usually most likely met with apologies and very few options.

That paints a bleak picture of hospitality at these places, but I think it was more indicative of the fact that establishments were still fairly unaccustomed to more complicated allergy requests so I would end up with only the simplest options (like chips or salad) or be told that my safety probably couldn't be guaranteed, which was a fair enough response, really, because better safe than sorry, right?

Besides, if I could still hang out with my friends while munching on a bowl of chips, that still made for a pretty fun evening!

Anyway, as Bavarian was clearly a favourite among a lot of my friends, I found myself going back there and after a few visits, I decided to see if there was actually anything I could possibly eat on the menu. At the time, the make your own salad option didn't yet exist so I asked and gave my usual spiel - no dairy, no egg, no seafood, and so on, then asked if say, the mash was swapped for chips in the Crackling Pork Belly, would that cut the dairy out of the dish? The response was positive, already a plus, and the waitress went to double check with the kitchen who confirmed that I'd be alright and bam! I was going to have a proper meal.

I was so excited. Yes, I do love crackling pork, Filo that I am, so I was already drooling before the dish even arrived, but the biggest thing was that I was actually going to have a full meal with my mates at a restaurant. Not just a bowl of chips, or a bowl of rice, or a bit of salad. I was going to have a proper meal, with proper sides, just like everyone else. And I wasn't at Maccas - hurrah!

When the food came, I did my test bites and then finally dug in. The meat was juicy, tender and delicious and that pork crackling lived right up to its name. Normally, it would have come out with some pickled red cabbage and apple sauce but I think that very first time, I asked for just chips, to be safe. Thankfully, since then, I've ascertained that they are both safe so now I get the whole lot.

Now, over a decade of multiple birthdays, work lunches and catch ups later, I still love the place. Heck, since we found out in November that the Rouse Hill restaurant had opened mid last year, my family have already gone twice.

My sister's birthday last year, my favourite dish tucked in the bottom right corner. Yum.

The Bavarian at Rouse has a lively sports bar vibe to it and is very much a meat and beer-fest however, especially in locations like the one in Rouse Hill Town Centre, it can still be a great family friendly place to eat.

For the less carnivorous among you, there is a Curried Veg and Lentil Pie which sounds good. Bavarian introduced me to sauerkraut and my rather addled gut is rejoicing. I also quite enjoy the make your own salad option, often opting for one with spinach leaves, some carrot, mushroom and olives, some added bacon and pumpkin seeds topped up with some virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar on the side. It is a tad pricey, but the bowl you get is also surprisingly huge, or at least they are at the Entertainment Quarter and World Square locations.

Something of an antidote for all the meat.

For those avoiding gluten, aside from the salad, there's only one item listed specifically as gluten free, however if you'd still like to check out the food, they do invite you to check with staff about gluten free options.

Meanwhile, I do have to thank Bavarian for being one of the earliest places to let me change things up when eating out. I actually do recall being surprised at how easily my dish was discussed, then served and positive encounters like that are really encouraging. They make you more open to asking and therefore more open to possibilities.

If you love a good meaty platter, do check them out and here's to allergies not stopping you from getting to enjoy the taste of Bavaria!

Prost!