Kampai pals

I recently re-connected with some friends I hadn't seen in a while and as we caught up we talked about whether we should go have a drink, or eat somewhere. We were in the middle of downtown so there were lots of options! We bounced a few ideas back and forth and then I remembered about a restaurant nearby called KAMPAI Garden. I had been there once before briefly with another good friend to share a lucky peach mojito pitcher at the bar and I remember the ambiance and interior design to be really unique, modern, with a bit of vintage flare. I had noticed that time that they also served food and had wanted to return at some point to try it!

And so, I suggested this restaurant to my friends and it was a unanimous yes!

We were seated by a wall bench that had a real life plant wall above it!

Although a bit blurry here, the neon lights read Edith Piaf's lyrics "non, rien de rien. non, je ne regrette rien."

We decided to order a few small plates to share, and as we waited I checked my phone for no real reason except I wanted to see if I had gotten any emails! Luckily I had paparazzi nearby to capture that exact moment!

We also ordered a passion fruit mojito pitcher to share and for the amount we were able to re-fill our glasses 3 times so it's definitely worth it. It wasn't strong on the alcohol end which was a bit disappointing but it was still enjoyable nonetheless.

I took a trip to the bathroom as one does while at a restaurant and I really enjoyed their choice of bathroom signs. A bit playful and cheeky. One thing I would comment is that the smell of beer was really strong which surprised me, I wondered if they brewed it nearby?

Soon after our orders started to arrive one by one. We had some steamed edamame beans, papas, fried tofu in peanut butter sauce, maple syrup salmon sashimi slices, and shrimp tacos on a home made corn crepe tortilla flavoured with curry. It was a delight! We had a second serving of tofu and lastly ordered a salad to share.

Looking back I think we overdid it a bit and could have been happy with a bit less! I personally was adventurous as I decided to treat myself and put it on credit to gradually pay it off later so I suggested to order more than we needed to! I feel bad now to have done this to my friends!

I would definitely return to KAMPAI Garden to enjoy that tofu, shrimp tacos, papas, and sashimi salmon again, but maybe just 2 out of 4 next time!