The western half of Montreal’s downtown lost a reason to go out when Kampai Garden was forced to closed for months due to water damage, but they’ve reopened at the right time of the year for bigger and boozier parties than before.
The reopening means a new look for Kampai, inspired by the Amazon and jam-packed with plants and posh, natural materials. And the beer garden is using its reboot as an opportunity to build up a new izakaya-style sharing menu from Antonio Park combining cuisines like Szechuan and Thai.
Cocktails served at Kampai Garden. Right: The crispy chicken dish served at Kampai Garden.Kampai Garden
That means that, along with a refreshed cocktail menu with Asian twists on classics like a Japanese Smash with sake, shiso and Thai basil, or a roasted coconut highball, there are a lot of new and huge things to eat: ribs of teriyaki beef that weigh more than a kilo, dumplings served on bamboo towers, cacio e pepe made with udon and miso, and crispy, fluffy katsu salmon bao buns.
They’ve also expanded. While the space can now seat 200 people with a total standing capacity of 650, in the summertime they’ll be opening two new terrasses, one in the front on rue Sainte-Catherine and another in the back under century-old trees.
The Kampai Garden bar. Right: Loaded fries served at Kampai Garden.Kampai Garden
Coming from A5 Hospitality — a.k.a. Alex Besnard and PJ Goupil — who are also behind Montreal spots like Jatoba, Apt200, Mayfair, and Flyjin in Old Montreal, this spot inside the Faubourg Building is back and primed for Christmas and New Year’s Eve parties with new jungle vibes, a hot menu to eat and a cooler drink menu to knock back.
Kampai Garden
The interior of Kampai Garden.
Kampai Garden
Price: Sharing plate from $4 to $24, main dishes from $5 to $95
When: Tuesday and Wednesday from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m., Thursday to Saturday from 5 p.m. to 3 a.m.
Address: 1616, rue Sainte-Catherine O., Montreal, QC
Editor's note: A previous version of this article used images from 2021. We've updated the article with images from 2022.
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