Last Friday marked the first anniversary of the Japanese restaurant Kampai at Aerocity, the new dining hub of Delhi NCR, and so we decided to pay the place a visit. Though a week day the restaurant was fully packed and busy with a large group throwing a farewell party, couples out for dinner and more. For weekends, Nitin Bhardwaj, Executive Chef, Kampai, who has been cooking Japanese cuisine for the last 17 years, says that the number usually doubles.
Known for its authentic Asian cuisine, luxe ambience and a well-stocked bar, we settled down to enjoy the gastronomical journey which started with a glass of Sangria Red. It was every bit festive, fruity and fun, and accompanied with a platter that included a cup of warm mushroom soup (Shiitake No Sumashi Shiru) and sea salt edamame. The soup is perfect for the onset of winter season with its tempting flavours of burnt garlic, mushroom, garlic and butter.
Next, we tried Brie Cheese Tempura. Crunchy on the outside with a cheesy inside, the Smoked Brie cheese was plated with miso berry glaze. “This is seasonal as during summers we used jamuns in place of berry. In winters we also use a lot of root vegetables including, black and orange radish and even golden carrot in salads and stir fries,” informed Chef Bhardwaj. If you’re a fan of cheese, nothing can go wrong here.
Of course,there has to be sushi. Chef special Aburi Salmon roll has torched salmon with Philadephia cheese slowly melts in your mouth leaving an aftertaste of the cheese. The Caterpillar roll was exquisite which was the perfect combination of avocado, asparagus and cucumber with mayo. It is a mix of flavours, the roll was mild, sweet and chewy.
For main course, we tried Tori Katsu Curry with Panko fried chicken accompanied by Japanese style curry served with steamed rice. The chicken pieces were fried with light spices mixed well with the thick curry and steamed rice. For the vegetarians, there’s fired potato instead. On the side, we had Buta Shogayaki (Shoga means ginger and yaki means grill or fry), thin sliced, bite-sized pork pieces marinated in ginger-flavored sauce.
For dessert, we had Green Tea Opera Cake that has layers of green-tea sponge and matcha buttercream. It wasn’t too sweet was a perfect ending to the evening.
Timings: 12:00pm-11:30pm
Price for two: `3,500
At: Worldmark 1, G-02, Aerocity