Kai Asian Street Fare - Winter Park FL

By Melanie Courcy | July 15, 2022

We found yet another great dining experience with this week's 'New Restaurant Tuesday', which took us to Kai Asian Street Fare.

The Digs

The place was not difficult to find, and there was plenty of parking. This is not a large restaurant, but is nicely decorated, well lit, and makes good use of the small space. There are 5 tables with a combination of chairs and benches, along with a few bar-height seats. The bar is lined with several awards that have been won by this restaurant, so it made us even more anxious to try out the fare.

The Service

As is typical, we arrived early and were promptly seated. The wait staff was friendly and attentive. Our drink orders were taken as we sat down, and drinks were delivered timely. We did not need to wait long for our orders to be taken, or for the food to be served.

The Tastebud Delights

Much like the size of the restaurant, the menu is small, but had a good variety of Asian style selections. There are wontons, eggrolls, potstickers and gyoza as appetizers. For main meals, there are wings, loaded fries, and a few noodle options to choose from. They also have weekly specials which include items that aren't on the regular menu. We ordered the hot sake to drink. For our meal, we decided to go with their award-winning wings with Mango Habanero flavor, K-Pop and Lock Loaded Fries, and Vietnamese Garlic Noodles. Let me tell you, we were not disappointed!!

The hot sake was really good. It was served warm in a porcelain bottle with a little porcelain cup to drink it out of. There was actually quite a bit of sake in the bottle. It took my husband and I the entire meal to get it all drank! The flavor was very subtle, which we really enjoyed.

The Mango Habanero Wings were huge! The wings were the entire reason we decided to try this place, and they did not disappoint at all. They had just the right crispiness on the outside. The sauce was a bit spicy but very flavorful. I can see why these wings have won awards. I think we found our wing place!

The K-Pop and Lock Loaded Fries were excellent!! Addictive, even. These fries come with Korean Bulgogi Marinated Beef (Ribeye), Kimchi, queso, jalapeno and spicy mayo. This flavor combination was amazing. The fries were crispy, and there was enough topping that we didn't have to eat a single fry on its own without sauce and topping. The Kimchi gave a nice crunch, and the sauce was very smooth and flavorful. As I'm writing this, I'm craving more!

That leaves us with the Vietnamese Garlic Noodles. These were also very flavorful. My husband tasted the garlic straight away, and I thought it had a slight sweet flavor. The noodles were cooked to perfection, as they were not too soft (as some noodles tend to get). And they were just as yummy the next day as leftovers too! Though, as I'm writing this, I suddenly recall that I ordered it with crab. I had forgotten that fact while eating it (both times), so wasn't looking out for it, but I don't recall actually seeing or tasting any crab in it. So, perhaps it was just a mistake in the order? Or the crab was uneventful. Either way, the noodles themselves were so good, I hardly noticed the lack of crab.

The Takeaway

Overall, both my husband and I thought we picked another fabulous restaurant for this week. We enjoyed the food, atmosphere and service very much. Though I would have liked to have seen a slightly larger menu, the limited selection they did have was so good that I don't even mind that. There were non-meat options to satisfy the pasta/veggie lover in your life, and the weekly specials add a bit of choice to the menu. The prices were reasonable, and the portion sizes were decent. However, since the unnoticeable crab was a $3 upcharge, I don't think I'd spend the extra dollars - especially since the noodles do just fine on their own. We highly recommend trying this place and look forward to returning to sample other flavors of wings, try the appetizers, and I need more of those fries!!

The Restaurant Info

Address: 1555 State Road 436, Suite 1171, Winter Park FL

Phone: 407-821-3430

Website: https://kaistreetfare.com