Our group of 6 all ordered pho. While the bowls were big, it was mostly soup and noodles, the cheap ingredients. The portion of meat was tiny. The beef pho had maybe 3-4 small pieces of beef. My vegetable/tofu pho had exactly TWO cubes of fried tofu. TWO!!! Not authentic, doesn't taste great, extremely bad value, but for a $10 meal on the Vegas strip, it's hard to do any better (short of going to a food court). Its prime location right on the casino floor lends itself to a huge line around dinner time, despite the poor value and quality.
OPTIONS:
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negative

What better way to celebrate a friend turning 30 this weekend than hit up The Breakfast Club right?! Well those were our thoughts exactly so on came the leg warmers and the tacky scrunchies and off we went to experience 1980 once again! The venue was obviously trying to cash in on the Speed Street crowds as it charged us a whopping $10 to park our cars ....and then another $7 (for girls- more for guys) to get in! I can completely understand charging for parking if we weren't entering their bar to spend money- but they obviously weren't out to please customers. So I walked in the door after spending $17 expecting at least maybe a break on the drinks -WRONG. This was definitely not the 80s as they accounted for inflation big time! This was more/as expensive than even some of the trendier clubs in Charlotte (and nothing can be said for quality by the way). I ordered a red bull and (well) vodka - $8! .... We excitedly exclaimed we were celebrating a special Bday night but the bartender did nothing to make it special or exciting and actually gave us really bad service! I have to say my breaking point was when I attempted to get some water for myself and my friends to which I was rudely told they only had bottled water. I mean seriously?! How irresponsible is that to serve alcoholic drinks and then not have a glass of water available! Around 12:30 I wanted to close out my tab and literally waited (trust me I kept track) twenty minutes. I can understand if for whatever reason it is packed and there is only one bartender - but they had two bartenders and a bar back (who couldn't even bother to acknowledge my presence) and the place was fairly empty! I have worked in the service industry through college and trust me when I say I can empathize in almost any situation but I had had enough. When the bartender went to another group who had just walked up to the bar instead - (thankfully they pointed out that I had been waiting long before them...even though I know he saw me) ...he was not a good bartender. The ONLY redeeming quality (hence the two-stars) was the music and the theme of the venue itself. Unfortunately that wasn't enough to save them in my eyes, as I will NOT be returning.
OPTIONS:
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negative

I had not been to Kampai in a while when I went for a birthday dinner on November 30th. Imagine my surprise to discover it was under new management (I should have read the recent reviews first). I was a fan of Kampai because it was possibly the most authentic Japanese restaurant in Phoenix. The decor hasn't changed (which, frankly, could use some refreshing, like the seat cushions in the booths are sagging, but overall, is still quite serviceable and even charming), but the menu has changed radically and now includes an almost encyclopedic collection of "maki" sushi (sushi rolls), most of which seem be to calculated to appeal to western tastes. Think Philly and California rolls (along with Caterpillar rolls, Arizona rolls, etc.). Yes, you can still get sushi by the piece, but not sure if I'd bother, they didn't even have tamago (egg omelet) and the surf clam (both nigiri) we had fell apart. Perhaps they should stick with chirashizushi instead of nigiri. I also didn't think the sushi rice was well prepared or that the fish was properly chilled (it seemed a tad warm). I was not impressed. Along with the sushi we also had a cucumber and seaweed salad (actually, sunomono) which was surprisingly good. Compliments, however, to the wait staff as they were exceedingly attentive and food and drinks were served with a smile and promptly. The staff is probably what stopped me from leaving too quickly (the staff under previous management was always warm and welcoming and I miss them). Now for the food coming out of the kitchen: Another delightful surprise, it was well executed. It was obvious to me that the tempura recipe was slightly different than previously, but it was well done and not greasy. A few details were off-putting, though, there was no gobo root in the vegetable mix and far too many slices of potato, and this time, pieces of chicken, too, which were a little stringy, I'd rather have had an additional shrimp (the large prawns were cut in half lengthwise and served in individually making the serving seem more generous than it was). Also since the new management, the prices have risen rather steeply: Una-ju (eel over rice) is up sharply and several other items went up as well. Given recent economic times and the rise in restaurant prices, I'm not sure this is entirely fair, but some of the prices went up rather surprisingly high. It is easy, with drinks, to run to over $30.00 per person. The new restaurant menu is all over the place: It appears that the new owners have tried to keep the core menu, but other additions make it seem disorganized, as if they are trying to please too many. The new menu has Fried rice, bulgogki, tempura, nabeyaki. Fried rice? And, yes, something like an encyclopedia of sushi rolls (2 pages worth). I went to Kampai because it reminded me of restaurants when I was in Japan. It was not striving for fusion or pan-Asain cuisine, or tons of novelty - a new dish now and then, fine, but was a solid example of quietly typical Japanese cuisine; quality classic food and an intimate atmosphere rather than catering to western ideas of what sushi and Japanese food "should" be or giving into food fads. I was always gratified to see members of the local ex-pat Japanese community eating there. And now I don't know where to sate my addiction to Japanese cuisine. Any recommendations greatly appreciated, as I don't know if I will be back to the new Kampai.
OPTIONS:
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negative

Do not confuse the 5 stars for fine dining. You won't get that here. What you WILL get is really yummy food and great service in a clean environment. It's burgers (and sandwiches) and eggs people! I ordered a pastrami sandwich meal. Yeah, it cost around $10 but I took half my sandwich home and my kids ate half my fries AND I walked away stuffed! My 10 and 12-year old split the French toast deluxe and could barely finish it. I admit, I tried the French toast, covered in butter and cinnamon sugar and it was very tasty. All the people I encountered were super nice and helpful. I cannot believe that I've been this close to such awesome food and haven't been there before. I will be making this my go-to place when I need quality comfort food in a hurry!
OPTIONS:
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positive