General Notes
I stumbled across Kaia almost as an convenient accident; I was going with a huge group to a Yankee's game but the game got cancelled due to weather. Someone in our group knew the owner of the restaurant, so we decided to come here for dinner, and somehow they were able to accommodate all of us. My first time having South African food; it somehow feels both familiar but also not quite like anything I've had before, almost like a twist on a fusion of many different cuisines. The star of the night was definitely the wine, which I probably drank a bit too much of. The food is also pretty solid; the menu frequently changes so next time it'll probably be quite different. I'd recommend giving this place a try for a different flavor of night out!
Positives
> A big shoutout to the staff at Kaia, who were super accommodating and friendly. We probably had like 25 people in our group and they were able to seat us. Great service, especially with the wine!
> They have a solid wine selection, mostly consisting of wines from South Africa. I had a glass of Chenin Blanc and it was incredible - refreshing, crisp, and somewhat woody. I also had a couple of glasses of a red wine (probably Cabernet?), Sauvignon blanc, and some sparkling wine to finish. The rest were not quite as good as the Chenin Blanc, although perhaps I was getting a little too buzzed to notice the other wines as much.
> Don't skip out on the dessert. That malva pudding is unreal.
Negatives
> It's kind of weird that at a restaurant that advertises itself as a wine/tapas bar, most of the dishes are actually fairly difficult to share, such as the Gatsby, lamb burger, bobotie, and octopus.
Dishes Tasted
- ★★★☆ Lamb Burger -- Lamb burger with kaia pickled cucumbers, sour cherry compote & local Roquefort on brioche. Great burger, flavorful, good cook on the patty.
- ★★★☆ Passionfruit Mousse Cake? -- Not really sure what exactly this was but we had a dessert, somewhere around halfway between a cheesecake and a mousse, with strong passionfruit notes. Good flavor and amazing creamy texture.
- ★★★★ Malva Pudding -- I can't find this on their menu anywhere, but oh my god this was so inredible. Soft, custardy, and with a subtle caramel flavor. Pairs beautifully with the cream sauce.
- ★★★☆ Grilled Octopus -- Excellent cook on the octopus, and well-seasoned. I don't think the specific pairing (kind of like a yogurt/mint sauce) worked the best, but the octopus was still delicious.
- ★★☆☆ Bobotie -- Cape Malay spiced ground beef with egg custard on top and yellow rice and raisins. An interesting dish - the flavor was generally pretty good, but it was slightly too sweet for my taste.
- ★★★☆ The Gatsby -- Garam masala curried pulled chicken stuffed in a portuguese bun with mayo, kaia pickles, peppadews and baked french fries. I actually totally forgot that we ordered this dish, but the chicken was super flavorful. The bread ended up slightly soggy, but I think this might have just been because we left it out for too long.
- ★★★☆ Amerikaanse Buffel 'Mac en Kaas' -- Bison mac and cheese in a cast iron skillet.
- ★★☆☆ Elk Carpaccio -- Elk carpaccio served with peppery arugula, hazelnut oil, merlot salt, mom elize's homemade bread and her sweet mustard. The arugula salad is absolutely delicious, super refreshing. The elk carpaccio is okay, but in my opinion it needs a bit more of a shot of acidity; the mustard sauce by itself is a bit too sweet.
- ★☆☆☆ Wilde Steurgarnale Met Gerookte Paprika en Peri Peri Sous -- The flavor is decent, but the shrimp are a bit overcooked. It's especially noticeable since the shrimp are quite small.
- ★★☆☆ Cheese Board -- A decent selection of cheeses; I didn't really have much but they were flavorful. I feel that a couple were missing some kind of accompaniment though.
- ★☆☆☆ Oysters -- Not particularly well shucked - they were a bit gritty.
- ★★★☆ Fish Sliders -- The fish patty is delicious, and it's also super tender. I would have probably preferred some more textural contrast (e.g. light crisp on the patty), but otherwise an amazing slider.