Walking inside Camp Curry will instantly take you to a different dimension. Stepping foot in this newest restaurant in Ayala Triangle Gardens in Makati City, you will immediately be greeted by their friendly staff and laid-back ambiance. Every corner of this two-story food house is picturesque from all angles.
From their beautiful interior design to the open kitchen to that huge green plant wall that will welcome you with open arms, this place is an easy favorite for both Makati workers and casual passersby looking for a new place to hang out.
Their cozy vibe and concept all started back in 2007 when Takashi Sato, who has a passion for camping, first opened the CAMP curry shop in Yoyogi, Tokyo. Camp Curry specializes in vegetables; they only serve the freshest and healthiest veggies in the city.
From being a humble store in Tokyo, it now has over 30 campsites all over Japan and Bangkok. Now, they have arrived in Manila bringing in signature dishes that people have grown to love over the years.
I love how Camp Curry pays attention to every single detail in their store to make sure that diners will have a one-of-a-kind camping experience without the hassle of going too far from the comforts of their home. From their light and homey interiors to their cute camping-themed spoons and forks… heck, even their water is inside a camping thermos!
This place is every mountaineer and adventurer’s haven in the city. But Camp Curry is more than just another Instagrammable place.
Camp Curry’s menu is simple and pretty straightforward, but don’t let that fool you. You can mix and match a hundred of combinations from their three different types of curry (which are all made from scratch), loaded meals, BBQ meals, and side dishes. Honestly speaking, I am not a fan of curry. I only eat homemade curry because I find restaurant-cooked curries really bland and weird for my palate. As such, I was surprised after trying out their curry variants.
Unlike other curry restaurants, Camp lets you personalize your dish by letting you choose a curry base to pair with your favorite BBQ grill. Every choice comes with a serving of their fully loaded chunky vegetables containing 12 different kinds of fresh seasonal vegetables.
BBQ Sausage & Chunky Vegetables (Php330)
We got to try three of their dishes to go with their curry variants. The first dish that I got to try was their BBQ Sausage and Chunky Vegetables. I tried the sausage with their Manila Special curry sauce, the Red Bisque Curry. Chef Takashi Sato created this especially for the Manila branch, paying homage to the Filipino’s love for seafood. Its base is perfect for shrimp lovers because it is made with tomatoes and fresh shrimps blended with their special curry base. It has a smooth texture with a hint of spice. It complements the rice well more than the sausage.
If you want to load up on more carbs, drizzle this sauce onto your rice and you will definitely forget your diet. Aside from the sauce, I really like the way that they grill their sausages. They are perfectly cooked with flavors that will tingle every corner of your tastebuds after you take a bite. It is not your typical off-the-rack grocery sausage, either, because you can feel how beefed up it is.
BBQ Beef & Chunky Vegetables (Php390)
After trying out the Red Bisque Curry, I tried the Brown Keema Curry with my plate of BBQ Beef and Chunky Vegetables. First of all, can I just talk about how well they grilled the beef for this dish? The tenderness of the beef and how it can easily be peeled off its bone; it tastes like meat grilled at a bonfire under the stars.
What will take you back to your seat, though, is the Brown Keema Curry. Just like the Red Bisque’s base, it has a smooth texture that easily glides in the mouth after tasting it. What makes this curry different is that it is mixed with minced chicken. I am not at all surprised that this is their bestseller. This recipe is from Tokyo and my tastebuds easily transported me to a camping site in Tokyo.
I also tried the Brown Keema Curry in every BBQ meat in front of me and I swear: it complements every single dish. It actually made me eat more. My ultimate favorite was their BBQ Pork Belly and Chunky Vegetables with this Brown Keema Curry. The pork belly’s tenderness melted in my mouth with every bite, making it easier to eat and digest.
What shocked me the most, though, was their Green Vegeful Curry. It is made with 100% vegetables and gives your usual Thai curry an interesting twist as it has a hint of wasabi. This sauce seriously changed my life. You see, since I was a kid, I never ate a single broccoli in my entire life. I am quite a picky eater when it comes to my vegetables; but lo and behold, a drizzle of this Green Vegeful Curry to my veggies side dish and I didn’t even realize that I had already eaten a handful of broccoli – and not just broccoli; I was able to eat every single vegetable on my plate that day.
Read on for more!
