The revitalization of Hendersonville’s downtown reminds me of the downtowns in the Bay Area in California—bright, wide streets, with an assortment of shops, ice cream stores, and restaurants—only without the traffic.

Champa is located in the middle of all of this on North Main Street. We walked in at 8 on a Wednesday evening and slid into a booth near the sushi bar. The atmosphere is elegant with low lighting and red and black decor. The dining areas are spacious yet cozy. Further back is a banquet room for 10-40 people. There is also patio seating out front and ample indoor seating.

We could hear a group of women laughing and enjoying themselves and later learned that this was part of their weekly dining club. They hugged the server before leaving, smiling and joking all the while.

I placed my attention on the extensive menu, which offered both Japanese and Thai selections. We ordered appetizers—larb chicken and Tom Kha soup—buying time to figure out what to order next. These both arrived quickly. The larb chicken consisted of delicate, minced chicken with Thai herbs, habaneros, and lemon juice, all cradled in a large lettuce leaf. The dipping sauce was brothy and dark with a hint of molasses.

I found this appetizer to be both satisfying and quenching. It knocked the edge off of my hunger. The Tom Kha soup was a healthy portion, probably a cup and a half, of creamy coconut milk, chicken (you can also order tofu or veggies instead), red and green peppers, mushrooms, and cilantro. This was definitely a good start to the meal.

Next we ordered our drinks – a pinot noir for myself and the gingertini for my partner, served in a martini glass with thinly sliced ginger speared with a plastic pirate sword. This zingy, yet well-balanced cocktail proved to be my favorite of the two and paired very nicely with the Thai Seafood Eggplant, a house favorite. This dish exploded with flavor and texture. The thickly cut eggplant medallions are stuffed with shrimp, scallops, crab, and water chestnuts and then fried. The caramelized exterior of the eggplant along with the sweet, rich, bright sauce revealed hints of citrus, tamarind, and garlic.

This dish won us over and was the yang to the yin of our other entrée – the Pineapple Thai Curry with shrimp. Half of a scooped-out pineapple served as a platter for the entrée. Whereas the eggplant dish was dark and uniform in color, the curry burst with reds of tomatoes, bright greens of snow peas, yellows of pineapple, and showed off elegant cuts of zucchini and celery. The sauce was delicate and mildly spicy. These two entrees could not have been a better pair for one another. They were both accompanied with a small salad, and the wooden rice bowls lent sophistication to the meal.

Champa is a family-owned business, they get their fish in fresh every other day, and they have outdoor seating to watch passersby. You can also tune into Downtown Hendersonville’s Facebook page to see other events that take place nearby.

Champa
437 N. Main Street, Hendersonville
(828) 696-9800
Monday-Friday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Saturday-Sunday 12 noon to 10 p.m.

Michelle Rogers works with independently-owned, small food businesses at Blue Ridge Food Ventures. She has worked in the culinary industry since 1997. She enjoys freelance writing and exploring the outdoors. Contact her at milyro@gmail.com.