Champion’s Curry

I love champions curry but it's a bit overpriced for the portion sizes. I was initially drawn in by their vegetarian curry but unfortunately it was way too salty compared to their normal curry.

My favorite dish here is the beef katsu with curry. My partner enjoys the salsa but I'm not really a fan so I'm thankful there's an option to add it on the side.

I wish they had an option of letting me just order the vegetables from the vegetarian option but they don't :(

Really tasty curry and the Hamburg tasted amazing. Beware the spicy version has a real strong kick. Those who like spiciness will appreciate it!!!

Champion’s Curry opened its second location, this one in Orange County. It appears that their original location is in Little Tokyo in LA. This new location finds itself in the Trade Food Hall in Irvine near John Wayne Airport.

They have a number of dishes to choose from, including a few seasonal specials. I went with their classic curry rice dish, ordering the Chicken Katsu Curry. I also got to try the Pork Katsu to compare to the chicken.

Both the chicken and pork katsu are very flavorful and served hot out of the fryer. Their chicken katsu appears to be their main dish, and I do think that it is better than the pork katsu. Both are very flavorful and juicy, but the chicken is even more so. The chicken retains its moisture giving it good taste and texture. This is a sign of good frying. The pork is pretty tender and has good flavor, but in my opinion the chicken is a step above and I would order that over the pork every time.

Each curry rice dish is served with rice (obviously) and curry (I’m shocked). The curry goes really well with both the rice and katsu, and it is always delicious to dunk the pieces of katsu in the curry for extra flavor. I ordered a spicy curry, and I wish I didn’t. The flavor of the curry is excellent and I think they do a good job with it. However, I am not a fan of the spice. I normally like a good amount of flavorful spice, but I was not a fan of this spice. It was spicier than expected, but the main issue I took is that it is a dry spicy that is very potent in terms of flavor. So most of the delicious beefy notes of the curry is hidden under a layer of dry spice. So I think for a better tasting dish, order the normal curry.

There are many other options on the menu to choose from. However, if it isn’t fried or has curry, I wouldn’t bother. That is what they specialize in, so get what they do best.

Pro tip, the Trade Food Hall gets a huge lunch rush from near by hungry office workers. Parking during lunch time on a week day is a nightmare. I’d recommend visiting the Trade Food Hall at an off hour for a better experience.