In 1987, the Mekong restaurant opened in a small space overlooking “The Sails”. They had a tremendous opening year serving Vietnamese food to summer tourists that flocked into town. However, local Okanagan residents were not adopting quickly to this foreign exotic flavor. They knew they needed to cater more to the local crowd. That same winter, their head chef enlisted help and traveled solo to Paris, France to study in a Golden Chopsticks awarded restaurant. Shortly afterward, in spring of 1988, The Mekong relaunched with a newly revamped menu serving authentic Chinese cuisine while still retaining a selection of Vietnamese family recipes.
As word spread about the Mekong restaurant’s new Chinese cuisine, business boomed! After nearly 10 years of long line-ups, they knew the only way to continue thriving was to acquire some much needed space. In 1998, they found the perfect new location and they moved into a spacious building on Harvey at Gordon connected to the Kelowna Inn and Suites. The new location seats up to 171 in the main dining rooms with room for rental meeting and event space.
Going into their third decade, the Mekong restaurant continues to serve Kelowna with fresh and delicious Chinese cuisine.
