Mai Kai Kava Bar in Gainesville - Phone Number, Reservations, Reviews

Interesting little place with many options of kava, cbd, delta and more.

Very cool atmosphere and Dan the Kava tender was great

My go-to tea bar on my drives from Tampa to Tallahassee. Perfect ‘pit-stop’ to refuel with friendly service & delicious, energizing tea. See ya next time!

Was there 12/28/2023 stopped while driving through in the afternoon and was not impressed and the tender was RUDE AF. if I'm driving through again will not go back. In response to the owners response of my review. I asked for coffee or tea as well as a smoothie. The tender was rude I asked my fiance to leave and we can find another place but he wanted to try this place. And he did not enjoy the drinks he ended up getting sick and I had to take him to the emergency room for food poisoning they tested the drinks and found that that was the cause. So I'm sorry that you don't discipline and train your employees to answer customers questions without attitude. So no we will never be back to your establishment even though we do drive through Gainesville quite often. Know the facts before you post false claims as a response.

Yummy teas, wonderful staff, and a creative menu!!! ❤️

Tasty Beverages & Friendly Staff. We were visiting from St. Pete, FL. This was a lovely find so far from home. The Kava Community is So Welcoming Regardless of Location

First class chill establishment, with awesome atmosphere, really cool people, amazing original artwork, fun retro gaming and movies, good music and relaxing connections!

Love this place! It’s a great, relaxing environment with a friendly, laidback customer base. The kava and Kratom are good, and so are the various infused cocktails and shakes. However, I do recommend a wider selection of syrups and sweeteners. The trash left in the front all the time is also a little bit of a turn off.

Always friendly service. Kava bars are such a great place to interact with people in a non intoxicating environment. I would recommend everyone try it.

This was my first Kava experience. The bar tender was personable and helpful in offering suggestions.

They have the best Kava in Gainesville. The Kavatenders always are polite and make you feel welcome. I definitely love going to the different events with my friends. Always a good time out, especially listening to everyone on open mic night and trivia night is always a blast. Highly recommend Mai Kai Kava bar in Gainesville if you are nearby but it’s also worth the drive even if you aren’t. Everything from the service, to the drinks right down to the atmosphere and events is “A” plus!!

. Would suggest having some other sweetening products like honey or agave but atleast with the plain tea you can taste the quality. Will be back whenever I find myself in Gainesville

Good drinks great service. A little pricy but the lady at the counter was super sweet and everything was perfect.

This place is amazing! Been coming for about four years and they've been great the whole time. Love it here!

Honestly my favorite place downtown! They have great drinks, great atmosphere and activities. Personally love their free frow art nights and retro record nights. Heather and Erin are the best people and business owners! 🙏💕

Wonderful environment for studying or hanging out. Everyone, including the staff, are extremely helpful and friendly! I'm happy to have found a spot that takes care in the product that they select and serve.

Great place to meet new friends, share ideas and have meaningful conversations. I've been going to Mai Kai for a little over 4 years and I've met countless people I now consider friends. Erin and Heather have run an excellent venue that hosts terrific events: open mics, stand-up, and of course, trivia (Scott is the best MC in the business). I'd recommend Mai-Kai to anyone looking for a chill alternative to the rowdy bars around town. Come for the top-quality Kava. Stay for the vibe. Bula!

Lovely place! Vibes are immaculate. The service is 10/10

What a great and chill spot. Kava is also an amazing experience- It’s relaxing and calming without any real bad side effects. Can’t recommend enough.

I am a regular here and you can always find chill people and interesting conversations. I'm not a consumer of kava but their kratom is sourced straight from farmers in Fiji and is sold for a good price and can be bought in bulk!

Great atmosphere, friendly kavatenders, and tons of activities to participate in. Video games, art night, trivia, bad movie night, etc. Definitely worth checking out.

Been coming for years. First rate joint.

Fantastic service and wonderful people! Very good vibes!

Mai Kai has become my home! The community here is great and the kava tenders are amazing people. A great place to socialize and study, the atmosphere is 11/10.

Always amazing people and amazing staff. What more could you ask for!

Best kratom/kava and kavatenders in town ✌️

Best kava place in Gainesville!!! Don't waste your time to others. First shell of kava is effective and authentic as compared to having 3 at other local kava bars. Lots of seating inside compared to others. Looking forward to new products to come!! Thank you Mai Kai for your holistic authentic drinks and personalities.

I have been coming to Mai Kai for almost a year now and from the start I have felt at home. The owners and staff, along with the regulars have fostered an environment that is welcoming and inclusive. You can find a wonderful community of people here at Mai Kai. I am very happy I have found a place that I feel at home in.

Surprised I havent left a review yet! This is 💯 my favorite place to be. The atmosphere is relaxing and chill, the drinks are strong amd taste good, theres a wide variety. They even sell bulk! when I first started drinking kava I had so many questions, and the owners are so smart and kind and welcoming and you just gotta stop by!! Stay forever like I did lol

Looks to be a very cool spot to hangout. I bought 2 oz. of KRATOM though (for quite the premium) and was not impressed by the products quality. They say it is tested, but there is no language, or very vague language at best on the packaging to suggest this is the case. It seems to just be their word. Other tested brands clearly list the alkaloid content on the packaging which is what I'm interested in. Saying it's not "gas station" KRATOM isn't really an adequate defense either because these brands seem to have even more testing (or at least claims) on the packaging than I've seen here. After going through their product and questioning its potency from the first times I tried it and switching back to another tested brand I've used in the past I immediately felt the difference in strength. I get the feeling that when they claim it's tested, what they really mean is it is free from harmful chemicals and additives, which I have little doubt it is, but they don't mean it's tested for potency.

Staff was very helpful and nice great products

In Gainesville today and decided to stop by. Awesome environment and love the drink I ordered. Wish they had one of these places closer!

First time I was there. Very nice atmosphere. Staff was pretty cool. Overall it was a good experience.

Was looking forward to trying some of the kava bars in the area. I'm originally from Tampa Bay and we have some spectacular spots there. This place is not all that but if you like overpriced drinks with instant kratom that have no taste other than the kratom itself definitely for you.

Always a friendly place and a good alternative to a bar. Staff and owners are very nice.

Intimate atmosphere, good music, awesome drinks, friendly staff and patrons, and superb pandemic precautions. Nice to find a place that hits all the marks

Great place to go to relax and have a Kava. Great Kava tenders nice people.

The guy tending bar was so friendly, very knowledgeable, and did everything he could to guide me thru the process of my first foray into kava. I would recommend this place for anybody curious or experienced. There was some sort of open mic nite going on, which probably wasn't the best time to need everything explained, but the crowd was totally into it. Will visit again next time I'm in town. My only regret is I didn't catch the name of the guy who helped me so I could mention it here.