Ahead of my review of Monsoon—a Yangon staple serving up southeast Asian cuisine in an old colonial building—I did a whip round of my friends to see if anyone knew which dishes to order. My memory of the restaurant was perfectly pleasant surroundings, good service but an unnecessary large and flavorless menu. I was, however, under the belief there must be a handful of tasty dishes that could make Monsoon a good dining experience. Unfortunately, on this occasion, I did not find them.
How off-putting a large and unwieldy menu is to diners cannot be overstated. At Monsoon, it is not only long, but divides dishes into country, rather than type or courses. There is also that worrying “European” section at the end—I never trust a restaurant offering diverse cuisines. The half an hour we spent navigating the menu and drinking beer threatened to derail the whole meal. We decided, in the end, to narrow it down and order from the Laos and Cambodia sections for ease.
We started with Chha Trapp Dott—grilled eggplant with fried minced pork—and Sait Koh Chha Marrik—marinated beef with lemongrass on skewers with black pepper dip. The beef on the skewers was good quality, but I couldn’t taste lemongrass or any other seasoning. The dip was citrusy. The vegetables on the skewers were pretty much raw. The grilled eggplant had a nice smokey flavor, but the pork failed to excite. This anticipated flavor and disappointment when the dishes arrived continued throughout the meal. The fried fish with dill, tomato, and onions tasted of neither fish, nor dill, nor tomato, nor onions. A real feat of bad cooking.
A saving grace was perhaps the beef soup, which had good hot and sour notes and pickled bamboo-perhaps the one discernible flavor from the whole meal. Its sad to discourage people from visiting a restaurant, especially one that has got great environs and good service. But Monsoon’s dishes do not warrant the price nor the calories you pay. If any of you, dear readers, have found a corner of the extensive menu that harbors some actual flavor, please let me know and I would be tempted to give it another chance.
Address: 85-87 Thein Phyu Rd, Yangon, Myanmar (Burma). facebook.com/Monsoon-Restaurant-Bar-Yangon-215941791813872/
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Hours: 10AM–11PM
Phone: +95 1 295 224
