MonGa Café — Restaurant in Bellevue

Wanted to try a new place for dinner and saw this place during our last trip to Swish Swish. We told ourselves we would back to try it. We were feeling Taiwanese food and shaved ice dessert, but didn't want to have to go to Chinatown for Hardwok Café. Was initially drawn to this place for all the rave reviews (and pictures) of dessert.

SHAVED ICE and Mochi Rice Balls... a MUST try. But I'll get to that eventually. For dinner we ordered from the combo menu, (first page on the menu, can't miss it). After much deliberation we decided on C2 - Zeitgeist Combo (Beef Noodle Soup) and C3 - Zen Combo (Yang-Chun Noodle Soup). Each combo came with 2 appetizers so we choose the following: Braised Bamboo Shoots (Spicy), Pickled Cucumbers, Braised Pig Ear (Spicy), and Braised Tofu. Because we were so indecisive the lady who waited on us threw in an extra appetizer - Kimchi (spicy). We also ordered a Pork Burger to start everything off, so long story short we had A LOT of food.

Pork Burger (Snack Section) - Pork Belly was pretty fatty (but that is to be expected), melt in your mouth, all placed on a steamed white bun with peanut sauce. Braised Pig Ear - Spicy, but I am a wuss when it comes to spicy, a must try for those who are feeling adventurous. Braised Tofu / Bean Curd - one of my favorites, but I am a huge fan of tofu.

C2 - Beef Noodle Soup was very flavorful broth, we added one star spiciness for an added kick. Beef was tender, perfect with the noodles and broth. C3 - Yang-Chun Noodle Soup was opposite of the Beef Noodle Soup. Clear, clean tasting broth. Simple noodles and few pieces of vegetable along with Green onions. Very comforting, I enjoyed this dish, especially since the weather was rainy and soup is always good on a cold day.

Now on to the good part, DESSERT! As we reached the end of our soup bowls, our tummies were 90% full. We couldn't even finish the appetizers, and had to box them up to go. But we ordered a small shaved ice anyways. For our 3 toppings we picked: Red bean, Glutinous Rice Ball and Flan. The flan is a must have, it was huge and we were able to cut it up and have a bit in every bite. The only downfall was that there was tons of ice. We had to take off some toppings, put them in bowls, mix it up and let the ice melt down a bit. Condensed milk was also added, which is definitely a plus. Overall, really satisfying. Not as good as Din Tai Fung, or Hardwok, but cheaper and excellent if you're not looking to wait! We wobbled out of the restaurant, very full and tummies happy. We came in and it was a bit slow, but service was awesome. Everyone was very friendly. We...

[Not kid and family friendly] This place is not friendly to toddlers and family with kids: 1. there is no family restroom, changing table is within a public shared restroom, super unfriendly to toddlers; 2. there is a Taiwanese waitress who is super unfriendly and bossy.

We’ve been here several times but it was always unpleasant when we had that waitress. We were easy going people so we didn’t care much, just give her less tips. But today she went across the boundary. We decided to never go there and give our honest 1-star review here. Here is what we experienced: when we took our 1-year baby in, she brought in a booster. We wanted a high chair. She claimed that “a booster is good based on my experience”. We insisted then she gave up, and her semi-smiley face also turned cold. She always tried to control and influence other than just serve. During the meal, we went to the front desk asking for extra spoons etc while the baby dropped it, she asked us to return to the table waiting instead of giving it right to us. She just wanted people to follow her order. Then I requested the check and a box to go, she went directly to the neighboring table and gave us a “stop” unfriendly gesture. After the meal, our baby pooped so we went to use the restroom. There is no family restroom. I was holding my baby at the door while my wife was preparing the cleaning stuff inside. This waitress again came to ask me not blocking the way TWICE while ironically no one is outside waiting, TWICE! I was hoping she would come front to help, instead, she came to show her bossy order. I was super annoyed asking who is her manager. She said she is the boss so stop me to escalate. If that’s true, no wonder this restaurant has such unfriendly culture. She just has no empathy, not honest, and is a bossy person. I’m not recommending any family with kids visits here, if you want to be served instead of being bossed around...

Food is good but the attitude of the waiters/ waitress need to change. I understand your business has enough customers and do not need more. Wouldn’t you guys be kinder to the people paying to sustain your business? Anyways me and my wife and two other friends was here to have lunch and I brought a small birthday cake just to surprise my wife. We bought over 80 bucks worth of meals dining in. One of the female staff walked over while cleaning up our plates (didn’t even ask if we are done) then gave me a stern look, and said “no outside food, and walk away. Well a typical American diner or any other establishment would have first greeted my wife and wish her happy birthday or so, hell, they would even give discounts). But no not here at Monga, you essentially look down on Customers and think lowly of them. This type of behavior / business ruins people’s mood. I do not recommend going here to this restaurant if you want good customer service! If you don’t care about customer service, go ahead and give them your hard earned dollars. Food is also subpar, cooks looked like they do not enjoy their work (understand it’s food service, I’ve been there done that for 10 years but never gave customers ill-treatment like them, always treated them great coz u never know what is going on with their day). I’ve had better Taiwanese food and customer service at other establishments. I gave tip anyways even though feeling disappointed with the staff’s behavior. Oh also they do not allow your party to be seated if even one person is not present (never heard of this being practiced...