Flying Monk Noodle Bar — Restaurant in Savannah

I am going to give this restaurant 3 stars. It is not because of the food, which was plentiful and abundant, but the service. I am used to a server coming by a few times and checking on the table, perhaps even making small talk. That did not happen tonight. I am not going to go into who my server was. But, instead I am going to point out a few things that I hope the servers may try to integrate into their service. 1)Ask for appetizers when taking the drink order, or at least bring them up and if possible make a suggestion. My server took mine and my mother's drink order and turned to walk off, without our appetizer order. Make sure that the guest is done talking. 2)Try to get the appetizer plate to the table before the appetizer hits the table. That way the guest can start eating or splitting up the appetizer. At the end of the appetizer course, remove all dishes. If not your table is going to pile up. 3)Try to course out the meal, especially when the guest specifically asks for an appetizer first, then says we will have a soup, and our entrée will be. In my case, the entrée hit the table BEFORE the soup and then the soup was presented. We were nowhere finished with the entrée, and now we have a bowl of soup sitting on the table getting cold as we eat the entrée. This could have been fixed easily by just having the soup come out, then waiting while we eat, clearing the table, then bringing out the entrée. 4)Stop by a few times to check on your guest and remove plates. I started to a stack of dirty plates on the table, before a server noticed it and came to remove it. If my server had stopped by a few times, all dirty plates would have been removed. Also, this is a good time to check on drinks. I had ordered a cup of jasmine tea, I drank the cup and the cup sat empty on the table throughout the meal. If the server had came by a few times, I would have had a second cup of tea, but instead I got to look at an empty cup for the duration of my meal. 5)This could come under checking on your table, see if the guest is done and present their check. I had my check given to me by another server, which also took my credit card and ran it for me. So, basically my server made a 20% tip, for not bussing my table, checking on me, refilling my drinks, or presenting my check or asking me to return.

Again, I do not want to say the server was a bad, but just ill trained. She is probably a hard worker, and her personality seemed genuine. I think she will be a great server, she just has to polish up a few things.

On a personally level, since I had worked in the hospitality realm, I never tip under 20% and usually I tip more. The reason is that I know the servers go through a lot, and that they could be having a bad night, or they are weeded with too many tables. That is why I am not going to mention the servers name. I think she was an awesome person that just needs to polish up her...

Ideally I'd give it 3.5 stars, but no can do. We arrived here around 9:30 on a Friday night for a late dinner with the kids. Service was so-so, I asked for the spices and they never came and I had to go get myself plus no one checked on us until I finished my beer at which point we were ready for the check. My kids had the wonton soup and egg rolls to start while the wife and I split the papaya salad. The egg rolls were a bit spicy and my youngest couldn't finish his, but my 8 year old (who also said they were a bit spicy) ate them and we tried the remnants and agreed...not good for kids. Wonton soup was good, lots of veggies which I would up eating but both kids ate up the wontons. The papaya salad was pretty good, not too salty or sour, but we agreed it could use a touch more heat to make it great.

The kids shared the fried rice which I tasted and thought it was really good and they agreed. The rice had a nice hint of Thai basil but no spice and the pickled carrots were really nice. My wife had the drunken noodles which had a tasty sauce that penetrated everything except the shredded chicken which tasted a bit bland causing it to come up a bit short on flavor. My Na Na noodles were a nice savory dish but a touch one-note for a Thai dish. After I seasoned them with a healthy dose of chili flakes they were much improved. I did notice that the rice noodles used in the drunken noodles and the na na noodles were exactly the same, just a different preparation. If I returned I'd ask if they could make the drunken noodles with shrimp as I preferred that sauce a lot more personally.

Overall, it was fine but not up to my standards for an Asian fusion restaurant. Perhaps the pho is good, but the rest of the menu is pretty mediocre from our experience. If you want more authentic flavors...

I would suggest making a reservation because this place was poppin on a Sunday night. There’s not a large dining room but a good amount of seating. I got sat awkwardly right in the center at a 2-top which was fine but I know the people around me got a good view of how much food I can put down! 😆

I literally couldn’t decide on one thing so I ordered the roasted duck plate AND the wonton noodle soup with BBQ pork bc I’m a fatty! Their ticket times were A-1! My food came out quickly and hot. I let my noodle soup cool down a bit while I worked on my duck plate. So they give you this ginger fish sauce, OMG delicious. I asked for like 3 more sides to pour over my rice. I love spicy so they gave me a small spice rack and I stole all the chili peppers 😀. The pickled carrots on top was a nice element of acid with the fatty but delicious duck. Solid 5/5

Noodle soup- I mean the broth was pleasantly savory, I’m obsessed with fried garlic chips cooked into the broth bc it gives it such a nice aroma. The veggies (bok choy, cabbage) scallions, perfect chewy texture on the noodles and the juicy pieces of BBQ pork. It’s literally one of my fave things to eat on earth.

My server from the get go was so funny and friendly. I noticed majority of their staff are Asian or Pacific Islander which I thought was really cool bc I’m part Viet myself and seeing how the menu has a dish from all parts of SE Asia was super cool.

I legit took my husband here the next day bc I enjoyed it so much. We got the curry noodle soup and chicken dish. Very tender and juicy chicken with that same set up as the duck. Simple but so flavorful.

Anytime I’m in Savannah, I will be eating...