It’s been a long time since we had a staff night out, so when it was finally safe to do so we made sure to choose very carefully.
To anyone living in the Stillorgan area, Monsoon is well known as the go-to place for great Indian food and it does a brisk take-away trade (you can check out their take-away menu here ). We even included them in our Taste of Stillorgan feature – so expectations were high!
The first thing any of us noticed on entering Monsoon was not the decor (which is fab, by the way) but the aroma. Wonderful, spicy scents drift around the dining area, whetting the appetite and promising tasty treats ahead.
Manager Arun greeted us warmly and made sure our group of 10 was seated comfortably in the small but well laid out dining area.
Menus in hand, we set about deciding what to eat, and it was a challenge! I was torn between at least half a dozen dishes, ultimately opting for the Chicken Jalfrezi. As a large group, there was a wide range of preferences, so between chicken, lamb and vegetarian dishes we ended up with a good sampling from across the menu.
Before the mains arrived, we were treated to a selection of delicious starters, including the Tellicherry Pepper Chicken, Ajwaini Jheenga (marinated prawns), Kumar’s Aloo Tikki Chat (spiced potato dumplings) and Colaba Seekh (spiced lamb skewer) – a personal favourite. Honestly, we could have stopped at the starters and I would have been delighted.
When the mains arrived, there were ‘ooh’s and ‘aah’s around the table as each new dish was presented, alongside generous portions of saffron rice and a selection of freshly baked breads.
The conversation, which had been flowing nicely up to now, suddenly dropped as everyone of us became absorbed in our dishes. Up and down the table the verdict was the same – delicious.
A perfect balance of heat and flavour meant we could enjoy the full depth and complexity of each dish without needing to cry out for gallons of iced water (although a couple of bottles of Cobra Indian beer made a great accompaniment).
Mains demolished, it was time for that tricky question – dessert or no dessert? Just kidding, there was literally no debate. Servings of pistachio kulfi (a rich and creamy Indian ice cream) were the perfect end to an incredibly enjoyable meal.
In addition to the wonderful food, the service from Alok and Arun with their team was absolutely superb and we were looked after extremely well.
At the end of the evening, all 10 of us left satisfied and swearing we would definitely be back someday – thoroughly recommended!
For reservations and more details on Monsoon, as well as their regular specials, visit them at monsoon.ie
