Monsoon Seattle
Vietnamese restaurant · Capitol Hill
615 19th Ave E, Seattle, WA 98112
"As the obvious choice for those seeking Vietnamese food with more of a fine-dining vibe than a neighborhood pho joint, Monsoon serves memorable dishes like catfish claypot and crackly imperial rolls; siblings Eric and Sophie Banh opened Monsoon Seattle in 1999 after immigrating as “boat people,” borrowing money from family, and the restaurant became the city’s first Vietnamese fine dining restaurant, bringing Chinese-influenced Vietnamese fine dining dishes to Seattle and changing the scene." - Eater Staff
"Monsoon is a Vietnamese restaurant with a roof that seems ironic for most of the drizzly year (given the name). But for the few months when it’s nice out, the rooftop at Monsoon is a good place to eat stir-fry and bò lá lốt outside. Basically, this is what it must be like to eat crackly imperial rolls while perched in a tree." - aimee rizzo, kayla sager riley, gabe guarente
"Monsoon has a rooftop? Yes, the venerable Vietnamese mini-chain’s Capitol Hill location has a rooftop, which is not all that high up but is still a gorgeous place to catch a breeze on a warm night. Also, if you are both romantic and a long-term planner, you can get a whole Dungeness crab dinner here. It’s currently available only Mondays through Thursdays, though you should call ahead the day before to make sure they have crabs available." - Brianna Gunter
"For date-night Vietnamese, head to Monsoon on Old Main—it’s a little smaller than the Capitol Hill location, but serves the same menu, with dishes like claypot catfish and crunchy drunken chicken. And much like their Capitol Hill counterpart, they serve a dim sum brunch on Sundays complete with shrimp dumplings, pork buns, and plenty of mimosas." - aimee rizzo, kayla sager riley, gabe guarente
"Monsoon, with locations in Capitol Hill and Bellevue, is one of the best Vietnamese restaurants in Seattle. It sources meat from local ranches and serves Chinese-influenced Vietnamese dishes not commonly found in the area. Excellent appetizers include fluffy steam buns stuffed with duck confit and pickled vegetables or a perfectly balanced green papaya salad. The catfish clay pot, simmered in fresh coconut juice and topped with green onion, is worth rushing to catch before it sells out, and the grilled pork belly is a perennial favorite." - Sophie Grossman
