The restaurant group, which operates more than 40 restaurants across Taiwan, the US and Canada has made its UK debut on Macclesfield Street with a 750sq ft 30-cover restaurant.
The brand takes its name from the Wanhua district of Taiwan, also known as Monga, which is often referred to as the birthplace of Taiwanese culture. The Monga Fried Chicken logo features Taiwanese TV host and celebrity Nono, who created the brand alongside the declared ‘King of Taiwanese fried chicken in the South’, Mingdao Liu.
The Chinatown London site offers the brand’s range of Taiwanese fried chicken with five flavour options alongside Taiwanese beer. The restaurant interior has a gold, black and white colour palette and features masks of Guan Jiang Shou, a mythical figure in folklore alleged to be the guardian of the King of Inferno in Taiwanese Buddhist tradition.
“We are thrilled that Monga selected Chinatown London for their first restaurant in the UK. We regularly travel to China and the surrounding region to find the most exciting cuisines and innovative flavour creations,” says Julia Wilkinson, head of group restaurant strategy at Shaftesbury.
“The opening of Monga represents our dedication to showcase interesting food and beverage trends happening in East Asia, here in Chinatown London.”
Late last year international Taiwanese restaurant brand Din Tai Fung chose London for its first European restaurant, opening its flagship restaurant in Covent Garden.
“Having seen the success of Monga in North America, I wanted to bring this successful Taiwanese brand to London and couldn’t think of a better destination than Chinatown London,” says Dragon Chan, European master franchisee of Monga.
“We are delighted to sit alongside many leading Asian restaurants and bringing the West a flavour of the East.”