I had an outstanding five night stay here in May.

Having been open less than six months, I was particularly impressed with two aspects of the hotel. First, the staff really are amazing. Incredibly kind, helpful, and very interested to ensure that you have an enjoyable stay and an even better trip. The GM leads a really strong team, and the front office management trainee (from India) and the manager of the bar both really stood out.

I also found the food to be really very good. I had come from a few days at the Andaman in Langkawi - where the food was generally meh - and I was really really impressed by the quality of food that the hotel was able to deliver. I'm sure there are some challenges sourcing ingredients in Bhutan, but they did an awesome job. In the bar, they've also developed a signature drink, a Chilini, based on the national liquor, ara (its similar to soju). Its really delicious and definitely worth a try. Prices are very very reasonable.

The location is very central and a big benefit of staying in Thimphu, rather than one of the hotels further out, is that you have a variety of places to visit and eat independent of your guide. Unfortunately, there were some issues with the pool leaking, so it was closed for repairs (this was noted on their website).

A couple of very small items that are only meant to be constructive:

1) It would be awesome if they could source decaf Illy beans, which were not available;
2) I was upgraded to a great suite - very spacious (I think the one in the pics above). While the bed was comfortable and the bedroom had a very relaxed/Bhutan feel, I really felt that the tulip chairs, the yellow neon fabric and a few other items didn't really suit the decor of the hotel. The modern look works well in the lobby, but less so in these rooms. The massive lamp in the bedroom also got in the way of the curtains etc.
3) Finally, the hotel has partnered with Keys to Bhutan, a fairly large agency. While the hotel was really outstanding, to be honest I wasn't overly impressed with Keys to Bhutan (information provided, responsiveness etc) in advance of the trip. My driver and guide were good once I got there, but the service from the Meridien was definitely better than the service from the agency... something for them to maybe survey/think about.

All in all, so highly recommended and really worthwhile. People think that Bhutan is expensive, but on a per night basis its no different than a big American or European city once you're there - go, and stay at Le Meridien.