269 Portobello Road,
Notting Hill,
London,
W11 1LR
0871 971 7461
The ViewLondon Review
A long, slim, white space that’s totally symbiotic, Food@TheMuse’s concept goes something like this: four young London artists are chosen to work in its open studio for eight months. Their pieces are exhibited on the walls of the restaurant, from where the artists can be seen at work.
The feel of the art – rich, delicate, heavy etc - is incorporated into the pan-global menu by Tom Kime, one of Britain’s most promising young chefs. Many of the dishes are interactive in themselves, meaning that you decide how hot, sweet, salty or sour (the fundamentals behind the menu here) your food should be.
Every dish we sampled was beautifully presented: we began with Pho Vietnamese chicken noodle soup, which came garnished with ginger, cinnamon and star anise, a cleansing dish that’s traditionally eaten for breakfast in its country of origin, and a beautifully layered roasted prawn and watermelon salad with ginger, red chilli, lime and roasted peanuts.
For mains we opted for an uber delicate rare grilled tuna carpaccio with salted lemon and caper dressing, served with grilled courgettes, aubergines and basil. Tender harissa spiced chump of lamb with sour cherry and cranberries came with green beans and a zingy almond and lemon tarator.
Afterwards we shared an oozing hot chocolate pudding with orange, ginger, dried chilli and freshly baked peanut cookies. The service here is second to none – Gil Reddick, the former face of 202, looks after the front-of-house - and all things considered, the dining experience at The Muse makes for a satisfying and innovative one.