My boyfriend treated me to a meal to say thanks for helping him out with his recent event, A Vinyl Affair, which was pretty lovely of him. We went early on a Friday evening, at 6pm, as we were off to see a Fringe play at 7.30pm. We were seated on the mezzanine floor, at a table by the window, which would've been nicer if there wasn't a whole lot of scaffolding on the outside of the building, but hey, I won't hold it against them.
I started with a glass of crisp Bortolomiol Prosecco Superiore NV and then an entrée of seared large Atlantic sea scallops, ham hock risotto, confit squid, parmesan and parsley. The scallops were perfectly cooked and the creamy risotto wasn't too heavy - I'm not a huge risotto fan - and the saltiness of the ham with the nutty parmesan was delicious. The serving was bigger than expected too, which is always a bonus. My boyfriend had the free range chicken liver pate, port jelly, onion and balsamic and mini brioche, which I of course had a try of. It was rich but very moreish. He can't eat shellfish, so he didn't get to sample mine - not fair, I know. I also forgot to take a photo of my entrée, mostly because I was pretty hungry.
I ordered a glass of Gladstone 2012 Martinborough Sauvignon Blanc, which was very nice. I'm usually a Marlborough-all-the-way kind of Sauvignon Blanc gal, so I'll remember this excellent selection when I'm looking for a bit of a spesh bottle. This was quickly followed by my main, the pan fried market fish - gurnard - chorizo and crab ravioli, carrot and sage. This was really fantastic, particularly the ravioli which was potentially the best ravioli I've ever had - crab and chorizo is an inspired combination. The dish had sage foam which was very Masterchef. My boyfriend chose crispy skin chicken breast, polenta, corn, smoked pistachio and chicken jus, which was also pretty tasty but to be honest, I was too busy obsessing over the ravioli to take much notice of what he was having. We also had some truffled potato roasties on the side, which were probably unnecessary as the portion sizes were fine, and roasted potatoes were a bit heavy.
For dessert we shared the Whittaker's chocolate marquise, kaffir lime, pineapple, coconut ice-cream and chilli. The marquise was a bit like a cross between a rich chocolate cake and a mousse and it was decadent and amazing. The little blobs of the tart lime gel and the chewiness of the dried pineapple were perfect with the richness of the chocolate, and the coconut ice-cream tied it all together really well.Throughout our meal, the service was attentive but not too intrusive, the courses were well timed and the waitress reminded us what was in each dish as when she brought it to the table. The atmosphere was quiet and cosy and there were mostly other couples dining,
I would definitely recommend Muse if you want to treat yourself to a beautiful dining experience but not pay super crazy prices - entrées are $19-$22, mains are $36-38 and desserts are $18-$20, which I think is pretty reasonable for the quality of food. I'll let you in on a little secret too - it's in the Entertainment Book too! Which is great if going out for a super fancy dinner isn't usually in your budget.
They've just changed the menu too - but don't worry, the ravioli and the marquise are still on there - whew!
Muse on Allen
16 Allen Street
Wellington, New Zealand
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