Fancy French at Muse by Gest

A bit late to the party but made a point to drop by Muse by Gest last week as I heard many good things. Opened in Nov last year, Muse is helmed by chef Chin Jin Fah who owns well-known Chinese resto Extra Super Tanker. Muse was set up as a test kitchen of sorts in Seventeen Mall’s cloud kitchen Cookhouse.

The French brasserie style cuisine also goes under the watchful eye of consultant chef Daniel Cheong, formerly from Sage Restaurant. Daniel trained under Ken Hoh who helmed Cilantro Restaurant and later, chef Takashi Kimura who is renowned for his Japanese nuances in French cuisine.

We started off with the Salmon Tataki (RM13) – raw salmon very slightly seared – with garlic, soy sauce and mirin. Touch of salty and sweet, simple in presentation and very appetising.

For mains we had Seafood Capellini (RM18), angel hair pasta infused in prawn oil and generously laden with fish, prawns and calamari. This was da bomb, well-executed and tasty.

We also tried the Chicken confit (RM15) with puy lentils, a classic French dish using chicken instead of the conventional duck. I found the milk and buttery gravy that coated the lentils a bit cloying and too much of an aftertaste, but that’s on me. I much preferred the moist Iberico pork patty (RM18). The vinegarette that came with the Nishiki rice was a little heavy handed so the sour note was more apparent but generally, this dish scored top marks in our books in terms of flavour, texture and comfort eating.

Rumour also has it the Classic Eggs Benedict is supposedly one of the best in town, a well-toasted French brioche with poached eggs and runny yolks, laced with hollandaise sauce and truffle soy. At RM15, this beats any cafe in town so Muse wins hands down.

Other dishes to try include the Pan Roasted Barramundi, Truffle fries and Warm Egg Mullier that’s soft boiled eggs delicately paired with a truffle soy sauce. 

At Cookhouse, orders are placed via the app on the table/ordering station and a robot trolley brings the food to you. Efficient and saves on manpower, but not very unfriendly to seniors who may struggle to understand the app. The other eateries, a Japanese, Bak Kut Teh, Chicken Rice and dim sum shop, also employ the same ordering system. Food prices at Muse are kept between RM10 to RM18, so this alone is a winning formula as nowhere will you get a chance to enjoy French fusion cuisine at these prices.

My only grouse is that I wish the plates were sufficiently warmed up. If you don’t mind the food court style environment to enjoy fancy food, Muse is highly recommended.  

Add: Cookhouse Seventeen Mall, L2-02, Level 2, Jalan 17/38, Petaling Jaya. Only available for dine-in.