Former USC Pop-Up Kings Open Art-Filled Muse Restaurant in Santa Monica | Eater LA

"I report that Khayami has converted that popular pop-up into a full-service restaurant called Muse, which debuts on Friday, August 16 in the H.wood Group’s shuttered Mason supper club; the intimate, modern Art Deco–laced room—designed by Marc Ange Design Studio and filled with handpicked art—seats 35 plus four at the bar and will rotate exhibits (opening with work by Joan Miró). Khayami is collaborating with chef Jason Gonzalez and Matthew Rogel as general manager and wine director, and the a la carte menu, divided into four sections, leans on French and Italian classics: heirloom tomatoes with Comté fondue, a lobster pomme soufflé topped with caviar, brioche puff pastry for the table, veal bonbons, eggplant cappelletti, a wild-caught fish of the day with beurre blanc and herby tarragon pistou, and a Provençal-style rack of lamb; the only Southern California–flavored curveball listed is hamachi with yuzu olive oil and Calabrian chile coulis. Expect wine selections from Italian, Spanish, and French makers, cocktails like the Au Soleil (vodka, saffron, clarified apricot) and the Barbarossa (mezcal, Brucato Orchards Amaro, Vermouth di Torino, cacao) from bar director David Gelland, an average spend of about $125 per person, a 12-person private dining room by September, and hours Wednesday to Sunday from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.; reservations are on Resy at 108 W. Channel Road, Santa Monica, CA, 90402." - Mona Holmes