MUME

MUME Restaurant: A Panoramic Fine-Dining Experience of Modern Chinese Cuisine

The new MUME panoramic restaurant offers a modern take on Chinese cuisine from Michelin-starred chef Jackie Woo, located on the 90th floor of the Federation Tower in Moscow City. It's a place to immerse yourself in the atmosphere of the Middle Kingdom.

Upon entering the restaurant, guests are immediately captivated by the unique atmosphere of MUME. The floor, made of natural marble, features a pattern of sunbeams with brass inlays, reminiscent of the restaurant's floral logo. From the entrance area, with its onyx bar carved in the shape of the Chinese character "Mei Hua," guests embark on a symbolic journey from the spring awakening to the appearance of a juicy plum. The bar area features custom-made plush velvet armchairs adorned with delicate floral embroidery, as well as a panel depicting a mountain landscape, evoking the art of calligraphy. Glossy red lacquered panels frame imposing columns with handmade clay tiles in the shape of dragon scales, some of which are glazed with gold. The restaurant also showcases vintage and significant items belonging to the Zhao family, the owners of MUME, such as a collection of crystal decanters or antique family heirlooms, accessories, and books displayed on high shelves.

The interior design was created by the Hot Design Folks studio from Singapore, and it is filled with interesting details. The recognizable features of a "view" restaurant in the ethno-tech style – biomorphic furniture, sophisticated professional lighting, and panoramic windows that fill MUME with light and air – give the project a modern feel. The natural tones are combined with a festive red and noble gold, in the best traditions of Feng Shui.

The heart of the new restaurant is the open kitchen, a domain of Michelin-starred chef Jackie Woo. Peking duck ovens, woks, steamers, and grills are surrounded by traditional materials and finishes, while the walls are lined with a mixture of rectangular bricks and clay tiles. The tables were custom-made to accommodate the kitchen equipment, and key seafood dishes are displayed on a Spanish Emperador marble counter.

When creating the menu, Chef Woo drew on his extensive experience and work in iconic restaurants and hotels in the Asian region, particularly in Hong Kong. The Hong Kongers' love for crispy dishes is reflected here in shrimp and caviar toasts, fried eggplant, and charcoal-grilled tofu. Appetizers include braised seafood with tofu and a spicy crab soup. One of the most interesting sections is the Barbecued, which is an important part of the menu at the Michelin-starred Duddells restaurant, where Chef MUME earned his Michelin star. Here you will find Cantonese-style pork with honey, grilled ribeye steak in the Singaporean style, and Hong Kong-style filet mignon. Peking duck is offered as a set of three servings, not only as the duck itself for four people, but also as a toast with crispy duck skin and mango, and duck mince stir-fried in a wok with scallions.

As a chef from Hong Kong, Jackie Woo, who is in charge of the kitchen, favors seafood. The main courses at MUME include crispy sea cucumber stuffed with shrimp, in a lobster and caviar sauce, and fried sea bass with ginger and green onion foam. There are also meat dishes: the chef fries the beef tenderloin and serves it with potatoes and a honey and black pepper sauce, and lamb ribs are also fried in a wok in the Hong Kong style.

In addition to the original presentation of Peking duck, the restaurant's signature dishes include Cantonese specialties such as dim sum. At MUME, traditional Chinese steamed dumplings are filled with a variety of fillings: a mixture of shrimp, pork, and bamboo shoots, beef with coriander and caviar, scallops and shrimp with chopped sea cucumber or a mushroom mixture and beetroot. Dim sum is also fried until golden brown and filled with beef tenderloin and scallions or lamb with black pepper. They can be served with tea, as is customary in China, for which there is even a whole ceremony called "yam cha."

The elegant and refined MUME continues the tradition of hospitality of the Zhao family, whose first project, Mei Hua, opened in the 1980s, became a popular place for all lovers of authentic cuisine, including Russian musicians and actors. The project was closed in the early 2000s, but it was revived 37 years after the opening of the first restaurant, in the form of the MUME restaurant, where the name still refers to the plum blossom, a popular symbol of the five blessings in China, and the stylish interior on the 90th floor of the Federation Tower combines ancient traditions with the rhythm of a modern metropolis.

The restaurant has two VIP rooms that can be booked in advance, each with its own unique character and unique works of art from the family's collection. The "Blue" room, decorated in sky-blue tones, tells a story through an installation of paper scrolls on the ceiling with poems about plum blossoms, and the gallery wall is decorated with a collection of traditional boxes for red tea. The "Phoenix" room resembles the chambers of a Chinese emperor, with a traditional round lacquered table and a custom-made chandelier painted with historical motifs of rural Chinese life, depicting the harvest season when ripe plums are picked from the trees. The image of a phoenix feather on a decorative five-panel screen is an allegory of the rebirth of Mei Hua in the exquisite MUME. There is also a unique four-meter-high transparent wine refrigerator, which, on the one hand, promises complete privacy to the guests of the VIP room, and on the other hand, creates a visual connection with the main room.