Amadeus Bistro & Wine Bar @ Life Center

I recently went to dinner at Amadeus Bistro & Wine Bar with my parents. We were surprised that this new place that does European cuisine, actually served rather delectable food.

“If music be the food of love; play on.”

Green Peppercorn Steak – contemporary European.. the perfect medium rare

Apparently, Amadeus is all about marrying great European music with classic as well as contemporary European food. Since Amadeus is the child prodigy who traipsed halfway round Europe and back, performing and living life to the fullest no doubt, it’s not hard to understand why this place is named after the famous composer Mozart.

We immediately like Amadeus Bistro & Wine Bar, because of the amount of natural light that hits the restaurant during the day. The place is spacious, airy and is bath in natural light – great for photography and great for just catching up with my folks and chit-chatting, especially on the air-conditioned terrace. We used to be a little apprehensive about going to the Life Center – dodgy reputation and all that – but that’s a thing of the past. The place is spruced up now and a lot of cool, trendy eateries are set to open here in the near future. We noticed that the parking lot is well lit too – much better than before.

air conditioned terrace.. great for chilling out during happy hour and watching the busy streets below

We settle down to lunch, and decide to order our wines from the Amadeus Bistro & Wine Bar’s Enomatic Machines that dispense wines by the glass. We found this a terrific way to work our way through the European wines, starting with the whites and working our way to the deeper reds. Our wines only averaged RM19 per glass but since we knew the secret “password” for the week (if you LIKE the Amadeus FB page, you will be given the password for a 20% discount), it worked out cheaper. In fact, we got a 20% discount on our entire meal.

A respectable selection of 12 European wines..

We noticed some European classics on the menu such as the Turkey Meatloaf, Wiener Schnitzel, Swiss Beef Burger, Lamb Stroganoff , Goulash and the Buerre Blanc Fish Fillet but didn’t have the time to try everything in one sitting, so in the end, we decided on the Stroganoff, the Goulash, the Lamb Ribs and the Steak with Green Peppercorns. For starters we ordered the Smoked Duck Salad and the Duck Confit.

smoked duck salad

A great salad for all duck lovers. The smoky flavour of the duck, the crunch of the veggies, and the zing from the mustard sauce made it a truly scrumptious starter.

duck confit

How can anyone not like duck confit? This is the speciality of Gascony. It’s like a concentration of all that is good, and tasty in a duck.. salt cured, rendered fat..slow poached.. and all the flavours reduced into it’s tiny being. Meltingly tender, and then you feast on its flesh. Served with a piquant dark cherry sauce, you wonder.. What is life, if not duck confit? 😛

lamb stroganoff

I normally have beef so this was the first time I have had Lamb Stroganoff. This Russian dish of sautéed pieces of lamb served in a sauce with smetana or sour cream was super tasty and rich. No complaints here.

Hungarian Goulash

Ah.. the classic Hungarian Goulash.. hearty, fork tender and concentrated with juices and flavours, we were really getting full by now. We also had a green peppercorn steak, done medium rare and it was so good. I think the green peppercorns might not be your cup of tea, if you like your food milder tasting, but I loved the bursts of peppery sting, that the peppercorns imparted.

Rack of Lamb

The final dish, our rack of lamb was served and we heaved a sigh of relief. A great end to a terrific lunch. I think we over ate, but the wine helped cut the grease and kept our appetites stimulated long enough to finish our meal.

For dessert, we had the Sachertorte, which is a chocolate cake with apricot jam in middle, topped with chocolate glaze .. a famous Viennese dessert and of course we had to try it. Apparently many of the traditional must tries at Amadeus Bistro & Wine Bar include the Wiener Schnitzel, the Turkey Meatloaf and the Sachertorte. We had the cake and it just so-so for us.. on the dry side. Next, we will definitely be back for the Schnitzel and the Meatloaf!

If these shots made you salivate, pls help LIKE our FB too! Cheers:)

[Olympus logo]