Perth Food Review

C elebrating a special occasion, we decided what better way to celebrate than a return visit to Restaurant Amuse.. 9 course degustation menu with a few bottles of fine wine..

Arriving there, we first realised that the construction on the place has been completed. As you enter the door, the bar is just up ahead on your right. A few tables were seated on your left, just before the main seating area. The kitchen has also been sealed off, whereas before you got a clear view from the dining room. We started off with some champagne whilst the staff confirmed we were all having the 9 course degustation menu.

Amuse bouche - Pumpkin foam with crumbled goat's cheese and sage bearnoisette
This was an absolute delight. The foam was packed with savoury sweetness, perfectly seasoned and the texture was beautifully light. The goat's cheese cut right through the subtlety of the pumpkin flavour and the aromatic bearnoisette just completed it. Perfect way to warmup the tastebuds.

1ST COURSE - Scallops, sea urchin and caviar
The scallops were incredibly fresh and sweet. Across the dish was a streak of seaweed emulsion and the sea urchin was incorporated into a sauce that was lightly dribbled over a tiny crop of seaweed salad sitting on the scallops. As soon as you taste this dish, you know it has been well thought out. The sweetness of the scallops, the saltiness of the caviar, the slight acidity in the salad, which also provided a crunchy overall texture to the dish. The sauce made with the sea urchin and the seaweed emulsion finished off a dish that truly tastes good. Fresh ingredients served to complement each other in the best way possible.

2ND COURSE - Quail, mushroom and chestnut
As good as this was, it turned out to be my second favourite dish. A breast of quail, sitting on beautiful sauteed mushrooms with a creamy veloute streamed over it and two enoki mushrooms sitting atop. The quail was perfectly cooked. Absolutely perfect. You're gonna hear this word a lot in the rest of the review.

3RD COURSE - Suzuki Mulloway, spring vegetables and Comte
The suzuki mulloway (which is a seabass I think) was succulent, sweet and perfectly cooked. A warm and clean dish that fits just right between the last and next dish. Reminds me of home cooked meals of steamed fish. Apparently the japanese have different names for different fish sizes (age groups), like hamachi for a young fish, hiramasa for a mature/adult (I think) and something I couldn't remember for the extra large ones.

4TH COURSE - Duck and foie gras parfait, orange and honeycomb
This was my favourite dish of the night. The parfait was excellent - it had great flavour, perfectly seasoned and the creamy, buttery finishing of foie gras. It sat on a blood orange reduction, and on top of it lay a crusty sweet honeycomb cracker. I think it was at this point we realized the excellence of technique and execution of the dishes. Ten out of ten!

5TH COURSE - Pigeon, rhubarb, liquorice and baklava.
This was like a deconstructed trio of pigeon.. sort of. Dribbled generously with a foam sauce there was the liver sitting on the baklava that I distinctly remember as it was heavily scented with coriander seeds or something of the like. In the middle the thigh region sitting on a rhubarb paste. I couldn't remember to save my life what was on the left. Oops... Anyway, the bird was really well cooked. Flavourful, and gamey with a red, medium center.

6TH (Main) COURSE - Choice of [Wagyu tri-tip, pickled beetroot gnocchi and horseradish] or [Pork belly, black pudding cromesqui and compressed apple]
The wagyu tri-tip, we were informed, was the region running along the underside of the sirloin, and the cut apparently chosen for its flavour. On one side of the plate was a thin layer of smooth pickled beetroot puree and the beef was served with some pan fried gnocchi, peas and broad beans. The beef was cooked medium rare, and does pack a bit of flavour. The pork belly was just as good, after having been cooked for 18 hours we were told. The black pudding cromesqui was awesome, and was breaded with japanese panko breadcrumbs. A great twist on your classic pork with apple sauce. If I may say again, the black pudding cromesqui was absolutely "yum"..!

Palate cleanser - Clementine compote, with a sort of light bergamot meringue

7TH COURSE - Mauri Taleggio, fig and raisons
The cheese was beautiful, it had a really strong smell to it. The flavour was very creamy and mellow, and it went perfectly well with the fig and raisins. Not a cheese expert, but I do enjoy my cheese.

8TH COURSE - Tonka bean ice cream, white chocolate soil and olive
This has to be the best ice cream dish I have ever had. If you were like me, at first I was like "What..? olive and ice cream... doesn't sound like it would work..?". Oh, how wrong I was. A streak of buttery white chocolate soil lay across the plate, while another streak of dried, crumbled olives ran on the exact crossway and a scoop of the tonka bean ice cream sat in the middle. Tiny cubes of soft orange cake scattered here and there. The sweetness of the tonka bean ice cream, the buttery crumbling white chocolate soil, the subtle dehydrated saltiness of the olives and the zesty, citrus orange cake truly amalgamates into one amazing taste. Yet, you can still enjoy every single flavour and taste of the ingredients by itself. First sweet, then buttery and then a rapid salty sweet hit. Absolutely spot on, perfect, eleven out of ten.

9TH COURSE - Chocolate pave and passion fruit
There is something about the citrusy, ultra-sourness of the passion fruit sorbet and the bitter sweetness of the dark chocolate pave that just works. A small dribble of passionfruit jelly runs out on one side of the choc pave.

Petit four - Pistachio macarons and hazelnut pralines

Service was impeccable, the staff knew the menu extensively the ingredients as well. Drinks were topped up appropriately. We had a discussion about the atmosphere, and how its simplicity seemed to allow you to focus just on the food and the flavours and colours on the plate.
In a nutshell, this has to be the best dining experience I've had. Undoubtedly. Spot on and cooking. Perfect execution of dishes, each and every one extremely creative and well thought out. Superb flavour complementarity. This is the definition of fine dining. Restaurant Amuse deserves another visit in the very near future. I'd go back tomorrow. I once said Cream had the best food in Perth. Well, Restaurant Amuse has proven me wrong. If you haven't been to Amuse yet, you really should not delay it. Also, we were informed that the menu changes monthly (How awesome is that..?!!)

$110 for 9 course degustation menu; $170 for 9 course degustation with paired wines.

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