The Degustation Dinners of Amandus Restaurant in Vilnius, Lithuania

Posted by Rowena Dumlao - Giardina 5/02/2020

The Degustation Dinners of Amandus Restaurant in Vilnius, Lithuania

For the young chef Deivydas Praspaliauskas, maneuvering through his impressive cooking career in Vilnius means a lodestone of laurels. From co-founding his own restaurant, Lauro Lapas, which became a hit immediately then moving on to another restaurant, Bistrot 1 Dublis and soon after Dublis which promptly became one of the Top 30 Best Restaurants in Lithuania in 2016. A year later, he parted ways with Dublis and started a new project on his own which witnessed the emergence of Amandus Restaurant at the heart of the old town of Vilnius. This restaurant was given the 7th spot in the Top 30 Best Restaurants in no time.

Deivydas Praspaliauskas (source: Amandus website)

At the core of the kitchen is Deivydas Praspaliauskas, one of Lithuania's best chefs and a culinary icon who has instilled the Scandinavian cuisine in his repertoire. He preserves an endless pursuit for new flavors and ideas for his innovative dishes. Respect is a fundamental value that plays a great role in all aspects of the kitchen starting from the team of chefs themselves to the raw materials and to the guests. It's a simple virtue that takes the philosophy of the kitchen to great lengths making the restaurant a perfect place to get that culinary experience. The menu, expressively dynamic, is significantly influenced by the seasonality of the raw materials.

The strength of Amandus Restaurant is their degustation dinners wherein the chef, with the help of his team, articulates his culinary practices and techniques in an exceptional presentation. The degustation dinner (€60) is comprised of 10 courses wherein 6 are choices done by the chef. Every month (first Tuesday of the month), the degustation menu is changed which is primarily due to the seasonality of the raw ingredients. They take place between Tuesdays to Saturdays at 19:00 sharp and ends at 22:00, to be reserved beforehand, and lasts for 3 hours. The culinary journey starts with a glass of aperitif and amuse-bouche with a welcome from Deivydas himself then the dinner commences with the 10 courses. Wine pairing of 4 glasses as suggested by the sommelier is available at €90 along with the dinner.

For the à la carte menu, Amandus has very interesting proposals to try. Starters are between €6 to €9, main courses at €18 and desserts at €5. There is also a short degustation menu at €30.