Here is another restaurant we have had the pleasure of recently returning to. It is always worth while writing about such experiences because I can compare between meals and knowing the restaurant also enables a deeper insight into the establishment.

We were very well looked after by the helpful Tom, who being Irish, has IRA connections and is therefore not the person you would want to irritate. Suffice to say that one of my very few negative remarks last time round was that we were never given the opportunity of tasting our second bottle of wine, while this time, being six at table and having gone through more bottles than I would like to admit, he presented me with a clean glass to sample each one of them without fail.

I will not dwell upon the service, which was simply excellent throughout and which also culminated in a few drinks on the house at the end for good measure.

Here again, having very recently dined and reviewed this commendable restaurant, I will limit myself to highlights for the purpose of this article.

We all had very satisfactory dishes, both as starters and as main courses. Terrone offers Italian cuisine on a refined scale, thankfully well superior to your average and ubiquitous trattoria style restaurant on every street corner, which frankly has long become rather boring and monotonous.

I personally had fritti misti di pesce as a starter, which although not as spectacular as the caponata I had last time round, was perfectly fine. This was followed by a sole which was so fresh that it was literally just out of the water a few hours before. As discussed at table, sole is rather underrated in Malta. Might it be that many Maltese still associate it to Dover sole and are not even aware that there is also Mediterranean sole which is caught in our waters? In any case, mine was truly excellent and cooked to perfection. It’s rather unique taste and texture was very well enjoyed.

Being a hot Summer’s day we all decided to skip desserts and indulged in countless coffees and drinks.

We enjoy Terrone for a number of reasons. It is cut off from the main and rather congested part of Marsaxlokk. Tom’s pleasant skills and abilities are a great balance of friendliness and efficiency and are masterfully adapted to the client at hand. Their food is excellently prepared and often based on straightforward fresh ingredients as is typical of Italian cuisine, but then bumped up a notch or two in very obvious levels of refinement.

They have a rather extensive choice of Italian wines with very little else except local, a concept so prevalent abroad. I am still not sure if this is the right approach in Malta, with our eclectic expectations in wine. However it did push us to sample a rather nice grecanico, which we otherwise wouldn’t have had.

Also at the end I went for several Amaro Lucano’s which I hadn’t had in many moons and which I simply adore. But noting ends a splendid Italian meal better than a quick sampling of grappas, of which they have many. It really is a good thing that my car knows it’s own way from Marsaxlokk to Burmarrad, as there is no way that we would have made it back home otherwise….

There are few things that can lift the spirits of two old and fading men more than being accompanied by four gorgeous creatures on an outing.

So in spite of the stormy weather and the rough seas, we all huddled up on the Gozo ferry with Paul Peter Azzopardi and myself proudly accompanied by four stunning creatures.

We were previously booked for dinner at it-Tmun a few days earlier, however everything fell through at the last minute, compelling us to cancel. So in such circumstances I always make it a point to make it up to the restaurant by rebooking on another occasion. And so it should be, especially when you cancel on the same day when the restaurant is very busy and you know that they have already turned down other tables to retain yours.

Tmun has the enormous advantage of being at Mgarr and therefore within easy walking distance from the ferry, enabling you to leave your car in Cirkewwa and walk across. This makes for a lovely overall outing with two mini cruises thrown in, unless it’s raining that is! And yes it was raining fairly heavily when we were berthing in Mgarr. But in a big stroke of luck our dear friend Julian Boffa happened to be on the same ferry with his car and agreed to run a shuttle service for us between the ferry and the restaurant against two and a half glasses of wine.

We have dined at Tmun for many many years and I have already written a full and detailed review here on this esteemed establishment. I will therefore limit this piece to the highlights of our meal and the more noteworthy aspects of our evening.

Let me start by saying that this was in the height of August and the restaurant was packed and right in the middle of their busiest season. So there very visibly some members of staff who were helpers and who in all probability were just there for a few weeks of summer work and who’s long term profession is definitely not catering.

Having said this, although service was at times a little but shabby, it was still on the acceptable side most of the time.

So as to compensate our staunchly awaiting taxi driver, we immediately went for a Chilean Cono Sur sauvignon blanc, based on a rather strong and misplaced recommendation from the head waiter. It turned out to be well past its best, being a 2013 vintage and had largely lost its supposed greenish yellow tinge to have turned dark gold in colour. Its taste too could immediately be deemed as flattish and decidedly well past its peak.

I informed the server and we then changed to a Chilean De Martino sauvignon blanc 2014 which was much better and most enjoyable.

Our starters on the whole struck a very good average, although I was by far the most unlucky one. I asked for the calamari rings and scallops which turned out to be very overcooked. I was hungry and didn’t want to disrupt the whole table by sending it back and waiting for a new one, so I ate it anyway. When Leli the owner asked us how the starters were and I informed him about mine, he simply ensured that I was provided with another one, no questions asked and naturally without charging me for it. This is what I call problem management par excellence.

All other starters were of a very high standard and one of us had a risotto which was simply of staggering heights and the very best I have tasted in many many years.

For mains there were again various very good dishes and several of us went for their famous bouillabaisse. For me it has always been very simple – Tmun makes the best bouillabaisse in the Maltese Islands and this time was no exception. If you had to ask me whether I have had even better bouillabaisse at Tmun, then I would have to say yes. But it was still delightful. Leli’s son Paul, who runs the kitchen along with his mum Jane, who either work together or take it in turns, took the trouble of coming to our table on several occasions throughout the meal, in spite of them being very busy.

Having had their bouillabaisse exactly 4.85 billion times before, I am somewhat of a self-appointed authority on it and as such I have every right on earth to pontificate about it ad nauseam. I explained to Paul that its consistency and taste was as good as ever, only that it was perhaps a tiny touch too sweet. Also, and in spite of me being anything but a big eater, I could see it every so slightly larger and containing just a couple of extra shells and fish pieces, plus a bit more of the delicious broth.

They very astutely serve their bouillabaisse either as a starter or as a main course and suffice to say that on one occasion guess what I had for both consecutive courses…. yes really, this is no joke! When taken as a starter it is very beautifully severed in a pot which is conveniently placed on your table for you to help yourself, however as a main it is served already plated. Imho if anything the opposite should be done, or even better served in a pot in both instances.

Most of us had desserts which were all of top quality and these were followed by several drinks which never made their way onto our bill, courtesy of the lovely Buttigieg family. for whom I have a lot of time and the utmost respect.

Pure and utter perfection is something that we should all aim for, knowing very well that we will never quite attain it. This was about the least impressive meal we have ever had at Tmun yet it can still be very easily classified as being of a very high standard – that is how good this restaurant is!

It all started with about the longest journey possible in the Maltese islands. From Marsalforn via Marsa to Marsaxlokk.

Having left our dear friend Nicki
fast asleep in Gozo, we headed down South on this seemingly long journey of sorts. Well although I admit that the distance is far less than many people would commute to work on a daily basis abroad, it still took us just over two and a half hours in all. This is roughly the equivalent of flying from Malta to Paris. Is that a lot or a little? I’m not quite sure really, it depends on how you look at it I suppose, so I’ll let you be the judge of that.

After Nicki’s stylish personal extravagance we were meeting Jeremy and Michael known for their vehicular extravagance. For they come with a spectacular convertible Bentley which they somehow always manage to plonk down right in front of any restaurant and which according to them, never fails to draw in passing trade into the fortunate establishment.

Terrone is a very recent restaurant with a very distinctive Italian flavour throughout. You may choose to dine indoors our outdoors and as Jeremy and Michael’s empty promises to stop smoking for the last 15 years have led absolutely nowhere, you can easily guess where we sat.

This was great for us too as although the restaurant is well set back from the water’s edge, you still manage to catch a lovely view of the colourful boats and the bay.

We were very warmly welcomed by everyone there including the very helpful Irish Tom, who kindly drew us maps and wrote down useful hints for our forthcoming driving holiday in Ireland.

The menu is exclusively Italian and is changed every day. It featured a good mix of starters and mains of typical Italian dishes, which all however seemed to include some original ingredients, making it intriguingly and distinctly different from the expected norm.

We had Sicilian mussels for starters which were truly delicious and far superior to those we sampled the evening before. Their taste and texture as well as the accompanying zuppa was of a very high standard.

We had a very simple prosciutto di Soave with baby figs, which was as divine as it was straightforward.

There was also a superb combination of grilled peaches with Gorgonzola and greens with a tasty dressing.

And a wonderous caponata which besides the usual ingredients also had carrots, celery, raisins, nuts and honey. The combination was heavenly and the overall texture was quite firm and crisp, rather than the usual soft expected version. It was most definitely one of the best caponatas that I have ever had the pleasure of sampling.

For mains we had a plain grilled pagel which was a bit disappointing and which did not have the lovely taste and texture one would expect from a truly fresh fish.

Also a mixed fish grill which consisted of baby swordfish, cuttlefish and king prawns served on zucchini and brown lentils with an anchovy and rosemary sauce. This was a very pleasing dish and the pairing between the fish and the lentils was excellent.

We also had a risotto with shrimps, king prawns, zucchini, mint and lemon, which was very finely prepared. The rice too was served just at the right texture.

So with the exception of the pagel the food was simply excellent. Unfortunately we often encounter disappointing fish in many restaurants, where either it lacks freshness or it is not cooked quite right.

The wine list exclusively features Maltese and Italian wines. But at least what it lacks in international variety it makes up for in choice from these two countries of origin. So we went for the La Cala Vermentino di Sardengna of Sella & Mosca fame. It proved to be an excellent choice and accompanied the food perfectly. I enjoy vermentino much more than many other Italian grapes. And Sella & Mosca always tends to be a label of quality.

The service throughout was flawlessly executed both by Tom and by the chef patron’s gracious father. The only tiny hick up we encountered, which I am mentioning because it tends to be such a common mistake in so many restaurants, is that we were not asked whether we wanted to taste our second bottle of wine. I believe that there is still a common misconception that you taste the wine to see whether you like it or not. Similarly some also wrongly assume that if the bottle is a screw top and therefore cannot be corked, that tasting then becomes superfluous.

When you order a wine you’re supposed to know it or at least to know what you’re ordering. That is why a description of each of the wines on the list is so important. You can also ask for details and recommendations from the server taking your order, who in principle should know the wines well. If after all this the wine is simply not to your personal taste, the restaurant does not really have any obligation to change it for you without charging.

You taste the wine to check whether there is something wrong with that particular bottle, such as being corked, or off, or oxidized, or produced badly or even if it is being served at the desired temperature. And if the first bottle was entirely fine there is still absolutely no guarantee that the second one will be too. Hence every consecutive bottle of wine should be tasted and this should always be done in a clean glass.

So back to Terrone where in a very sensible attitude we decided to limit further calories by skipping dessert. We had expessos, Avernas and grappas, which we later realized were offered on the house. Very kind and generous indeed.

I only tend to mention prices when this is worth mentioning, usually when the establishment offers either very good or very poor value. Well in this can it is certainly worth mentioning that this meal including two bottles of water and two of wine only cost a very reasonable €140 for the four of us. We did only have three main courses but I still find this to be very good value.

So we thoroughly thanked our gracious hosts for their good choice of restaurant, before they jumped into their flashy Bentley and sped off into the distance, leaving everyone there gobsmacked in awe and admiration.

Going to Valletta in the middle of Summer is one of the things I hate most. So a little trick I have learned to cheer myself up when I really have to go, is to combine any pressing errands with a nice lunch. And as we all know the dining options in Valletta are now truly endless, so we are truly spoilt for choice.

The Harbour Club is one restaurant we have been wanting to try out for a while now and as we were not too keen to select a relatively cooped up indoor establishment, right in the middle of town, this proved to be the right location, being right down across the road from the waters of the Grand Harbour.

The views are absolutely stunning, with an open vista of the harbour and the fortifications and towns just across the water. Being lunch time however, we did find it a bit too busy and hectic from a traffic point of view, as never ending vehicles were constantly buzzing around us at close range and on both sides of us, the restaurant terrace being wedged right between the main waterfront road and the street leading down from Victoria Gate.

There was also a fairly large table right next to us with one screeching girl there who just wouldn’t shut up and insisted on shrieking out every word at top volume throughout the meal. I did everything to wish on her a quick silencing death by asphyxiation, hoping that every morsel of food she managed to swallow in mid sentence would permanently lodge itself in her nasty windpipe and choke her to sweet death. But alas my voodoo was not potent enough. But then again this is naturally no fault of the establishment.

I must also congratulate the restaurant’s efficient handling of our booking, which I ended up changing three times that same morning, out of pure disorganisation, carelessness and poor planning, entirely on my side. Upon each successive amendment I never failed to receive back unequivocal ‘no problem’s’ and ‘you’re most welcome’s’, a sign of excellent customer care.

We went straight onto the wine and as we’ve already drunk enough sauvignon blanc this Summer to open a small factory, I decided it was high time to vary a bit. The wine list had an adequate choice of labels, so we went for an Australian McGuigan Signature chardonnay, which was soft, round and smooth and perfectly fine. I couldn’t help thinking to myself how we are all led by fashion even in our choice of wine. Until a few years back it was all about chardonnay, while today everyone has switched to sauvignon blanc, although the chardonnay hasn’t gotten any worse really, and is still perfectly enjoyable,

They have a relatively restricted, but very attractive and well drawn out menu, which in spite of its conciseness still offers sufficient choice. I must have subconsciously been in a beefy mood which is very rare, as I instinctively went for the Angus beef tartar followed by a ribeye, while Maria went for mozzarella with aubergines followed by a brown meagre (gurbell).

I simply adore a good beef tartar and also enjoy mixing myself the various accompanying ingredients, usually consisting of shallots, capers, gherkins, raw egg and often several others, adding them to my exact taste. So when it arrived as a premixed slab I must admit I was a bit disappointed. But I am very happy to say that every single ounce or should I say milligram of disappointment instantly vanished the moment I tasted this absolutely divine rendition of a beef tartar. It was truly excellent in every respect and for those who are not over familiar with tartars believe it or not it is not an easy task to prepare a perfect one, as they undoubtedly managed here.

It was prepared with delicious black Angus and was perfectly seasoned with very finely chopped shallots and capers giving it a momentous flavour. And probably the most important factor of all in any tartar is the way the raw meat is actually chopped by hand, definitely never minced, and this was chopped to perfection. It was also served with a smearing of parmesan cream on the side, which deliciously continued adding even more strong flavours to an already glorious dish.

Maria’s mozzarella di bufala with grilled aubergines, smoked aubergine puree and basil dressing also proved to be excellent in every respect. The mozzarella was truly scrumptious and of exceedingly good quality and the entire dish was made up exclusively of very tasty items and was very well composed.

After such impressive starters I often tend to become a bit wary and somehow seem to expect a bit of a letdown with the mains. I find that in so many restaurants the starters are so much tastier and more interesting that I occasionally order another, or sometimes even two, starters instead of a main course.

Luckily this was not the case at The Harbour Club. My Irish ribeye was nothing short of excellent. As may be seen by my choice of starter, I love my meat raw and in the case of several cuts such as fillet I always have it blue. But with cuts having more marbling it usually makes more sense to slightly increase the cooking time, so as to dissolve the fat. So I normally ask for a ribeye to be served rare. This was cooked exactly the way I expect a rare steak to be, perfectly pink throughout and although not rawish as in blue, just about barely cooked at all inside. It was also very tasty and exquisitely seasoned on the outside and topped with a lovely herb butter.

Maria’s brown meagre was first pan sealed, then oven baked. It was topped with almonds and lemon and served on a bed of potato puree. Well astoundingly enough this dish too was simply superb. It was produced to a lovely smooth and velvety texture with fine, delicate wholesome flavours which didn’t fail to impress. An overall lovely fish dish indeed.

More often than not we tend to skip desserts these days. However when having such excellent food then we are naturally tempted to continue the meal for as long as it can possibly last. In this case we compromised and had just one to share, which was a blueberry sorbet, which yet again was delicious. It was dark and intense and creamy and smooth and simply a delight to eat.

So what can I say… top marks for the food. Every single dish we had without exception was excellent and irreproachable.

So I suppose that just leaves the service. And the service wasn’t bad as such, it was just a bit shabby and needs to be smartened up a notch or two. There were three members of staff who served us in all and they were all perfectly friendly and pleasant, even to the extent of being perhaps ever so slightly over friendly, but not efficient enough. I think that they need to decide on the desired feel and slant of the place. Do they want to portray this as a top eatery? Because they certainly have the quality of food to do so. Or more of an informal unceremonious and unpretentious laid back attitude, which was largely practiced by the staff during our meal?

We couldn’t help noticing that one server addressed us and all other clients as ‘guys’, as in ‘hi guys’, ‘ready to order guys’, etc. which to be perfectly honest doesn’t even shock me these days and has become virtually the norm in casual diners. But the only pity is that this place could be so much more. Similarly the movements and the actions and the basics were all there, in the form of nicely designed crockery and cutlery and tableware, elegant ice buckets and glasses, but then surprising enough all of this was sustained with barely bistro style service.

Our wine was never served except for he first glass, and although pouring our own wine is really something I actually enjoy, it is obviously something one would expect at a certain level of establishment. Clearing was slow, as was most of the service throughout. I somehow managed to drop two pieces of cutlery during the meal and nobody bothered to move. It was really a question of a lot of friendless with absolutely no attentiveness, we were served and then left entirely to our own resources. Nobody asked whether we were enjoying our meal either. So this is about as great a divergence between food and service as you could imagine within an establishment.

My last small somewhat amusing observation concerns the toilet. So as to enter and exit this facility you have to walk over an underfoot grill out of which gushes out the hottest and strongest jet of air I have ever encountered. So ladies do not go to Harbour Club wearing a skirt!

I have been hearing many good things about Bouquet Garnie for several years. So as we were meeting friends and I was asked to choose the restaurant myself, I took the opportunity to finally give it a go.

It is a small restaurant with pleasant decor which is intimate yet also quite informal, making for a nice ambiance.

We were very cordially greeted and immediately asked whether we would like any drinks. Our friends arrived very shortly after us and we all went for a glass of prosecco.

The manger, who later also informed us that he is part of the family of proprietors, explained the day’s specials and showed us the fish. They have worked out a very clever and straightforward formula for the fish by pricing them all at €19 per person, or at €25 if you would like them as a platter along with king prawns, mussels and clams. Both prices were very acceptable especially as the fish looked very fresh.

The menu itself however, although quite varied and well thought out, is very succinctly written and surprisingly includes no details or secondary ingredients on any of the dishes.

While their wine list is adequate, they were out of stock on the New Zealand sauvignon blanc which I requested, so we had an excellent and elegant Sancerre instead.

For starters two of us had fresh mussels and two the prawn bisque. The mussels were very good and thoroughly enjoyed. The bisque too, although very slightly on the sweet side, was quite delicious. It was served with equally delectable whole king prawns.

We were all tempted to take fish for our main course. So we had a selection consisting of lipp (forkbeard), spigola (sea bass) and awrat (silver bream), along with mussels, clams and king prawns.

I must say that all was most enjoyable and very well prepared. It was also interesting to sample together and to compare the different types of fish. The awrat which is very fishy and oily, the spigola which in many ways is similar, only a bit less oily and with flesh which has a more tender texture. The lipp is very different as its white flaky flesh is not so oily, is much less fishy and therefore much less tasty, presenting an exceedingly subtle flavour.

All the accompanying shellfish was of a high standard and very well prepared.

So all the food without exception was very good and without fault. Their homemade bread which was served piping hot, was to die for and the best homemade bread I have eaten in a long time.

The service up to this point was also no less than excellent. Besides for the manager we were also served by a female and a male server. The three of them were exceedingly polite helpful and very attentive. One simply couldn’t ask for better service. As I was seated in a corner, they could not pass to come behind my seat, so they were compelled to serve me and clear my place from across the table. I couldn’t help noticing that each and every time they passed their arms over the table, they repeatedly apologized to us for this inconvenience. Now how attentive is that!

But alas much to our exasperation and amazement, all notions of service simply ceased to exist some time during our main course. The male server came along to see if everything was fine, to which we most definitely replied in the affirmative and from that point onwards we were simply abandoned and left entirely to our own resources.

The girl must have been let off, as only the manager and the male server were left to easily finish off the three or four remaining tables. But when we had finished our main course all remained lying there in front of us for at least ten minutes, before I just couldn’t bear it any more and had to summon them over to come and clear our table.

Only then nobody ever came to see if we desired desserts. So again after much waiting and patience we finally had to call them over. We were informed that one of the desserts was not available and we opted for a lime sorbet and a pavlova. Both, but notably the latter, was extremely well prepared.

However again nobody bothered asking us for coffees and yet again for liqueurs after that!

There were times we had to call and call always ever louder to be noticed at all. When ordering coffees and drinks they played that annoying escaping game whereby after each individual item you order, they start to set off towards the bar, compelling us to ask them to hold on three consecutive times to get the order in for the four of us.

This outlandish situation continued to the very end, by which time there was only one other table left. Both of them were very busy serving the other guests and more so clearing and cleaning tables and setting up for the following day. So their priority and full attention was entirely shifted onto getting home as early as possible.

It must be said that besides the restaurant being very quiet, this charade started well before 11:00pm, so it wasn’t like we were keeping them up all night.

We painfully went on to order drinks and were told that a few were out of stock. And I would also like to mention the fact that we were offered a last round on the house.

But naturally we left rather bemused and certainly not from a food quality point of view, but from such lacking service, as well as to a lesser degree their poor stock management. It is very annoying for a client to be abandoned at some point in the meal and unfortunately this great fault is quite common in many restaurants. But never have we encountered such extremes in service during the same meal.

I will start off immediately by saying that this too is most unfortunately another good food bad service story.

I have often read such comments in various fora where particularly overseas visitors have expressed themselves in a similar manner regarding eating out in general in Malta.

However I am not trying to suggest any wide sweeping statement here, especially on this page. But admittedly many improvements to the service aspect of our catering scene are undoubtedly possible.

It is true that several of my most recent reviews have dwelled on this sometimes sad situation, but I am sincerely hoping that this bad run is only a matter of unfortunate coincidences which won’t last much longer.

Santa Lucia has long established itself as one of Malta’s prime patisseries and casual diners. Virtually everything they produce is of exceptional quality, which made this establishment an instant hit.

Since its inception it has remained terribly popular and is virtually always bustling with patrons.

I have been there very often, although admittedly usually for takeouts. I must say that I have often found the staff to be unfriendly, brash and also at times rather snide in their remarks. And this also includes the cashiers.

Just a few days ago I was hungry and had an hour to kill and as I was in that area I decided to stop for a quick bite.

I settle for a beef kofta bagel, which was a delight and at €7 was also very good value for money. It was tasty, copious and accompanied with potato wedges and three different dipping sauces.

I can never remember over all these years having purchased any food item from them which wasn’t darn good. And as many people know, this not only applies to their savoury items, but perhaps more so to their extensive range of lovely sweet products.

The service was very well executed by two charming ladies who looked after me rather well.

I never go to an establishment with preconceived ideas, or to the extent that I provoke myself any particular reaction just to prove myself right. In fact I was so at ease and well past any previous problems that I might have encountered here in the past, that the following incident took me totally by surprise.

Another somewhat younger female server was clearing the table right next to me when I asked her directions to the toilets. She pointed towards one side of the establishment and said word for word “up there” (hemm fuq). So naturally when hearing the world “up” I assumed that she meant upstairs. “As if we have an upstairs” she retorted in a very condescending manner, sporting a mocking grin.

Initially I really didn’t get it and never realized that she was really and truly finding my query amusing. She proceeded in using various illogical adjectives and versions to her directions, always in an exceedingly mocking tone.

I really cannot understand why treating clients in this manner can give so much pleasure to these people. But if I had to guess I would probably assume that this must be a sort of ‘we’re so busy we don’t need your custom’ and a ‘we can afford to piss off a couple of customers as we have so many of them’ complex, which was so prevalent back in the 1970’s and 1980’s.

Readers here know that I definitely do not revel in being negative about any establishment and moreover that I will not even post an overall negative review. As amply stated Santa Lucia has excellent food. Now they seriously need to look at the attitude of some of their staff.

I could easily suggest various effective and persuasive methods. But before risking denting my car bumper and then the suspension on the way back, perhaps some basic customer care training might be a bit less brutal, albeit much less of a relief.

We already had the pleasure of a most enjoyable meal here last Summer.

This waterfront establishment really has a lot going for it. It has enchanting views, especially if you sit on the outside terrace and I simply love the cool relaxed stylish sophisticated beach type decor inside, which has been very cleverly done.

We went for an early lunch as we were told that they were going to be very busy.

What immediately caught my attention was that there was a mini swarm of staff, if you’d excuse my David Cameron insensitive styled expression. It is rather comforting to see a restaurant properly staffed and they most definitely were.

We were offered lovely fresh simple Maltese bread, which should be the norm in many more restaurants, rather than all these fancy breads which are often a disappointment and not half as good. Also a small smart and tasty bruschetta.

We started with a tuna carpaccio which was thickly cut as has now become the norm. I am so happy that things have moved on from the paper thin carpaccio days, when a plate full of this starter amounted to not even one mouthful and in many cases you had to peel it off the plate in small shredded rather tasteless morsels.

We also had a plate of raw but perfectly seasoned langoustine. Both dishes were absolutely delicious and were also beautifully and impressively presented on enormous rectangular china.

For mains we had steamed mussels which, as the server advised, were quite small, but very fresh and tasty and cooked in a very moreish zuppa, which was a true delight to mop up with the Maltese bread. And a spaghetti ricci which was totally splendid. I have had this dish countless times, but this was possibly the best one ever so far! The pasta was very al dente, any more and it would have been undercooked, indicating that it was really pulled out at its optimum time. Unlike many such dishes I have had in the past, where you have rather bland plain pasta topped with a dollop of sea urchin, this was cooked in a lovely tasting and unctuous jus, which most definitely also included the right amount of cooking water in typical Italian style. The lovely texture and flavour of this heavenly liquid made it quite simply a perfect dish of spectacular standard.

As we often do when the food is excellent, we proceeded with desert. We had a sumptuous apple strudel and a delightful Baia Special Sundae which was a decadent concoction of ice creams, caramel, nuts and syrups, just excellent for my diabetes.

For wine we went for a lovely New Zealand Greywacke sauvignon blanc, which had truly extraordinarily intense aromatic flavours of various fruits and also a deep vegetal taste, all making for a crisp but mouth-filling palate. It is firmly based on other New Zealand sauvignon blancs, but it then runs a few extra miles.

And now for the service. I was ever so pleased to see that our service malediction was finally lifted and even totally smashed. We had truly excellent and attentive service throughout the meal. So much so that I could mention a number of very revealing thoughts and gestures which are very indicative of excellent care. We were handed several clean napkins throughout the meal without even asking. When presenting us with the menus again for the desserts, they were already opened for us on the right page. When one of the desserts took slightly longer than the first to arrive, a server came along after a couple of minutes to apologise for the delay and to inform us that it was soon on its way. Similarly by the time we ordered our liqueurs the restaurant was packed and the drinks took slightly longer than normal, however again a server came along to apologise during the little waiting time. Finally when we were given the bill and I simply handed over my credit card, the sever very courteously asked me whether I wanted to check the bill before paying.

These are all signs of exceedingly attentive service, well beyond the norm. The only one small and also amusing glitch, came in sharp contrast to our previous meals where after our main course service entirely failed and it took us ages to even order our deserts. Well here exactly the opposite happened. While my wife was still eating her main course one of the servers came along, cleared my empty plate after rightfully asking me to do so and proceeded to inquire whether we required deserts. At which point I promptly asked whether they needed our table and if we were meant to hurry. However he immediately realised his error and apologised profusely.

To summarise therefore, all of the three main dining factors were excellent – the ambiance and setting, the food, and the service. I would easily say that this is most definitely one of the very finest, if not the number one, Italian restaurant in the North of Malta, offering stunning food.

The only problem we encountered was the oppressive heat, as the entire place is open and therefore air conditioning is not possible. There were ceiling fans which helped, however in the current heat wave it is truly hard to withstand doing anything without AC.

Last but not least, Baia Beach Club is also charmingly equipped with piped music inside its toilets, making for more inspiring pees and poos smile emoticon

We have been treating ourselves to one Mediterranean meal after the other, over and over again. So just for a welcomed change, we decided on an Indian meal instead. And coming to think of it, we hadn’t had Indian simply in ages.

We were meeting our friends and luncheoning companions Jeremy and Michael and as they live deep in the South we tactfully chose an in between location being Sliema. For the uninitiated the Fortina Hotel offers an array of restaurants all open to non residents and although we had already been to Sa Re Ga Ma, this was many years ago.

The setting is both pleasant and also very original for Malta, as it is set, along with the other eateries there, within a very large central courtyard which is lusciously adorned by many trees and plants, giving it virtually a jungle feel. There is also a large pool right in the middle, which provides those like me who can only look but never touch with so much eye candy that desert becomes totally superfluous.

To start with the service this time, here too we were looked after admirably well. And much to my heart’s delight this was kept up perfectly until the very end and nowhere throughout did it ebb or fade, as it sometimes does. And it was all courtesy of Amit, who was not only talented in his approach and attention, but also perfectly knowledgeable on all dishes, their preparation and ingredients. Amit, who was a very cordial and friendly fellow, originating from Northern India, explained that he is also a chef and alternates between the kitchen and the floor, hence his intricate knowledge of the menu. It made an enormous difference listening to his many insights about their cuisine and a far cry from many restaurants where you are dealing purely with an uninformed order taker.

I hate it when you genuinely need some explanations about a menu and the server is very obviously making much of it up. Or when for every small basic question it involves a 5 minute walk and wait for the server between our table and the kitchen. And having been in the business myself, I know that no amount of briefing will even come close to having someone taking food orders who truly has a sound knowledge of cuisine. However in today’s fast paced business environment this is becoming harder and harder to find. Traditionally the person taking the orders would be a veritable culinary encyclopedia, while often today some have the knowledge akin to an amoeba…

So as we were obviously in very good hands, we asked Amit to suggest some nice starters to share. He suggested that we go for two dishes of their special sizzler mixed starters consisting of chicken, lamb, prawns, samosas and onions. We thoroughly enjoyed the variety of tasty components which offered ample variety.

We then each had a separate main course consisting of a pork vindaloo, a chicken vindaloo a chicken korma and a prawn alleppey, accompanied with rice and garlic naan bread. All were very good and wonderfully prepared in typical magically complex Indian spicy style. I had mine very hot and believe me it was, which is the way I mostly enjoy. The prawn alleppey was a striking combination of contrasting flavours of sweet and fruity and spicy and hot.

Cold lager probably goes best with hot Indian food, however we are somehow so used to having wine with our meals that we somehow always end up on the good old vino. So we had a lovely bone dry Muscadet, which is a wine I love and which I think is always so underrated.

After a couple of boring so called Indian ice creams, which we had more to refresh our palette, we ended our meal with coffees and liqueurs. We thanked Amit thoroughly as he was a key factor in the overall enjoyment of our meal. If you’re in the mood for Indian, then Sa Re Ga Ma is an overall pretty good choice.

Our lunch was all the more enjoyable, thanks to the splendid company of Jeremy & Michael, whose company we never cease to enjoy.

The allure of Gozo cannot be denied, especially in the summer months. So when we start to get that Gozo feeling we usually call one of our villa-with-pool friends and chat and chat and never hang up until that invitation finally comes.

So I called our dear friend Nicki, because we hadn’t heard from him for a while and were naturally concerned about him… and yes, bingo! not five minutes had passed before I landed that much desired invitation.

Three days later, night bag in hand, we descend on him and his lovely abode on our sister island. But to compensate for my cheek, I decided at least to treat him that evening to a dinner at the restaurant of his choice. So when Nicki mentioned Tatitas I was only too keen, as this was one restaurant I have long been meaning to try.

The restaurant was extremely busy, which is always a nice thing to see. However in spite of their relative rush, all the staff as well as Markita the owner, all took plenty of time to stop and shower Nicki with greetings and hugs. For Nicki has now become quite a famous fixture in Gozo and in his own words he may well be considered the Victoria Beckham of Gozo, bringing them much style and panache, which is also probably where he buys his lingerie from, but that’s another story…

In spite of the place being packed, the service was extremely attentive throughout and although there was the occasional odd moment where it might have been a bit awkward and clumsy, we were very well looked after. Markita herself often hovered around our table and I must say that she was the perfect host.

The setting of this restaurant is quite amazing. The tables are laid out right in the central village square, directly next to church, giving an unparalleled authentic ambiance and an insight into local village life. I would only recommend slightly better-thought lighting, rather than relying solely on the street lights around, especially as the one directly overhead is quite temperamental and tends to switch on and off of its own accord.

They also have an interesting and varied wine list with plenty of choice. We went for the Chilean G7 sauvignon blanc which was lovely and citrusy, refreshing and floral and also very decently priced. Their food menu too was fairly extensive and well drawn up.

For starters we had fresh mussels which were ok and a bouillabaisse which was really more of a fish soup, but which was rather delicious. We also had gorgonzola and walnut fagotelli which were fine although a bit lacking in moisture and in sauce.

Our main courses consisted of grilled calamari which were pronounced average. Also king prawns in garlic which were nice and well enjoyed. And finally a rack of lamb with mint sauce which was lovely and well prepared.

Our desserts were a crème caramel which was nice both in texture and in taste. A chocolate souffle which was rather yummy. And crepe suzette which took rather long to arrive and with pancakes which could have been cooked slightly longer.

With our coffees we also had whisky, calvados and cognac, which Markita very graciously and generously repeated on the house.

All in all we thoroughly enjoyed it, but we might want to go again when they aren’t so busy, when possibly an even higher standard both in service and notably in food would be attained. In reality, as we were asked to come late after the main rush, for much of our meal most other patrons had already left. So if anything it would be more a case of them being tired rather than rushed off their feet.

But again I will repeat that all in all it was fine and will continue this point not with reference to Tatitas, but simply as a general comment.

We hear only too often both in this group and elsewhere, of customers expressing their disappointment, only to be answered by many, suggesting reasons why this could be. Oh perhaps the staff were tired, or too busy, or because it was late. They were just having a bad day or you were simply unlucky. Others still start saying that they too have been there and never had a problem themselves.

Well all I can say is that these type of comments are rather irrelevant. If you go to a clothes shop and buy a torn dress it is of no consolation to anyone to say that they bought one too and had no problem with it. If I buy a fridge or a TV which doesn’t work, I really care little that the one you bought from the same shop worked well.

With restaurants exactly the same reasoning applies. For even the worse restaurants on earth can sometimes produce a good meal, while the best ones are meant to produce only good ones. We all know that consistency is the key factor with any dining establishment and as long as they expect my money at the end of a meal, I expect to have a good one no matter the time or day.

We shouldn’t ever be making excuses for poor food and service, nor trying to convince others through your our positive experiences in the same establishment. It also happens that you too may have many an excellent meal at the same restaurant, only then to be disappointed on the next occasion. Do you then try to convince yourself that the meal was in fact great?

The only thing that concerns me is the meal I just had and not the thousands of others which have been served there before me. As the saying goes, a restaurant is only as good as its last meal.

I often receive remarks from people that they would love to read my reviews but that they consider them far too long for them to read.

Well let me start off by saying that this is all based on a clever strategy to limit this page only to those with a certain level of intellect. A sort of automatic shrewd culling process, eliminating those with the attention span and concentration skills matching those of a dead cockroach. I know that most of you here will find this very hard to believe, but back in the old days when we weren’t busy hunting mammoth, we actually used to read funny paper things called books. And even more unbelievable is the fact that these book things had hundreds of pages – yes hundreds! And we actually read them cover to cover…