Malta and Michelin stars do not go together. One of the major problems in my view is not the quality of the produce which one can find on the island or the creativity of chefs but rather the fact that the small island in the Mediterranean is still too small to have a critical mass that can sustain a fine dining experience. Therefore there was a great sense of anticipation when I read that Eneko Atxa and a British entrepreneur were opening a 100 day pop-up restaurant Aziamendi which the Spanish Basque chef had opened in December 2013 at Iniala in Thailand. The location that has been chosen for this pop-up restaurant is exceptional. Located in a beautiful palazzo in Archbishop Street in Valletta (the Civil Service Sports Club) it overlooks the Grandmaster's Palace and the beautiful St George's Square. Given we were in Malta on holiday, I was anxious to try it out particularly since Eneko Atxa, born in 1977 is Spain's youngest ever 3 Michelin star chef in a restaurant scene which … [Read more...]
The story of Lord Chambray – Malta’s or rather Gozo’s first artisanal brewery
Malta, or should I say Gozo, has its first artisanal brewery with the opening in June of Lord Chambray at the Gozitana Agricultural Village in Xewkija. While on a visit to Gozo, I went to meet Samuele d'Imperio, the managing director of Lord Chambray to discover why they set their eyes on making Malta's first craft beer. He told me the family had been visiting Gozo every summer for the past 25 years and it was always their dream to eventually buy a property with a view on Malta's sister island. They finally bought a property in Fort Chambray around five years ago. It has always been his parents' dream to retire on the island of Gozo. His father, an accountant, is around five years away from retirement. Samuele, also an accountant, fell in love with craft beers during a year working with Deloitte in Sydney. "We love Gozo and we wanted to do something for Malta and Gozo. But this is both my family's and my first experience making beer." They are however in good hands. … [Read more...]
Tmun in Mgarr harbour, Gozo
Visiting a fishing port has a certain allure to it. Gozo’s fishing port of Mgarr is a small but picturesque harbour which is busy particularly in the summer months with the constant shuttling of visitors from the island of Malta for the period in mid-August around the feast of Santa Maria. Mgarr harbour with its small passenger terminal is no longer just a fisherman’s harbour particularly since tourism on the island is an essential part of the island’s economy. Nevertheless over the past years, it has become the venue of a number of interesting restaurants and bars just alongside the fishing boats many of which were out at sea. One of the best restaurants on the island can be found here. It-Tmun rose to popularity in Xlendi, a sea-side resort on the other side of the island before it moved to Mgarr a few years ago. Tmun in Mgarr has gone from strength to strength. Now this is a family which is renowned in the Maltese restaurant schene. Leli, the owner of the restaurant has … [Read more...]
Fit for a Masterchef challenge
The guests are about to arrive in 40 minutes, you are around 30 minutes into your food preparations but given the choice of menu you have to cook everything at the last minute. Your kitchen equipment all runs on electricity. And suddenly there is a power-cut and you don't know when it will be restored again. This would be a challenge fit for an episode of Masterchef or the French version Top Chef where the chefs are given countless challenges to try and cook their way out of a tricky situation. Yesterday evening Malta suffered a nationwide power cut and the challenge to continue with my plans was probably fit for a future episode of Top Chef. The cause of the power-cut was a fault in a generating unit in the power station followed by an explosion at a distribution centre resulted in the whole of the island being without electricity for several hours. The temperature is still high, above 30C, and the small gas lamp is emitting heat making the conditions in the kitchen pretty tough. … [Read more...]
In Valletta head to Cafe Cordina for the perfect coffee
It is a cliche that has been written about many times but one which has stood the test of time. Valletta is a city built by gentlemen for gentlemen. It is Malta's capital city with a population of just under 7,000. Known in Malta as il-Belt (the City in English), it is essentially a Baroque city build in the 16th century built just after the Great Siege of Malta when the country was under the rule of the Order of St John. I will give you an insiders guide to Valletta in the coming days. But in the meantime, I will share one cafe which you should not miss when you are in Malta. Practically, every visit by locals to Valletta has to include a stop in one of the many cafes which can be found in this architecturally stunning city. There is however one cafe, which stands above the rest because of its stunning location, tradition and quality and because it has the only coffee counter on the island. This is Cafe Cordina. A walk down Valletta's main street, Republic Street leads you to … [Read more...]
One of the 50 places to visit in Europe is in the Island of Gozo
I haven't really written about my home country yet, that will come at a later stage but I wanted to highlight one idyllic spot which has been earmarked by the website Business Insider as one of the fifty places to visit in your lifetime. http://www.businessinsider.com/places-in-europe-to-visit-2014-6?nr_email_referer=1&utm_source=Triggermail&utm_medium=email&utm_content=emailshare#snap-a-photo-at-the-azure-window-a-natural-limestone-arch-on-the-maltese-island-of-gozo-7 The Azure Window as it is known is indeed stunning and worthy of the recommendation. Make sure to visit sooner rather than later because the arch is suffering the effects of weathering … [Read more...]