Dinner at Commando Restaurant, Mellieha.
Saturday, 19th September, 2015.

This year we have visited a good number of restaurants around Malta and Gozo, some which we would have visited before, and others that we would have decided to give a try, probably because they would have been newly opened, or even long established which might have been refurbished, re-organised, changed owners or chefs, or whatever. Having said this, and through our sheer experience of the holistic , local restaurant industry, comprising of: restaurants, operators, chefs, restaurant and front-of-house managers, food and beverage managers, locations, seasonality, supply sources, etc., one tends to build a resume’ of restaurants that are consistent year-in year-out in quality cuisine and service, and the best chefs who always come out with that particular individual creativity in food preparation and presentation, with an emphasis on what is seasonal, local and fresh. Over the last ten years, in which we have been publishing reviews on this group and our highly followed website, we have built up a veritable data base of who’s who, and what’s what in the restaurant industry in the Maltese Islands, through our own direct and personal visits and inspections.

A restaurant which has always exceeded our expectations is Commando Restaurant in Mellieha.
Run hands-on by Chef-Patron Damian Ciappara, who is assisted by a good team of chefs in the kitchen, and front-of-house is very efficiently and pleasantly run by his wife and her team of well trained servers. The team seem to perform like clockwork every time, producing and serving patrons with no hassle and in an adequate time frame even when the restaurant is full inside and out.

Food selected:

On being seated at our reserved table, menus and wine list were presented, order for water was placed and served within minutes.

The specials of the day were verbally recited to us, and choices were made, for the food and the wine.

The wine was served as well as a pre-dinner antipasto with olives, and two dips, as well as freshly toasted local bread.

Starters:

Sea urchin risotto declared to be made from locally foraged sea urchins which are brought to the restaurant daily.

The in-house made prawn stuffed raviolini of which two servings were ordered;

The prawn risotto.

Main Courses:

From the menu:
Oven roasted rack of lamb served on crushed potatoes and garlic;
Pork fillet medallions served with grain mustard veloute, and potato and pancetta terrine;
and from the specials we ordered:
the pan seared fresh sargu fillets
and the pan seared fresh pagella fillets.

Vegetables, roast potatoes and polenta potatoes were served on the side.

Dessert:
A serving of the in-house made mqaret with honey ice-cream;
and a serving of roasted banana cremeux which was served with lemon doughnuts and peanut brittle. This is a very good dessert, not too sweet and quite light.

Wine: a good choice of local and foreign wine with a decent mark-ups. We settled for a well chilled bottles of Chablis which was priced at EUR 29.

Water, espressos and complementary liqueurs finished of the dinner.

Value: the cost for the above dinner, (food, water, espressos), excluding the wine came up to EUR 174.5 (EUR43.63 pp).

A highly enjoyable dinner, very good food; very good service; very good value.

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Dinner at Tal-Familja Restaurant, Marsascala
Saturday, 5th September, 2015.

A splendid dinner has been enjoyed once again at one of our favourite restaurants in Marsascala.
Tal-Familja Restaurant has over the last years, gone through a number of changes as Ramona and Roberta, two of our female renowned chefs, have moved to run their own restaurants. Ramona runs the very successful Palazzo Preca at Strait Street, Valletta as Chef-Patron, and Roberta is running the King’s Own Restaurant at Republic Street, Valletta. Both are expertly guided by their father Charles Preca, owner and operator of Tal-Familja Restaurant in Marsascala, at which establishment both Ramona and Roberta have honed their cooking and cuisine knowledge after having graduated from culinary school.

Charles Preca, runs Tal-Familja Restaurant with his elder daughter Daniela who runs front-of-house, and the younger daughters, running a good team of chefs, as well as a reasonably good team of servers. Tal-Familja stands out perfectly as its name implies, as it is a tightly run, family operation, which endeavours to provide excellent food, especially that which is fish and seafood oriented.

The restaurant was fully booked in all sections yesterday, but the service was very efficient indeed, and waiting time was a bare minimum. This goes to show that efficient management, proper manning with good staff, both in the kitchen as well as on the restaurant floor, pays dividends in client satisfaction.

Seated at our reserved table, we asked to see the fresh fish available, and the trolley with selections of fresh, locally caught fish was brought over. All the fish had a tag on them stating the actual raw weight of the fish, so that clients would choose what they wish in accordance with the portion that they want. Once chosen the fish is then removed from the trolley and taken to the kitchen with the cooking order.

Food ordered:

Starters: Two portions of the prawn stuffed, in-house made ravioli, in seafood bisque sauce;
and a sample of the degustation for two sharing which consisted of;
fresh tuna carpaccio which was excellent;
Two, lightly grilled scallops served in shell complete with the nut and the coral as they should be served;
Two oysters on ice with lemon wedges;
Seafood fritters - fish and shell fish;
a beautiful serving which went well with a glass or two of a chilled La Tosa Sauvignon Blanc.

Main courses:
Two seafood platters - with clams, oysters, clams, octopus, deep fried calamari rings, prawns and mussels, all fresh.

One 600gm Bazuga (bronze bream), oven baked; and one 530gm Bazuga grilled, with side servings of roast potatoes, fried onion rings and boiled fresh veg.
A point to state here is that the fish was charged at a very reasonable EUR4.5/100gm. Well done Tal-Familja indeed.
I am sick and tired of going to a restaurant, and see that the fish prices for whatever fish is displayed, is charged at rip-off prices of anywhere between EUR5.5 and even up to EUR7.5 per 100gm even for farmed or imported fish.

Dessert:
One mqaret portion with ice-cream to share; one cassatella slice; and one lemon meringue which was so so.

Wine: Wine selections are very good, mark-ups very reasonable at around 45 per cent on the retail price. A chilled, bottle of La Tosa Sauvignon Blanc complemented the dinner perfectly.
Two bottles of water, pre-dinner antipasti, espressos, and complementary grappas and an amaretto liqueur completed the dinner.

Value: The bill for the food, water, and coffees , (excluding the wine), came up to a reasonable EUR167 (EUR41.75 pp) between four persons. The price of the wine was EUR23 for the bottle.

Very nice ambience; very good food; very good service; at a very good value for money.

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Dinner at Due Mari Restaurant - Tigne Point.
Friday, 18th September, 2015.

Another ad hoc visit to one of our favourite restaurants at Tigne Point, yesterday, Friday 18th , proved to be a very enjoyable experience with Chef Ray Fauza exhibiting his creative skills at cuisine preparation and presentation, and Front-of-House manager Daniele demonstrating how passionate food and wine knowledge and excellent service should be.

The restaurant offers a good choice of antipasti, salads, Rice and Pasta dishes, fish and seafood in season, meat dishes and home-made desserts. Selected the Chef’s choice starters, which were a combination of three, taster antipasti and the Filetto di manzo ripiene con gamberi.

Starters:
We were served a very good selection of individual portions antipasti consisting of:

Oyster in champagne jelly with smoked salmon and served on crushed ice;
Crevette bisque in glass with croutons, Scampi and prawn tartar topped with caviar di sardi (sardine caviar);
Pacheri stuffed with ricotta, prawns and dill, erved in a Parmesan cheese basket and creamy lobster cauli (puree);

Main Course:

Prime cut beef fillet stuffed with seafood and wrapped in Parma ham, served with seaweed, sweet pepper, puree potato and crispy fried langoustine tempura. A typical Ray Fauza presentation.

Dessert:

In-house made tiramisu and an excellent nibble portion babarum in glass filled with rum.

One bottle of an excellent Chardonnay/Greco blende wine from Calabria, one bottle of water, dessert wine and espresso coffees, as well as a glass of Chianti Classico to pair with the fillet steak. The Chardonnay/Greco paired well with the prawn stuffed fillet in its own right.

Value: One would think that this selection might set one back a few euros, but we were surprised at the good value for money at about EUR45 per person, excluding the wine.

Very good, prepared and presented food; Very good service; Good value for money and highly enjoyable at a good location.

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Dinner at Caviar & Bull Restaurant - St. Julians.
Saturday, 12th September, 2015

Caviar and Bull Restaurant had opened its doors to the general public in May, 2014, and has since then, slowly, painstakingly and passionately, established itself as a top class restaurant in ambience, innovative cuisine and service.

Caviar & Bull was previously the Grill 3301 that was operated by the Corinthia Group, and which was a very good restaurant in its own right, has since it was taken over by Marvin Gauci of Tarragon fame, been revamped, re-organised, and refurbished from top to bottom. The open kitchen has been retained, through which one can see the brigade of chefs busy preparing and cooking food, all of which has to pass through the scrutiny of the executive chef before it leaves the pass. Ample service staff are employed to cover all sections with two or three supervisors checking out details.
The adjoining terrace has also been opened for summer, (this is the terrace adjoining Caviar & Bull and not the Budhamann top restaurant which is another story), and can be enjoyed by clients that prefer al fresco dining to the air conditioned comfort of the inside section of the restaurnt.

As we were four we opted for a degustation starter menu and were not disappointed both by the food quality and the presentations which were left exclusively to be paired with our main courses by the chef.

Starters served in platters to share:

Two bread baskets containing different, hot bread buns were presented on the table, one basket containing normal bread buns, the other containing garlic bread with paired well with the extra vergine olive oil on the table.

Wagyu beef carpacio which is flash seared on the outside and house smoked. Flavoured with Himalayan salt, aromatic herbs and house pickled shallots;
Truffle and wild mushrooms croquets;
Rossini prawns half cooked to retain full flaovour.;
Scallops on a bed of lentils;
Foei gras and port foie gras fotomaki;
Edible spheres - Mojito Grand Marnier / Orange Gin / Tonic;

Main Courses:

One 900gm gurbell (meagre) cooked al sale to be shared between two persons, this was filleted perfectly at the table by one of the servers, using the correct filleting cutler, - a good knife to slice through the fish over the bone; a good fork to keep the fish in place, and a spatula to lift and serve the fillets whole without breaking them in pieces. I am sick and tired of seeing waiters trying to fillet fish using a fork and a spoon which end up serving the fillets like so much cotton wool. Well done to the server in this case.

Filleted gurbel crusted with almonds a lemon zest. This was also a very good portion with very delicate flavours.
And a portion of the slow cooked pork cheeks.

Desserts: The dark chocolate fondant with icecream; A portion of the in-house made sorbets.

Wine list: A very good selection of the best wines selected in accordance with country and grape varietal. A bottle of Loire Sancerre was selected at EUR32.

Four bottles of water and espressos complemented the dinner.

Value: The final bill for the food excluding the wine came up to EUR281.5 (EUR70.30pp).
A three course dinner with elections from the menu, rather than the degustation starters that we selected would normally come up to about EUR55 per person - food, water and coffees, but excluding the wine which is a personal choice.

Cuisine quality is very good; Service is very good; Value - one pays for what one orders, not on the cheap side but commensurate with the restaurants style.

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Pizza evening at Vecchia Napoli, Sliema.
Monday, 21st September, 2015.

Every so often we feel like having a pizza diner and a bottle of wine, and as this is not often indulged in, we try to pick a good and tested place to go to. Vecchia Napoli in Sliema is a pizza destination for us, and it seems to be so for many others as well as they had a long queue on the pavement outside the open air area. It was a good idea to book a table for four persons at the inside section in the afternoon for 20.30.

Seated in the upstairs section with a good view from the large windows and a bit quieter from the busy downstairs. Water, food and wine orders were taken without hassle.

Food ordered:
Pizza Funghi Bianca with mushrooms, pancetta, garlic, mozzarella Fior di Latte, and smoke Scamorza cheese;
Pizza Alla Capriciosa with tomatoes, mozzarella Fior di Latte, mushrooms, artichoke hearts, olives and smoked ham;
Pizza Patria with tomatoes, mozzarella di Bufala, Provolene piccante, ricotta, salame piccante, mushrooms, rucola and fresh basil;
all pizzas were very good in both the dough and the topping.
And a serving of Insalata Caprese, which was a bit spartan. Could be better actually.

Dessert:
Torta ricotta e pere a crumbly hazelnut flavoured pastry with whipped ricotta cream and chopped pears;
Pizzotto dei Peccatori - a small Calzone filled with Nutella and nuts, to share.

One bottle of white wine, two bottles of water.,

Price food, and water: EUR 55.7 (EUR13.93pp), Cost of the wine EUR19.25 for the bottle.

Very good pizza with excellent Neapolitan dough which is the basis of a good pizza; very good service; good value and enjoyable.

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Dinner at TemptAsian Restaurant at The Palace Hotel - Sliema.
Saturday, 26th September, 2015.

Another highly enjoyable, Asian infusion dinner at the TemptAsian Restaurant, at The Palace Hotel, in Sliema. Located on the 9th floor of the hotel, the restaurant enjoys open views of the surrounding area, bays, Marsamxetto harbour as well as the lighted Valletta fortifications. These can be enjoyed from the terrace or the large, open bay windows. Chic, upmarket atmosphere, with service led by a smart restaurant manager and a good team of servers, open kitchen, and well stocked bar and wine list, all contributed to an enjoyable evening.

Food ordered:

A mixed platter of sushi to and Makimono share which contained selections of:
Spicy tuna roll; Philadelphia maki with smoked salmon, salmon, avocado and cream cheese; Grilled salmon teriyaki; and King Crab Roll crab, salmon and Japanese mayo.

An amuse bouche was also served pre-dinner, with the wine and water order.

Half Peking duck traditional Chinese duck served with pancakes, scallions, cucumber and hoisin sauce.

Soups: Tom Khaa Kai (medium or spicy) with Chicken, coconut milk and galangal soup; and a serving of the Bangkok soup - a beef and noodle soup infused with star anise, coriander and soy.

Main courses:
Sizzled shellfish - Stir fried medley of King prawns, calamari and scallops cooked in a delicate ginger sauce, as prepared in China;

Murgh Makhani - Indian butter chicken marinated in a blended tomato based sauce with yoghurt, garam masala, cumin, ginger and garlic paste, lime, coriander, chilli, turmeric, ground cashews and fenugreek leaves;

Lamb in yellow Thai curry - Slowly cooked lamb, rendered with spices and enhanced with kaffir lime leaves.

Two bowls Jasmine rice.

Main course were served to be shared.

Dessert:
Passion fruit Ice-cream;
Ringo no Filo -Apple served in a filo-roll, complemented by cinnamon and star anise ice cream;
Sencha Senpai a popular Japanese green tea .

Wine: as expected the wine list contained a good selection of local and foreign wines. Mark-up slightly on the high side . Selected a 2014 Montes Chardonnay at EUR27.50. which paired well with the spicy food.
Value: The cost of the above dinner inclusive of food and water came up to EUR140.9 (EUR35.25 pp). Wine selected extra at EUR27.5 for the bottle.

Very good cuisine; very good service; Very good value combined with a splendid location and rooftop ambience.

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