A Maltese Foodie

Few can boast of a long culinary tradition. One such place in Malta is Giuseppi's. Chef Patron Michael Diacono really needs no introduction here in Malta. He is beloved by all, his recipes shared and discussed. 2016 brought the BIG MOVE for Giuseppi's from its historical location in a townhouse in Mellieha, to the newly opened Salini resort. We had many fears that the new location, in what we feared would be a new, identity-less apart'hotel would remove the soul that imbued the Giuseppi's of old. The cosy tables, the rare to find Sagrantino wine (on the Maltese restaurant scene that is). All that was set to change with the move to the Salini Resort. As it turned out, we need not fear. Yes, it is a stark contrast in decor to the Mellieha townhouse, it is less intimate, but it is not worse or better. It simply is. The decor is what we would call beach-house. Or what we envision a beach-house to be but don't have the space or the disposable income for. The outs...

Here at AMF, we don't like to listen to hype. Hype is made by marketeers. The best restaurants we have visited are those spread by word of mouth. The cozy, tucked away treasures are what we seek out. Some are already listed on this blog. In the case of Afghan Natural Food, located in Hamrun, we got to know of the existence of this place from two foodie friends of ours. Following that, some FB posts continued to spread the word, "Go there, it is authentic and delicious". And so we went. Friends, the hype is real. And the food is real too. This is not the place to take someone to impress, the decor is lacking, practically non-existent but all the emphasis is on the food. At the time of our visits, there was no air conditioning - in Summer there were some strong fans. There is no pretentiousness, no fuss, no "designer chic". The focus is solely on the food. This may put a few of you off of the place, and so we would recommend a take away for those of you wh...

This has been on the cards for a while.  Since we are food loving travel addicts, we often get asked about favourite restaurants abroad, or for restaurant recommendations when friends are traveling. This is therefore the first of its kind, our restaurant recommendations in foreign cities. We love the snow, and skiing - a sport we never get to practice in Malta.  This sees us visiting places like Livigno often, and we enjoy going to Livigno because it is well connected (even though it's far), and offers the perfect balance between skiing for all levels, apres ski, shopping, snow activities, and good food. So here you have it, our list of favourite restaurants in Livigno: 1. Bivio Cantina This restaurant sky rocketed to becoming our favourite restaurant in Livigno. We ambled in one night, when we did not feel like straying too far from the center. What a surprise awaited us inside! The restaurant is part of the Bivio hotel, and you need to take the stairs since it is loca...

Much hype surrounds all the boutique hotels mushrooming in Valletta. Like them or hate them, boutique hotels are breathing new life into Valletta's older, forgotten buildings. We heard good things about one among their number - La Falconeria, a boutique hotel in Melita Street, Valletta. And even better things about their restaurant, and so went to check it out for ourselves. The restaurant is called L'Artiglio, and although we have only been once, we can write a few notes about our first impressions. First of all, due to the law cation of the hotel, the restaurant is at street level and enjoys no views. This does not really bother us, but if you want somewhere to dine with a view this is not it. But don't discount this restaurant for this as the decor is Art Deco chic, with a modern take on Maltese patterned tiles, and a clean and simple layout which is welcoming and pleasing on the eye. Once you are seated you are presented with a changing menu which depends on what ...

and so we're back! From what feels like outer space. We've got a few reviews, and will post them here, quick and short, but as always, straight to the point, and honest. We will also publish some lists for foreign cities 😃 We hope you enjoy the blog, and don't forget to leave food and restaurant recommendations!  AMF 

For a while, each time I would drive through Saqqajja hill I used to follow the construction of a new eatery. Then, the finishing touches, and soon enough the place opened its doors to the public. This is Wood and Coal in Attard. While the location may seem like an unlikely place to open a restaurant, it does give the people living in the area, and further north a great opportunity to eat out and still be close to home thus avoiding traffic and finding easy parking. We have visited Wood and Coal on a couple of occasions, once it was a weekend and very full, the other a weekday and less full. Each time the food was good, and the service friendly enough. We wanted to go because people were raving about the pizza. I was pleasantly surprised by the toppings - they are varied, yet still retain some of the usual names, people usually look for. The first time we visited, I went for a gourmet pizza, gluten free, the Bologna with pistachio pesto and burrata. It was excellent, however a li...

Sometimes I find that I get stuck in my ways. If I fancy something in particular, I will go to one restaurant, if something else, another restaurant, and have fallen into what can only be termed as a bit of a routine. The reason behind this blog is partly to break out of this routine. The other reason is to document places to eat in Malta in a place which is not TripAdvisor or any other such review site. So we broke out of the routine and headed to Marsaxlokk to an unassuming looking restaurant called ROOTS . If it's Marsaxlokk then it must be a fish restaurant. It is. But it also offers meat dishes, which we recently learned are presented with flair, gusto, and quality. The first time we went to Roots, we went all traditional and ordered fish for starters and main course. Impressed by some very fine wines on offer, we turned what would have been a normal Friday night dinner into a special occasion without having a reason to celebrate (the ones you sometimes need in this busy l...