Boats in the Grand Harbour, a public holiday, and a kitchen that knows exactly what the day asks for.
The regatta is the last properly summer thing Malta does. After it, the light changes, the evenings get their edge back, and the kitchen turns towards autumn cooking.
Which makes the holiday itself a good place to eat something slow.
What we cook when the island stops
Public holidays fill the room early and keep it full. The rabbit goes on before service. The fish depends entirely on what the boats managed before the harbour filled with rowing crews. Bragoli, because a table that has been sitting for three hours wants something in a sauce.
Book if you are planning to come. Holidays are the one time the room genuinely runs out of tables, and turning people away on a feast day is nobody's idea of a good afternoon.
The boats finish. The table starts. That has been the order of things for a while now.
The regatta is the last properly summer thing Malta does. After it, the light changes, the evenings get their edge back, and the kitchen turns towards autumn cooking.
Which makes the holiday itself a good place to eat something slow.
What we cook when the island stops
Public holidays fill the room early and keep it full. The rabbit goes on before service. The fish depends entirely on what the boats managed before the harbour filled with rowing crews. Bragoli, because a table that has been sitting for three hours wants something in a sauce.
Book if you are planning to come. Holidays are the one time the room genuinely runs out of tables, and turning people away on a feast day is nobody's idea of a good afternoon.
The boats finish. The table starts. That has been the order of things for a while now.