Address: Constitution Street, Mosta, Malta

Telephone: (00356) 2143 4444

General Description:  The moment you walk into the restaurant, you are met by the enticing aromas wafting through from the kitchen, opening up your appetite for an unforgettable experience of Maltese cuisine.

Food Impressions: The chefs carefully prepare the traditional dishes with local produce, offering A La Carte, as well as Set Menus. They present a wide variety of dishes from a selection of antipasti, which include soups and pasta, also offered as a main course. Vegetarian dishes are also available, boasting a generous selection of fresh, local produce. My favourite appetizers were  the Soppa tal-armla (Widow’s soup), the vegetable soup with a poached egg, a Maltese cheeselet known as gbejna and the mixed platter which includes Maltese Farmhouse snails with an arjoli dip, sautéed rabbit liver in a puff pastry basket and traditional Maltese sundried tomatoes, cheeselets and olives. Each item on the menu offers a unique taste of Maltese cuisine and I am certain that I was not the only diner who spent an agonising amount of time salivating over the descriptions on the menu.

All main courses are accompanied by local, baked potatoes and fresh vegetables of the day or mixed salad and include an assortment of fish and seafood, such as baked stuffed squid with a tomato and olive sauce, or a choice from the meat, fowl and game selection, such as stewed rabbit in Ta’ Marija sauce. Some of the other typically Maltese dishes are the bragjoli u zalzett Malti (beef olives and Maltese sausage in a tomato, peas and basil sauce), brungiel mimli (stuffed aubergines) and for the truly carnivorous diners, the famous ‘Whisper’ steaks, a favourite since Ta' Marija opened in 1964.

To finish off the meal, there is a large selection of traditional desserts including helwa tatTork (Maltese Delight) and gelat tanNanna (traditional Maltese icecream), accompanied by Maltese coffee such as kafe tanNanna blilma Zahar (Grandmother’s style coffee with rose water).

Recommendations:  Every Wednesday and Friday evening, mandolin and guitar players wander from table to table playing traditional and popular Maltese songs, while Thursday has been established as Romantic Night, offering candlelit dinners, soft music and seductively, scrumptious food.

Background Story: Ta' Marija has won the award for Best Maltese Food Restaurant from 2005 to 2011!