Awards for best restaurants

Tourism Minister Michael Refalo yesterday presented awards to the highest rated restaurants in a survey by the Definite(ly) Good Guide Company, which also launched the 2003 edition of its guide to eating out.

Mange Tout of Xemxija and The Hilton's Blue Elephant are the overall winners.

Mange Tout scored the highest points for food in the highest price category and the Blue Elephant scored the highest rating for ambiance. The Arches in Mellieha scored the highest rating for service.

Altogether, there have been 37 changes in the list of 150 restaurants. There are 22 new restaurants in the guide while 15 restaurants that were previously listed are no longer included.

The Definite(ly) Good Guide to Restaurants is based on a survey of over 600 regular diners who chose over 650 restaurants to rate and comment on out of the 1,100 odd restaurants in Malta and Gozo.

The reviewers ate out on average over twice a week or over 60,000 times in a year and rated restaurants for food, service and ambiance.

At the award ceremony at Villino Chapelle, St Paul's Bay, Dr Refalo commended the publishers for including information about Malta, Maltese gastronomy and wines and the Calendar of Events for 2003.

The guide, he said, gave deserved publicity to restaurants that provide wheelchair access and due prominence to restaurants that reserved areas for non-smokers.

"While it is difficult for small restaurants to partition off specific areas, the larger establishments should ensure that clients who wish to smoke and those who do not are accommodated separately," he said.

Dr Refalo also suggested that the guide in future should provide separate lists and awards for restaurants within hotels and for stand-alone establishments.

He also felt that a grading of restaurants specialising in Maltese cuisine should be introduced.

Should the publishers decide to do so, the Institute for Tourism Studies would sponsor an award for this category, he said.

Buyers of the 320-page pocket-sized guide will be encouraged to join the 'club' of over 1,000 reviewers by registering for the next survey.

Lisa Grech, managing director of Definite(ly) Good Guide Co., said five-star hotels had agreed to place the guide in their bedrooms.

Apart from the Mange Tout, the Blue Elephant and the Arches, the other award winners were the Barracuda in St Julian's, Boathouse Grill, the Terrace and the Compass Rose at the Westin Dragonara, Christopher's at Ta' Xbiex, the Rickshaw and the Corinthia Room at the Corinthia Palace Hotel, De Mondian at the Xara Palace, Fra Martino at the Corinthia San Gorg, Giannini in Valletta, Giuseppe's at Mellieha, Kon Tiki, Le Bistro and Le Pelillant at the Radisson Baypoint, La Sybille at the New Dolmen Hotel, Nostalgia at St Paul's Bay, Oceana at the Hilton Portomaso, Out West Argentinian Steakhouse in Paceville, the Phoenix at Le Meridien Phoenicia, Rebekah's at Mellieha, The Avenue in Paceville, the Carriage in Valletta, the Lord Nelson in Mosta, the Medina in Mdina and Zucchini in Paceville.

In Gozo, the award winners were the Grand Hotel at Ghajnsielem, Il Carrubo at Ta' Cenc Hotel, Il-Kcina tal-Barakka - Sammy's at Mgarr, Jeffrey's at Gharb, Mgarr Hotel, L'Ortolan - Kempinski at San Lawrenz and Ta' Frenc at Marsalforn.