In defence of Gozo restaurant

We are UK residents, have a flat in Xaghra and spend about 10 weeks a year in Gozo. Since the present owner took over Il-Kartell many years ago, we have taken Sunday lunch there every Sunday during our stay and have eaten there at least twice more during the week. We have no other connection with either the owners or the staff.

We usually eat their fish. On every single occasion we have found the food excellent and the service most professional and friendly. We eat at several Michelin-starred restaurants in various European countries and are not gullible when it comes to food.

And we read with astonished disbelief the rather silly article of Jon Rosser, A Very Fishy Business, published in The Times' Weekender of June 4.

Firstly, Mr Rosser claims to love fish and yet does not know that his favourite pagell is not red mullet - red mullet is trilja. Does he really know which fish he ate?

Secondly, although Mr Rosser seems incapable of reading a menu, even he must know that fish come in different sizes and a larger fish will cost you more because you get more. Or did he expect something for nothing? Lm6 is a fairly standard price for fresh fish in Gozo. If Mr Rosser does not know this he should dine out more often.

He refers to paying for his fish by weight as a "hidden cost", which it is not - it is a perfectly fair transaction. He also calls it "the oldest trick in the world" and so contradicts himself: either he was naïve and duped or he knows the oldest tricks; he can't have it both ways.

Thirdly, the salad leaves and the avocado he would like would raise the cost of the salad if used. One doubts whether Mr Rosser, so parsimonious about his fish, would be happy to pay more for his salad. And if he finds the combination of avocado pear with fish pleasant to the palate then I am surprised that he finds the prospect of eating slugs so abhorrent.

As to the question of so many guests arriving at the same time, the alternative would be compulsory booking in advance, taken at staggered intervals. Such a system would destroy the lovely informality of eating in Gozo which appeals to so many people. And Il-Kartell have a superb backup system in place for the eventuality of a sudden large influx of guests. We have seen it work and it works well.

Mr Rosser distinguishes between "tourist" (the coach load of Italians) and punters. We are tourists too and so is Mr Rosser if he lives in Malta. We have heard the word "tourist" used in this derogatory fashion by some people and we feel that a journalist writing for The Times should not add to this kind of prejudice. A client is a client.

Finally, the style and register of Mr Rosser's article would be rejected if presented by a 12-year-old schoolchild. It is riddled with hackneyed clichés which he clearly considers clever but which are a substitute for real thought. Altogether, a very poor piece of writing by a person who knows little about his subject matter and who sounds as if he has a personal axe to grind.