Ed Eats

Venus Restaurant
Pioneer Road,
Bugibba
+356 2157 1604

Food: 8/10
Location: 8/10
Service: 6/10
Value for money: 6/10
Overall: 7/10

Today’s story starts almost four years ago. A colleague of the better half had recommended a restaurant in Buġibba and, I must admit that I was reluctant to visit. I’d decided that nothing good could possibly come out of a restaurant in Buġibba and here, in my tortuous way, is why.

As singer Ray Davies admitted of The Kinks, the band had started out during a period of general mediocrity. And, being mediocre, they rose to fame. He had the common sense to say this a few decades after their success and riches were indisputable, so he wasn’t about to field off any refund claims for the gazillion records they sold in the meantime. Yet, it was an admission that, whatever suits a particular market, will sell well.

I tend to think of Buġibba in a similar way. If you have the entire planet at your disposal and choose to spend your week’s holiday there, chances are that you’re not chasing a gastronomic nirvana. So the place is filled with restaurants and other eateries that fulfil a demand for food that’s primarily aimed at pre-soaking alcohol or helping the recovery of a hangover.

As with every other sweeping generalisation I make, there exist exceptions, and the restaurant that had been recommended was apparently one of them.

Off we headed, one wet winter night, in search of the purported exception. Five minutes into the drive, her chariot spluttered a little, then gave up on us. As we sat in the front of a tow-truck listening to hits from the 1980s, the tow-truck ran into a spot of trouble as well. It proceeded to aim the car towards orbit, destroying the entire backside of the ill-fated vehicle.

The tow-truck driver must have been surprised at my smug grin and had no idea why I was feeling eerily vindicated. He was even more surprised at my generous tip. We wound up eating a quick takeout and spoke no more of the incident.

Last week we happened to be in the area and I suddenly remembered the tow-truck mishap. We decided to give the place a go and close a chapter that had been open for four years too long.

Venus is one of the better looking places in the area, even if there has been an effort at sprucing up the general look of things. Even the kebab shop across the road has added proper seating, wood panelling, and table service. There remains a number of dodgy-looking places that advertise cheap pints of beer and even cheaper fried breakfasts on pavement-blocking A-boards, so neat little places like Venus stand out even more.

A soothing oasis trapped in the sandy dunes of unremarkable eateries

Whoever is running the place has made an effort to keep the interior looking tidy, with white table cloths, proper crockery, and minimal decoration. The Buġibba factor sneaks in when you notice that, above the white linen, there’s that rubbery kind of covering that is meant to look like cloth but can be wiped clean with no fuss.

As soon as we entered, a very polite lady greeted us and gave us a choice of tables. We picked one and she was back in a moment with menus. She described the day’s specialities and took our order for drinks before giving us time and space to make our choice.

The menu is a relief. Avoiding the trap of offering 100 dishes, there’s just a single page of well-planned starters and another one with main courses.

Every dish sounds enticing and carefully thought out, so my enthusiasm started to mount. Our host had made it clear that they source ingredients carefully, and only buy fish that had been caught in the wild. But I was in the mood for something more wintry.

I couldn’t decide between the rabbit ravioli with a rabbit ragout or the paccheri with beef ragout and parmesan for starters and voiced this dilemma with our lovely host. She said she’d tried both, liked both, and would go with the rabbit if in doubt.

When the better half enquired about the soup of the day she said it was a broccoli and Stilton soup with walnut, adding that she’d tasted it and that it was quite lovely.

This kind of understanding of the food being served is, unfortunately, a rarity. It is much more frequent that I encounter a front of house that knows absolutely nothing about the food on the menu, so her approach stood out as a shining example of what service should be all about.

We placed our orders, including a well-priced bottle of wine from a concise and thoughtfully-priced menu. She returned with the wine a moment later and served it expertly.

Her colleague, another incredibly polite lady, turned up with fresh bread and a small spread of savouries to go with it. Sticking to a decidedly local theme, these were in the form of a tuna paste, a bean paste and a couple of sundried tomatoes. There was also the unusual and welcome addition of a little ramekin of butter with mustard and truffle oil.

Before I’d taken my second bite of bread, our starters were at table. This was almost suspiciously quick, but the ravioli are made in-house so they do take just moments to cook. They were arranged in a neat row and covered with a thick ragout that had plenty of bits of rabbit meat in it and generous shavings of Parmesan.

I’d expected a very savoury sauce but this had a surprisingly sweet counterpoint to it that took me by surprise. It won on presentation and novelty more than it did on flavour, but that’s not to say I wouldn’t order it again if I returned.

The soup was a more accomplished dish, with the broccoli dominating the palate. I’d been concerned about the Stilton taking over, but there is healthy restraint in the kitchen so the dish came together wonderfully, with the crunch of the walnut adding a layer of texture to the warm liquid.

Our main courses took a more appropriate time to be served. My French rack of lamb was generous and the lamb had been cooked just beyond rare, so it had a tender, pink centre and a properly browned exterior.

The rosemary jus that accompanied it did just as it said it would, adding a fragrant nose to a naturally fat-rich meat. The puréed potatoes that the ribs were arranged around were far superior to the baked potatoes served on the side.

The winner in the sides category was the veg, with baked broccoli, carrots and cabbage retaining a pleasant crunch and made all the more lively with a spicy seasoning to them.

Just as lovely was the slow-cooked venison. The meat was exceptionally tender, intensely flavoured, and served with a berry sweet jus (sorry) that had just a hint of truffle. This wasn’t as generous a portion as the lamb was, but then venison’s dear, isn’t it? Even so, neither of us could face the prospect of dessert.

We paid a rather steep €95 for the meal. With a sticker on the outside that lures you in with a promise of a three course meal for €25, I’d somehow expected my wallet to lose a little less weight. What really mattered was that we’d completely forgotten the garish scene that awaited us outside.

Venus had taught me a valuable lesson about dismissing the culinary ability of an entire swathe of the country. It is a soothing oasis trapped in the sandy dunes of unremarkable eateries and, budget permitting, could be reason enough to traverse the desert that surrounds it.

The service was unfalteringly pleasant and helpful, the kitchen was attentive and thoughtful, and it seems they’ve been doing this for a while so they’re consistent in their delivery. And consistency, proper service, and a keen kitchen are a rare combination indeed.

You can send e-mails about this column to ed.eatson@gmail.com.