Second-generation member of the Harb family from Lebanon Hany Harb has taken over at Ali Baba restaurant in Gżira.

Despite his Lebanese origins, Harb says he feels Maltese and is keen to use produce from local suppliers as much as possible for his Lebanese and Mediterranean cuisine

The restaurant has been open for over 25 years and is a family business, with Harb’s family having settled in Malta in the early 1980s.

Harb was educated at St Edward’s College, where he was a border, and at the Institute of Tourism Studies, followed by stints in four-star hotels, a Michelin-star restaurant and, for three years, at Kitchen Concepts before he rejoined the family business, where he had always helped out as a young man.

Building on the healthy reputation of the restaurant, Harb has gone all out to offer quality, and seeks to educate clients on the culture of food and wine from the land of his family, ensuring guests receive the best hospitality and a positive dining experience.

He engaged designers Andrew Vinci and Simon Grech to refurbish the intimate restaurant and the result is both clean and contemporary. The well-equipped kitchen is more than doubled in size, and an eye for detail includes blown glass sinks in the bathrooms.

Despite his Lebanese origins, Harb says he feels Maltese and is keen to use produce from local suppliers as much as possible for his mixture of Lebanese and Mediterranean cuisine. He says he is also willing to listen to clients’ suggestions.

Together with his dad Abdul Rahman and his mother Nedra, who help out a great deal, Harb recently organised a special evening to mark the restaurant’s reopening. Guests were treated to a multiple-course meal featuring a wide variety of foods and wines.

On the menu there was an oxtail soup with lentils and fresh coriander for starters, followed by a selection of meze. The food kept flow-ing, with wine accompanying the different courses. There was homous bit-tahineh, baba ghanouge, arayess (pitta bread) with lamb and chicken, cracked wheat and lamb kibbeh, falafel with salmon, sea bass and home-made aromatic ketchup and lamb sausages.

For dessert, there were home-made layered pastries with almonds and pistachios and sweets with authentic Turkish coffee.

Harb recalls the restaurant was known for its burgers, which he still serves on request. However, he encourages his guests as much as possible to sample the variety of Lebanese cuisine by choosing whatever catches their fancy both from the menu and the list of specials offered every day, depending on the freshest ingredients available.

The selection of Lebanese wines was from the Château Kefraya winery, represented by Attard and Co.

Ali Baba is open for lunch and dinner from Tuesday to Saturday. Lunch is served between noon and 3pm and dinner between 6.30 and 10.30pm.

Take-aways are available and the restaurant also offers outside catering for parties and weddings. For reservations call 2134 0119.