Pet’s Plates

Acqua, Terra e MarePortomaso
St Julian’s

Food: 8/10  
Location: 8/10
Service: 9/10
Value: 8/10
Overall: 8/10

Ah, Portomaso. One of Malta’s most exclusive post codes. Would I live there? No. Would I venture there for a meal? Certainly.

Despite my misgivings, I have to admit that the Portomaso Marina does serve one very important purpose. It is a haven, away from all the mayhem of the heaving, traffic-congested surrounding area. After all, Portomaso does have the misfortune of rubbing shoulders with Paceville–Malta’s grotesque playground, and a town with a controversial future ahead.

There is the promise of an 11  storey office block that will lie in the shadow of the Portomaso Tower. This, coupled with the likelihood of further expansion and high-rise development in Paceville, carries only one definite promise. That of further chaos.

The restaurant Aqua, Terra e Mare lies literally on the water’s edge at marina level. You could tiptoe off your yacht, slip on your heels and saunter over in a matter of minutes. I arrived rather less glamorously (but very conveniently) via the Portomaso car park.

We were there to celebrate a birthday and, after having rigorously recommended this place to everyone, I dearly hoped that, for all the right reasons, the meal would be a memorable one. Although there is a lovely outdoor terrace, we chose to dine indoors. I feel they have paid great attention to the ambience here.

The restaurant is a striking space. With neutral tones, subtle lighting and the use of dark wood, the interior is elegant, inviting and intimate, with all tables being well spaced apart. The staff were polite and attentive and ushered us to a beautifully laid table that boasted exquisite tableware.

Genuine, good food served in a lovely atmosphere

A Luciano Micallef painting brightened up the wall with its distinct blocks of intensely bold colour, accentuated with sharp flecks of black and gold. Good art gave me an appetite for some good food. It was also well past one o’clock.

To the business of ordering. I had spied a grand display of fresh wild fish in abundance. This Italian restaurant specialises in seafood but, despite this emphasis on all things from the sea, meat dishes are also available. The entire page of fish carpaccio antipasti looked divine but I was, as always, drawn to the pasta. My first course of strozzapreti with local red king prawns was beautifully executed. The prawns had been quickly sautéed with cherry tomatoes and tossed in a prawn bisque.

The chef had been heavy-handed with the tomato sauce but it was otherwise quite delicious.  This Romagnola hand-rolled pasta which literally translates to ‘priest stranglers’ was the ideal shape and texture to hold the mouth-watering sauce. There are a number of theories behind the oddly violent pasta name of strozzapreti. My favourite centres around the Romagnola husbands who harboured acute anticlerical sentiment.

They despised the local fat priest their wives cooked for. Their hatred was such that they hoped the gluttonous priest would choke as he gorged on the homemade pasta. I was perfectly content with my pasta dish, and then I stole a forkful of Rob’s spaghetti ai frutti di mare. I was instantly envious. Beautiful in its relative simplicity, this classic seafood pasta is one that I have eaten countless times. The one at Acqua, Terra e Mare was honestly one of the best I’ve ever tasted!

It comprised a veritable medley of all the good of the sea; plump mussels, prawns and tender squid rings tossed with olive oil, herbs and a fresh tomato sauce. The seafood and shellfish could not have been fresher. The dish was pure pasta perfection! The salt-crusted baked paġell (Common Pandora) was properly cleaned and efficiently filleted at the table. It fed four of us. Having been slightly overcooked, the fish was unfortunately somewhat dry. I was nonetheless still able to enjoy it. A dash of the gorgeous olive oil at the table helped things nicely.

The fish was accompanied with beautiful side dishes; generous portions of well grilled vegetables and some lovely roast potatoes. The birthday boy enjoyed a ribeye steak served with a Scottish whisky sauce. The meat was flavourful and tender, cooked perfectly to medium-rare and with a good sear on it. The warmth and spice of the whisky sauce spooned over the steak gave a nice kick and made for a very hearty and satisfying meal.

The meal didn’t end there. I was delighted to find that Acqua, Terra e Mare is the kind of restaurant that gives importance to dessert. This last course is all too often deemed unworthy and undeserving of the attention of many a Maltese chef.

Numerous local restaurants tend to ignore this final stage of the meal, finding it acceptable to serve a good first and second course that is followed by an awful, frozen dessert made by some outside caterer. At Acqua, the lemon cheese cake was something truly special! Delicately zingy, it was wonderfully whipped, light and heavenly. The gorgeous chocolate fondant was rich and decadent and served with some lovely ice cream. Only the Mama’s Cake was a disappointment.

I wanted to love it for two simple reasons. Firstly, this old favourite holds a lot of nostalgia for me. Secondly, this dessert represents one of the food world’s successful marriages, that between coffee and chocolate. While possessing good flavour it was dense and rather dry, as if all the coffee and alcohol had been spirited away. Overall, Acqua, Terra e Mare’s dessert course had provided a pleasant ending to a well-cooked meal. Digestivi were offered on the house and were well received.

One isn’t immediately struck by the menu at Acqua, Terra e Mare. It incorporates the sort of Mediterranean dishes that we have grown accustomed to finding in most Maltese restaurants. But few can execute such dishes to a high standard. Fewer still can boast the exceptional quality of service we encountered at this place. Our lunch had proved a very positive fine dining experience. This is genuine, good food served in a lovely atmosphere.

I shall return.

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

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