Danny’s
Mrieħel Bypass
Qormi
Tel: 2144 1171
Food: 9/10
Service: 8/10
Ambience: 8/10
Value: 7/10
Overall: 8/10
This is an unusual one for me. I don’t normally know anyone at the restaurants I visit and review. In this case, and may this serve as full disclosure, I’ve got to know the chef and his lovely partner.
We got to know each other through food. After a sensational meal at Trabuxu Bistro in Valletta which, let’s face it, is one of the best dining options in the city, the chef introduced me to her second-in-command and I met a firm handshake and a shy smile. That was my first encounter with the man who is the star of today’s show.
Then I ate my first meal at Danny’s and felt I had to congratulate the people in the kitchen. There he was again, the same shy, disarming smile and buckets of humility at my gushing reaction to his food. He’d moved from Trabuxu to do his own thing. At Danny’s, he said, he could be busy in the kitchen doing what he loves while his partner runs the front of house.
It is not every day that two people have such a complementary set of skills. He’s an inventive and energetic chef who is forever on the lookout for ingredients and materials that will match the concoctions his creative mind seems to be perpetually bubbling with. She is the perfect host, knowing the kitchen inside out and blessed with the ability to juggle a restaurant full of people without ever appearing hurried.
Her skills go beyond this. Having chosen a vegan diet she handles the juices, infused waters, smoothies, and veg-based snacks.
So, as I visited time and time again to sample everything on the Danny’s menu, I got to know this wonderful couple, and this caused me to hesitate before writing about my experience there.
I couldn’t possibly ignore the place and act like it didn’t exist. That would be unfair to all of you who have not yet tried it out. It would also be unfair to write about it like I’d only visited once. So here we are – you now know that I’ve met the people behind the place and grew to like them.
If you’re after an informal meal and you’re not prepared to sacrifice flavours and fresh ingredients, I strongly suggest you pop in
But I have friends who can’t cook and I’m always honest with them. I’m honest with my own mum about food, saying I’d rather she let my dad cook. So, with that brutality in mind, you can rest assured that I give credit where it is due.
Back to Danny’s. It occupies the spot that used to be called Windmill snack bar. They’ve done the place up since then and it looks quite spiffing, retaining a nod to the snack bar décor. The notion of a snack bar hasn’t been lost. Their ftira biż-żejt is lovely, as is the delectable beef brisket ciabatta with pickled cabbage.
Then, as things take a more serious turn, it becomes evident that this snack bar has a chef hard at work. I’ve tried to sample the entire menu but this proves quite impossible. It changes often as the chef comes across ingredients he’s happy with.
I’ve been lucky to try his fish and chips. I know it sounds like fast food, but the chef will only have this on the menu when his selected fishmonger has the fresh haddock he’s chosen for this dish. The batter is freshly prepared and laid on in just the right proportion to end up with fish that’s been delicately steamed inside the crisp shell of sealed batter. His burger is more of a standard issue item so it occupies a permanent and well-deserved place on the menu.
Breakfast at Danny’s is quite the event. Starting your day with bourbon bacon, baked beans and an egg in a custom bun is grand but I can’t do this every day. Move over chef, your better half has got this in the form of a healthy burst of unexpected flavour – their own multiseed bread with coconut cream cheese, beetroot and baby rocket leaves.
Until today, I believed my favourite pasta dish to be the one he prepares with slow-cooked beef cheek in a slightly spicy tomato sauce. It’s lively and rich, the beef as tender as it gets, and the chilli kick making for a memorable aftertaste.
I returned for lunch today, making time to meet the ever-busy better half. She wanted soup. I was set on the pasta. I assured her I’d had an incredible soup there once, with pumpkin and coconut and a hint of chilli. The soup on today’s menu was a cream of cauliflower soup with rosemary and it sounded just as enticing, if a little less exotic.
The beef cheek pasta had competition in the form of penne with Maltese sausage and ġbejna. I wouldn’t normally pick this but I trust the chef to make it work in ways I haven’t tried before, so I ordered it without a second thought.
By the time we’d ordered, Danny’s was busy. Eager faces dashed in to pick up take-out lunches and others walked in hoping for a table. Those willing to share a table do so. I’ve walked in for lunch when flying solo and wound up on a table with three strangers, and these occasions have made for interesting conversation. Quite why we don’t have more of this convivial style of lunch beats me.
There are all the usual drinks as well but my favourite is whatever type of flavoured water is on the menu board. I say flavoured, and this could sound like they’ve diluted a commercial bottle of syrup. None of that at Danny’s. I had the juiced ginger water and there was fresh cucumber and fresh lemon available as well. Beats a sugary carbonated drink any day.
Our food was served quite quickly, especially considering how busy the restaurant was.
Presentation is carefully thought out. There’s so much you can do with pasta and soup, but they serve slices of crusty, toasted bread in a little, metal shovel and the soup itself in a quaint, enamelled bowl.
The soup tastes of the warmth inside the house on a cold, winter’s night. It’s heart-warming and rich, with plenty of fresh rosemary and the sharp counterpoint of an excellent olive oil that the soup is finished with. I find it hard to reconcile the idea of soup as a single dish but this one is simultaneously light and filling so it works perfectly.
My pasta was excellent. The sausage, made according to the chef’s specification by the butcher of his choice, spills its contents into the sauce and is bursting with a pleasant blend of herbs and spices. Coriander, pepper and parsley dance around the dish with cream and little bits of crumbed ġbejna, adding an unctuous base to every mouthful. It is easy to go overboard with these ingredients but it is made with such mastery and discipline that I can’t possibly fault the result.
Like every exceptional dish, it is the careful combination of cleverly though-out ingredients that makes for a delightful experience. There is a dish to suit all preferences and a seemingly never-ending stream of new menu items to keep even the most restless eaters supplied with variety.
The same can be said for the pricing. From a humble ftira to a more complex meal, Danny’s has the price range covered, too.
If you’re after an informal meal and you’re not prepared to sacrifice flavours and fresh ingredients, I strongly suggest you pop in for a mid-day treat. If you’re planning to do this on a Saturday do yourself a favour and book a table.
I just hope that attracting attention to Danny’s won’t make it impossible for me to find a seat, because if it does I’ve just shot the final arrow into my sense of self-preservation.