Wine Bars, Part 2

Hi everybody, hope you had an awesome weekend! Our little team has been around again looking for some of the best wine bars in Malta. Yeah and we have great news, this week is going to be a tough choice: Which ONE is winning our title MALTA'S BEST WINE BAR?

We start off with:

Kafe Ta' Marku
Sqaq nru. 6, Triq Santa Lucija, Naxxar

Hidden in a small Alley lies the newly restored farmhouse Kafe' Ta' Marku. We were out on a relaxed Sunday evening and we heard that this place just opened for public and serves good wine. Old farmhouses always makes my heart beat jump higher. I have this nack about traditional Maltese places but sadly they are becoming less and less because of the construction that is going on in Malta. So it's good news to know that the owners made a beautiful job in converting this house to its original splendour. It is cozy and you should have a look through the several rooms that have been furbished to give the impression of a farmhouse inhabited by real people. In the evenings the building is dipped in lovely lights but you should definatley visit it on a Sunday afternoon. While the food and wine was good, I'd only recommend it if you like to nibble on something small (like a shared platter), but I'd definately recommend it for one of the best cakes I have ever eaten, THE Snickers Cake (like a Snickers bar). Wow, this one was rich but soooo good, Ruth and I devoured it! The lemon cheese cake is also highly recommended, by the way!

Every room has a small detail, here it is the fireplace.

Kafe' Ta' Marku scorred high for the ambience and the personal story that goes behind the restoration of this building. Whenever you make it to the charming town of Naxxar stop by at Ta' Marku to enjoy a cup of coffee and a cake. Saying that, it's not one of the top places for wine in Malta but definatley the place to try out THAT great Cake! Enjoy!

So now, we come to real stuff:

TRABAXU WINE BAR
No 1d, Strait Street, Valletta

With most of the wine bars in Malta, you'd better ask your way because this little jewel is no exception to the rule: It is well hidden in a quiet side street and if you don't know the place you'll have difficulty finding it. While most people visit Valletta only in the morning to go shopping or to have a look at those grand buildings, Valletta's night life is quiet. Normally, the capital city buzzes with action in the morning. I think there are thousands of shoppers, tourists, business (wo)men swarming the capital city but in the evening the Old Lady is silent. Recently there have been attempts to revitalize Valletta's cultural night life with events such as NOTTE BIANCA where not only shops, but also Valletta's famous churches and palaces stay open to the public until the early hours of the next morning. There is a new hype about Valletta and the nights are slowly becoming alive again. Anyway, the real reason behind it all is a little well-hidden wine bar called TRABAXU. I've heard people talking about it. First people from Valletta, then people from other towns and then people from the other island, Gozo. Wow, that wine bar has made a name for itself already and I, after visiting it, can only join in the praise for this place!

I had to love it: there are interesting black & white portraits gracing the stone walls. Trabaxu oozes authenticity, through and through!

Ok, here a bit of fusion of Maltese and Indian cuisine. Chicken with ginger, suberp!

I am all for mixed platters and cheese platters, I call them my authentic Maltese food. Everything is fresh and top quality and Trabaxu is one of the rare places that serves REAL (famous) Maltese bread, which is still fresh, no matter what time!

Everything comes together here: great atmosphere, cozyness, authenticity, great wine & food, excellent service. Thank you Chris and Krista for a very special evening! Way to go!

And the last one for today:

DELborgo
36, St. John Tower Street, Birgu

I fell in love with DELborgo the first time I visited it. For one, it's situated in Birgu (one of the famous Three Cities) and I love Birgu. For two, it has style: a fusion of the traditional Maltese with modern elements. For three, the wine tastes so much better here and the platters are great.

Here the view from the entrance

A Greek platter, very delicious but not Maltese.
Here, everything has style and class and wait until you have seen the restrooms...
I can only tell everyone to book a table at DELborgo, especially weekends because it's always full of people. DELborgo is definately on the very top of the best wine bars is Malta and it is already a winner because of its location. I can only repeat myself: YOU have to GO there!

Ahhhhhh and now.... what everybody was waiting for, the winner of the evening! It is really a tough choice because all the places we visited had something special about them. But when I'm looking for THE place to go it has to fullfill a long list of criterias: ATMOSPHERE, LOCATION, FOOD & WINE, SERVICE, AUTHENTICITY. Two places were really competing for the title and it's not easy... but....

..... the WINNER is TRABAXU!!!

One thing that it all brought down: the service is one to none. At Trabaxu they know what they are doing and they do it with passion. Their attention to detail in wine & food as well as to decor is even topped by their outstanding customer service and I can only rave about them. So this is my new favourite place to be... and I hope it's going to be yours too!

Enjoy everyone and keep looking out for new reviews!