If you only have time for a few Maltese tastes, start with pastizzi, ħobż biż-żejt or ftira, a proper rabbit dinner and a warm imqaret. You can find all of them around St Julian's, mostly on foot, and then finish with a drink on a terrace at St George's Bay. Lampuki, Malta's autumn fish, is in season now, so it's worth asking for it.
Maltese food is rustic, seasonal and a little stubborn about it. Its roots are Sicilian and Italian, with Arab and North African touches and plenty of island improvisation. It's best eaten at a counter, a long family table or a cellar dining room, not off a tasting menu.
Rabbit is the national dish, and the Maltese will defend that with the energy of football fans.
Here's how we'd eat our way around St Julian's, in three blocks: snacks and lunch, dinner, then something sweet. You don't need to do it all in one go, and no one will judge you for coming back for a second pastizz.
Pastizzi and a Maltese lunch in St Julian's
Some of the best Maltese food is the simplest: a paper bag of pastizzi still warm from the oven, or crusty bread rubbed with ripe tomato, olive oil, tuna and capers. It's everyday cooking, eaten on the go or at a table beside the fishing boats, and Malta has been perfecting it for generations. Even UNESCO has recognised the island's ftira, which says plenty about how seriously the Maltese take their bread.
Pastizzi on St George's Road
Pastizzi are Malta's everyday food. They're very flaky pastries filled with ricotta (tal-irkotta) or spiced mushy peas (tal-piżelli), and they're best eaten hot, within minutes of leaving the oven.
Il Forno di San Giuliano is our local stop. It's a neighbourhood bakery at 131 Triq San Ġorġ (St George's Road), open early and popular for pastizzi, filled rolls, pastries and coffee. It's close to the bay, so it's an easy way to start the day.
Order one ricotta and one pea, and eat them straight away. A pastizz that's been sitting around loses its crisp, and yes, you'll want a second one.
If you're passing through Sliema or Is-Swieqi, Maxims Pastizzeria has branches on Triq Rodolfu in Sliema and Triq Sant'Andrija in Is-Swieqi.
Flaky, warm and gone in three bites: pastizzi are Malta's favourite excuse to stop
Ħobż biż-żejt and ftira at Spinola Bay
The simplest Maltese lunch is also one of the best. Ħobż biż-żejt is crusty bread rubbed with ripe tomato and dressed with olive oil, tuna, onion, capers and olives. Ftira uses a hand-shaped sourdough loaf, split and filled with similar ingredients. UNESCO recognised Maltese ftira in 2020.
Gululu sits right on Spinola Bay, at 133 Spinola Bay, beside the fishing boats. We love it for the setting and for how much of the Maltese table it puts in one place. The menu includes bigilla (a dip of dried broad beans and garlic, eaten with galletti crackers), ftira biż-żejt, aljotta and rabbit.
If you are unsure what to order, we recommend to start with the bigilla and ftira biż-żejt to share. Then see how hungry you are. It's open for lunch and dinner, and if you're coming for a meal, book a table.
Rabbit and a Maltese dinner in St Julian's
A fenkata is more than a meal. It's a shared rabbit feast, and it usually starts with spaghetti in the rabbit sauce, then moves on to fried rabbit (fenek moqli) or braised rabbit (stuffat tal-fenek). The first-timer's trick is to share. Two starters, one pasta and one rabbit main is plenty for two moderate eaters.
Three places in the walking zone make good dinners, and they're very different from one another.
L-Għonnella for old Malta
L-Għonnella is in Church Street, in the cellar of the historic Spinola Palace. The Gauci family has run it since 1986, and the stone room does much of the work. It's the most old school of the three.
Look for widow's soup (soppa tal-armla), rabbit spaghetti, octopus stew, braġjoli and pan-fried rabbit with garlic and red wine. Braġjoli, by the way, are beef olives, and they contain no olives. The name comes from the rolled shape.
If you're booking, check its current opening times first. It's a smaller operation than some of its neighbours, and it's worth a quick call.
La Maltija for a small room
La Maltija is at 1 Church Street and has served Maltese food since 1991. It's an intimate dining room, open for dinner only, with rabbit, rabbit pasta, seafood and cannoli on the menu.
It's a good pick when you'd like a quieter, more personal meal. Dinner is the only service, so plan your evening around it.
Gozitan for the widest range
Gozitan is at 46 Triq Paceville and has been serving Maltese and Gozitan cooking since 2007. It's open from midday into the late evening, and it's the most central place to taste several classics at once.
Its menu covers aljotta (a garlicky tomato-and-herb fish soup), rabbit, braġjoli, ġbejna ravioli, snails, octopus stew, fish cakes and imqaret. Our advice is to order the antipasto to share, then either aljotta and rabbit, or ġbejna ravioli and octopus. That gives you a much wider introduction than everyone ordering a big main.
We'd call it a classic, and you can book a table online.
Maltese sweets and bakeries near St Julian's
Maltese desserts taste of the island's past: Sicilian ricotta, Arab dates, almonds and citrus, with a British pudding or two for good measure. Many follow the calendar, so there's a sweet for Christmas, Lent, Easter and Carnival, and some only appear when the season does. Follow your nose to a warm imqaret or a freshly filled kannol, and you'll see why people plan their trips around them.
Imqaret, warm from the pan
Imqaret are crisp fried pastries filled with spiced date paste. They're best warm, and restaurants often serve them with ice cream. Gozitan has imqaret on the menu, which makes it an easy finish to the meal.
Kannoli at Busy Bee
For kannoli tal-irkotta, the crisp tubes filled with sweetened ricotta, head to Busy Bee. It's a family business founded in Msida in 1933, and its Sliema café is at 38 Triq ix-Xatt tas-Sliema, a short ride or walk along the seafront from St Julian's. Open until 10pm.
Order a fresh kannol and a coffee, and eat it quickly, since the shells soften over time.
Sweets that follow the calendar
Depending on the time of the year you are visiting, look out for seasonal treats too. Qagħaq tal-għasel (honey rings, although they're filled with treacle) are a Christmas favourite. Kwareżimal is the chewy Lenten biscuit, figolli are Easter's almond-paste shapes and prinjolata is the Carnival dome of cake, cream and nuts. If one is in the window, buy it.
End the trail on a terrace at St George's Bay
After all that eating and walking, you've earned a seat. The best way to finish is a terrace at the bay in the early evening, when the light turns golden, the sky picks up pink and peach colours, and the water holds the glow. It's the part of the day we love most.
St George's Bay is an excellent choice to end a day of food exploring. The bay has several excellent terraces overlooking the water. We love the terrace at Matto, especially if you are in a group and want an easy, sociable evening. Tanvi suits a slower, more shared evening. Also, Tatel is another strong option, with its own setting overlooking the water, for when you want somewhere with a little more occasion.
Questions about Maltese food
What is a fenkata?
A fenkata is a shared rabbit meal. It usually begins with spaghetti in rabbit sauce, then moves on to fried or braised rabbit. It's much better with a few people, so everyone can try a little of each.
Are pastizzi vegetarian?
The traditional ricotta and pea fillings contain no meat, but chicken and other fillings exist, so check before ordering.
What's the difference between Maltese ftira and Gozitan ftira?
Maltese ftira is a hand-shaped sourdough loaf, usually split and filled. Gozitan ftira is a baked bread-dough dish topped with potato, tomato, onion, capers and sometimes cheese or meat. Menus use the same word for both, so it helps to ask.
Is lampuki available all year?
No. It's a seasonal fish that usually appears from late August into December. If you're visiting in autumn, ask for torta tal-lampuki.
Is it worth trying snails or horsemeat?
Only if you're curious. Snails (bebbux) turn up at places like Gozitan and are best shared as a starter. Horsemeat stew is traditional but not essential for a first visit.
Can you do the whole trail in one day?
You can, but we'd spread it out. A pastizz, a shared lunch, a fenkata dinner and a kannol is a lot of eating, and the best Maltese food is the kind you take your time over.