Créé par Emilie, le 20 juin 2026
Votre guide Ryo
Top 10 Culinary Specialties of Valletta
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1- The pastizzi
Here is the quintessential Maltese snack. It's a small puff pastry filled with fresh ricotta. You might find pastizzi stuffed with a pea cream, but the traditional one is made with ricotta. It's not difficult to get some. You just have to walk down the street until you find a kiosk that offers them. Otherwise, go to a bar, pizzeria, restaurant or bakery to buy your treat. There's no specific time to eat a pastizz, so enjoy yourself!
2- The gbejna
Gbejna is a traditional Maltese cheese. It's made from sheep or goat milk and can be consumed in several ways. You can find it in restaurants in its most natural form, preserved in its whey. But it can also be found rubbed with salt or seasoned with pepper, herbs or dried in the sun.
3- The fenkata
Fenkata is considered the Maltese culinary specialty. This dish is appreciated by all locals and tourists who have had the opportunity to taste it. It's a rabbit stew marinated in red wine then sautéed with garlic. As accompaniment, it's common to have potatoes. However, during festive periods, spaghetti is soaked in the stew's sauce and served like that.
4- The ravjul
As mentioned at the very beginning, Maltese cuisine draws inspiration from its neighbors to create their local specialties. I think you've guessed it, ravjul remind us of Italian ravioli. In Malta, this traditional recipe has been adapted by adding local products. These ravioli are homemade and stuffed with eggs, parsley and ricotta, all served with a tomato and basil sauce. It's also possible to find them with the quintessential Maltese cheese: gbejna.
5- The bragioli
Bragioli is a very popular dish throughout the entire island. It consists of beef rolls wrapped in bacon. A hard-boiled egg, garlic and parsley are added. Everything is sautéed in olive oil before being served in a delicious tomato and red wine sauce. It's traditionally served with potatoes.
6- The lampuki
Obviously, due to its geographical position, Malta has specialties that lean towards Mediterranean cuisine. Lampuki could be considered the Maltese national fish. Lampuki is actually a dolphinfish, found only in oceans near tropical and subtropical regions. However, it can also be found in the Mediterranean, but this remains rare. On the other hand, in Malta, dolphinfish can be found without too much difficulty. It's cooked with a spicy tomato sauce, capers, olives, garlic and mint. A real dose of freshness that doesn't hurt when summer temperatures show up. In restaurants, you can find lampuki in another form. The "torta tal-lampuki" is a pie stuffed with spinach, cauliflower, walnuts and raisins.
7- The ftira
Ftira is the quintessential Maltese bread. It has the particularity of being flat, round-shaped with a hole in the middle. It's widely used to make sandwiches. The bread is baked in a wood-fired oven, giving it additional flavor. Traditionally, the bread is coated with olive oil, tomatoes, onion and garlic. It's somewhat similar to a bagel.
8- The aljotta
Aljotta is Malta's most popular soup. It's a fish soup, notably with sprat, sardines and bogues that are completely cleaned. To add extra flavor, garlic and tomatoes are added. The soup is usually served hot with slices of toasted bread and sprinkled with parsley.
9- Imqaret
Imqaret is a sweet treat very similar to makrout of Maghreb origin. As mentioned earlier, Maltese cuisine draws inspiration from Italian specialties but also from Tunisian, Moroccan, Libyan or Algerian gastronomy. The difference between imqaret and makrout is the base of the preparation. Imqaret is made with flour while in the Maghreb, they are made with semolina. Otherwise, everything is almost similar. Imqaret are flavored with orange blossom and filled with date paste flavored with cloves, orange zest and anise.
10- The cisk
Cisk is the Maltese national beer. It's a blonde beer produced by the island's main beverage producer, Simonds Farsons Cisk. The brewery has expanded their product range with the popularity that the blonde beer enjoys. Now, you can savor several varieties on a beautiful terrace to refresh yourself.
