Il Gambero — Restaurant in Żebbuġ

When we arrived we were pleasantly welcomed into the restaurant where we made a reservation a few weeks before. It all started well, with the ordering of the drinks and then the food. The order of the food was taken via a tablet. Some time has passed and the manager, or the owner of the restaurannt (not sure), came by and advised to two of us that their fish platter will arrive late. Fine. We almost finished our starter when their platter came. In the meantime electricity was lost in Marsalforn. The restaurant did not have a backup electricity plan outdoors. We ate with dim light coming from the street lights and the restaurant next door. Okay, not the restaurant's fault this time round.... Moving on. It was time for the main course, the manager/owner came around explaining that the oven was electric and the chicken ordered was half cooked. He asked whether the guest was happy with chicken pasta. More time passed and they started serving our main courses. All but one, were served on the table. Manager / owner came and explained that the salmon was burned. Solution offered salmon pasta or they re-do the salmon. Guest went for a different option which manager / owner explained it would take 6 minutes to cook. Everyone else started eating, around 15minutes later the last guest was served her main course - we were almost done from our mains at this point. In the meantime, electricity came back! Then dessert time came up - we ordered. Desserts were all served, except one which was a serving of pistacchio ice cream. It was sold out, guest did not want anything as replacement. I understand that mishaps and mistakes happen, but this was a bit too much for just one table in my opinion! It was literally a roller coaster of what might go wrong next... We were served a limoncello shot on the house, but this was a standard in most Gozitan restaurants, which I dont think compensated for everything. The food on the whole was okay, but nothing extraordinary. The rating is 3 stars and not less because of the Toni the waiter who was very friendly and a breathe of fresh air being able to speak in our mother tongue in a restaurant for a change - such a rare...

First, the atmosphere was really nice, sitting in front of a calm sea. The service was also good, even though they gave us the wrong order once. Unfortunately the food didn't meet my expectations.

The mixed seafood platter was great, but the chicken burger was dry. Also the roasted potatoes, which you get when you order the main dish, the texture as well as the herbs combination was very weird, that we weren't able to finish that. The chicken fusili with pesto was just ok, but i expect more, since Malta is technically also famous for its pasta, also with pesto. We got a free Bruschetta, but it tastes weird, cannot describe it, but it's not the bruschetta...

This evening, my diving partner and I dined by the sea in Gozo. The seaside tables, along with the quality and efficiency of the service and the warmth of the staff, were truly exceptional. For starters, we ordered Brie cheese with honey and grilled calamari, both of which were remarkably flavorful. For the main course, we selected a large deep-sea fish, one of the fresh catches of the day. It was delicately cooked in aluminum foil with zucchini, olives, and fresh herbs. The staff kindly cleaned and prepared the fish for us. I would highly recommend this establishment to anyone seeking an excellent and well-deserved dining...