Taste of Vietnam — Restaurant in Birgu

I visited Taste of Vietnam for dinner during my stay in Birgu, Malta. If you're thinking, why would I get Vietnamese food while visiting Malta? Well, why not?? Plus, they serve delicious food, in a beautiful atmosphere, and offer very friendly service.

I came here alone during a solo trip. I was craving East Asian / South East Asian food of any kind because it is my favourite back home in Canada. I was happy to find Taste of Vietnam as it was a short walk from where I was staying.

First off, the service was excellent. The staff were all very friendly and welcoming. The woman who I think was the owner and/or cook personally checked in with me to see I was enjoying my food.

To start, I was given extra/bonus items I didn't order but happily consumed, a tiny appetizer (I believe shrimp chips) and a cocktail. I ordered fried wontons (excellent) and a spicy chicken dish (don't recall the name, also excellent). I chose the chicken and ordered the spiciest level (3 peppers) because I was craving some spice and I assumed they would underspice it. Well, I was wrong, it was definitely 3 pepper symbols level spicy! But it tasted amazing and I had no regrets!

I should also mention the interior of this place is beautiful! It has the typical Birgu/Maltese stone walls but with Vietnamese decor.

I would happily return here and I highly recommend visitors or locals to check it out! I wanted to come back and try another dish but I was only in...

On Friday, I visited your establishment and was rather disappointed with the overall experience. While the food was of acceptable quality, surpassing the average, it certainly did not justify the price point. The portion sizes were modest, and several menu items were unavailable, including two out of three soups and desserts. Additionally, the texture of the meatball soup was somewhat off-putting, with a processed quality that detracted from the dining experience. The service, while prompt, was marred by the unpleasant body odor emanating from the waitstaff. This, coupled with their apparent lack of training and professionalism, created an unwelcoming atmosphere. The ambiance of the restaurant also left much to be desired. The décor, featuring cheap-looking Asian lanterns, was underwhelming and lacked refinement. Furthermore, the background music, consisting of dubbed Western songs performed by Vietnamese singers, was jarring and incongruous with the overall setting. In conclusion, while the food was passable, the combination of subpar service, limited menu options, and a lackluster atmosphere significantly diminished the overall dining experience. I believe that with greater attention to detail and a commitment to quality across all aspects of the business, your establishment could offer a much more satisfying experience for...

Staff were friendly and the food was good (the mushroom summer rolls were a particular highlight), but they had run out of a couple of key ingredients when we arrived at 8.30pm. They had no fried rice left (?!) and had also run out of tofu, so couldn’t provide any of the three dishes we originally ordered.

The only vegan (VE) labelled options on the menu contain tofu, so I asked the staff if other dishes could be made vegan (dishes which were labelled V for vegetarian) and there was a lot of confusion as to whether these vegetable dishes were vegan or not - the staff did not seem to understand, and the menu has them as V rather than VE so it is a bit unclear for customers.

It was concerning that staff didn’t seem totally sure what the difference is between veggie and vegan - perhaps some more staff training would help with this. E.g the spring rolls - why are they not labeled as vegan when staff think they are?

We ended up having mushroom summer rolls, vegan curry with steamed rice and the veggie fried noodles - the...