Walking the streets of Valletta on Sunday night, a pizzeria grabbed my attention. Cibo looks American and trendy while promising an Italian experience. As a first impression: service is very slow, garlic is everywhere in the tomato sauce, pasta dishes, and tomato pizzas. Outside, the seating is dark and not lit; I was not excited to sit until I made sure the google maps rating is acceptable.
Second impression; I checked the website where nicely done photos make your mouth water and the description of what an “Osteria” is. Nothing about the food. Third impression; the restaurant doesn’t have canned soft drinks, and the waiter doesn’t mention that you will be receiving draft un-carbonated excessively sweet cola that is undrinkable.
On the menu: antipasti, Insalata, pasta, pizza Rossa, pizza Bianca, risotto, griglia e Cucina, bimbi, dolci. I ordered the only no-garlic pasta with meat and cabernet sauce, calamari fritti, pumpkin cream goat cheese and nuts pizza, risotto with vegetables and creamy ricotta.
Forget about the not-so-pleasant details in a “touristic” city; food is good enough. Non-oily and crispy calamari is served with a very sweet sauce. A good pizza crust with fluffy borders, generously loaded with walnuts, juicy and tasty but unfortunately too salty. The solution is to drizzle with olive oil and add sprinkle some Parmesan. 10/10 for the crust chef, 3/10 for the ingredients.
Now the risotto: tell me, is this photo acceptable? Doesn’t it speak for itself? A salad, much more than a risotto, covered with crunchy bitter purple cabbage, goat cheese and bathing in water.
The pasta is cooked al dente, needs a load of salt, requires cheese and has a certain thickness to its cream which I didn’t appreciate much. Not my kind of food at all!
Sorry, I won’t come again; food is way too touristic; a lack of attention and passion. Probably machines are cooking inside and surely not skilled Italian chefs.
