Rebekah’s Tasting Experience

For about 3 years now, I have deemed Chef Andrew Vella’s cooking as the most accurate to my palate; but I’ve also noted that ‘exciting’ isn’t the first adjective I would use to describe his repertoire. After our dinner on the 18th of December, the last of the 2025 bajtra Tasting Experiences, I think we can update that narrative. 

Not going to lie, we were tired after our eight visits over the last two months, and even though it may sound like the most privileged thing to say out loud, our stomachs are still human and have a limit. Chef Andrew closed our experience with a series of; the already established; impeccable flavours that feed our soul, but we also thought we knew exactly what we were in for. We were very happily surprised, the Rebekah’s menu we experienced on this visit was innovative, bold and undeniably exciting. 

“Today Chef is preparing you a double tasting menu experience; he wants you to share dishes throughout the night and compare the sharpness of each course. We’ll be doing the same with the wine pairings.” As we picked our jaws off the table, perplexed at the effort and focus intended by the house of Rebekah’s, we thanked Francesco (unbiasedly one of bajtra’s favourite sommeliers), looked at each other as he walked away and simultaneously mouthed ‘wow’ to one another. How lucky. 

The snacks that came our way to start off the tasting offered that comforting consistency we crave at Rebekah’s. First the parmesan gougère with Pecorino and molasses. This is an all-in-one bite; the tower of microplane cheese makes it seem like an impossible feat but the moment you, open wide and seal your mouth shut, the shaving relax like a puff of clouds; the dense, yet light goat cheese pop contrasting with the iconic texture of the choux pastry and the sweet molasses, that I feel is a new addition to the dish. Never remove this. 

And more importantly never remove this… the French oyster, crème fraîche, calamansi dashi and hazelnut pot of wonder. It’s nutty, it’s acidic, it’s sweet, it’s airy, it’s creamy, it’s textured, and it’s extra saline from the tears of happiness that trickle down my cheeks every time I eat this. I’m crying right now just thinking about it. 

OK, it’s time for a sub-segment where we pause and understand something so very important about dining in higher-end restaurants. Consistency and expectation. A signature snack is so classy. I find it soothing. I find it rewarding, because it’s like you’re ‘in the know’, because you’ve been here before and you know what to expect. It’s a conversation of commitment.

So keep those signatures Chefs, they give you a threshold. But that doesn’t mean you can’t add on. 

Chef Andrew adds on a cauliflower velouté with a herb-packed savoury parmesan biscuit that add texture to the velvety smooth, light and very cauliflower roux, featuring pops of earthy raw cauliflower and delicious onion at the base of the small bowl. Chef also added a house-made focaccia which according to my notes has a togħma ta’ forn with beautiful air bubbles adding crunch and texture that is almost glass-like; notes of earthy herbs throughout. 

As Marcel cleared our table, he grinned, knowing we were going to be so happy with the next course. He’s seen us around enough to know what we look forward to the most: another constant; one that we mention at least monthly in our house; the fish tartare. I won’t even refer to the menu, I can visualise it layer by layer, aroma, by aroma and inform you, dear reader, that this is ridiculously delicious. Your senses are always aroused by contrast and if Chef Andrew could pin-point his best asset in the kitchen, it would be his ability to contrast texture, flavour and hey kids, this one’s important too… temperature. 

Teeny weeny cubes of red snapper, cute spheres of cucumber, scattered pops of trout roe, fragments of hazelnut, a layer of luscious crème and the fresh aroma of dill is sealed with a layer of pickled daikon. Just here like this, it’s a perfect portion but Chef Andrew, via Marcel in the front of house, dresses the dish in a warm truffle dashi that rounds the dish and elevates it hugely; for a round trip across Asia and France. The umami here is intense, but more importantly, it’s just so balanced. A fine 2024 Graci Etna Bianco left on the lease in stainless steel tanks for a citrus and mineral balance that almost tastes like the essence of the dish itself. 

Across the table, as I started with the tartare; Nina dove into a duck dish that’s newer on the menu. Paired with a 2022 Vicari Essenza, this rich dish combines a foie gras parfait that can make your mouth bleed it’s so damn good, a nori peanut butter quenelle for the best type of odd-combo, a ponzu jus that cuts through the richness with its citrus notes and brings a boldness with the dense bone reduction. And what about the duck? I’m entirely fussy with duck, I’d rather not eat it if it’s not perfect. This medium-rare, skin-less duck I finished. I could have had more, and I thought was texturally accurate. How, but how, do you explain perfection? Let’s cry again. 

Remember we’re on a double tasting menu journey and what’s better than one pasta course… two pasta courses, obviously. (Another course I am extremely judgemental on). 

The parmesan-filled tortellini held a good pasta-thickness to interior-pop ratio, where a creamy interior bursts out of a thin pasta with an almost unnoticeable thickness in the fold. If there’s a pop, I expect super thin pasta. If the fold is too dense, they can be removed from the menu entirely. These thin packages were presented in a brodo of onion sorcery served with spheres of zucchini and carrot and little tubes of green beans, together with a magnificent hit of acidity with pickled onion pearls and a cured egg yolk dusting for richness and a simple route to luxury. 

The neighbouring pasta course was phenomenal also. Decadently light and palate opening monkfish and prawn cannelloni anointed in a rich and creamy prawn head and lemongrass bath that screamed aromatic and howled finesse. The lush interior was so fragrant, you could feel the dill and taste the lemongrass bouncing off the emulsion of character so gracefully expressed in the Rebekah’s kitchen. Both pasta courses were paired with Stein Werk - a marble-cured, 1g residual sugar white, high in acidity and very mineral to play off the tones of the parmesan and the prawn in each dish. 

The next wine course carried notes of hay and slate due to the process of oak, steel and in-bottle fermentation of the 2021 Xisto Ilimitado Douro. This next course was probably the tax-xewk moment in this tax-xewk experience for me tonight. And to all those Chefs who’ve been highlighted for their fish dishes; that means you really blew my mind, made my heart skip a beat and gave me a true food critic experience. 

Served in Chef’s nanna’s plate, a floral piece of artwork given to her as a wedding gift; reborn as vessel for seabass, a verjus and saffron sauce accompanied by a Provencal ratatouille. Simplicity at its finest, in my humble opinion. First of all… preparing an accurate ratatouille is a triumph. When people say they don’t like ratatouille, ciambotta, pisto, lecsó, kapunata or any other regional version, it’s totally understandable. Most attempts are lousy to say the least; but when done well, by golly the flavour can be almost too much for the tastebuds and olfactory system to comprehend. Chef Vella’s version is absolutely accurate, with a level of acidity that allows you to keep on eating, a caper/olive intensity that shines so brightly and a pickled zucchini top-layer that elevates the dish visually, thematically and in flavour. 

Verjus is often tart and acidic, a non-alcoholic juice of unripened grapes that when paired with saffron and infused with a delicious parsley-forward cream such as Chef Andrew’s, develops a  bright and luscious infusion for a delicate seabass to play with. The fish presented two textures; delicious and delicious-er with a crisp skin and light flesh. I love that my palate has grown more accepting of fish. I'm so grateful to appreciate these delicate flavours prepared by Malta’s greatest Chefs. 

The last savoury course, a first for both bajtra and the world. A… get this… mazzit stuffed rabbit leg, served alongside a tender miso-poached pumpkin steak, black and cannellini beans cooked down with bacon and a cherry sauce. A beautiful cross-section highlights the tightly rolled roulade of rabbit, delicate and clean, filled generously with a so distinctly Maltese black pudding, the chocolate aromas humming through and harmonising with the cherry that is complimented by the acidity of the 2021 Zuccardi Q Malbec. We spoke about the beans Chef. 

If you pay attention to the detail at Rebekah’s from the embroidered tablecloths to the immaculate bar, you’d realise that this dish was also intentional. Notes of cherry and chocolate playing with your palate to transition to the pre-dessert that featured clove-forward caramelized pears, fresh and tart red currants and a light porcini dust. A transition of clean, refreshing and comforting flavours that remind you ‘tis the season, the allure of the fireplace making things a lot more cheery. 

“Now we have a fun sweet-ending; something that I think you may not have tried yet.” And of course Francesco was right, we had not tasted this liquor; in fact we had not tasted any of the wines he brought out for us. Chamomile liquor folks. What, where, when, how, why have I never had this? And paired with a lemon tart so lemony you’ll pucker right up, served with a sumac biscuit in all its buttery-snap goodness balanced out with macerated melon pearls, light and very very welcome at the end of this generous meal. 

But where’s the chocolate you say? In the shinier-than-the-plate-we-just-licked-clean Valhorana dark chocolate mousse on a sable and crowned with Tia Maria gel. Because that one bite rounds off the palate just enough, satisfies your soul with those theobromine compounds. 

2025. You’ve been good. No you’ve been deliciously great. And finishing off at Rebekah’s with Chef Andrew Vella welcoming us so kindly, so generously and so overwhelmingly deliciously closed off bajtra’s first year with the touch of a master of flavour.