General Review Details:

• Reviewed Restaurant: Lo Squero
• Review Date: Saturday 28th February 2009
• Current Weather: Warm Sunny Afternoon (18 Degrees)

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Piccante Restaurants Web Awards:

The Piccante Ratings:

Restaurant Ratings:

Restaurant Ambience: 9/10

Restaurant Hygiene & Layout: 8/10

Restrooms Hygiene & Layout: 5/10

Overall Service: 9/10

Value For Money: 8/10

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Food Ratings:

Timing & Followup: 8/10

Presentation: 7/10

Food Taste:9/10

Menu Variety: 10/10

Wine List Variety: 7/10

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Overall Piccante Rating

9/10

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In-Depth Review:

Getting There:

Lo Squero’s location is not the hardest one to find, however it is not a location that you simply just bump into (which is a shame considering our pleasant experience at this restaurant). The restaurant is located a few turns away from the back of public library at Floriana. If you keep heading down the street, where the Hotel Excelsior is located,  you will immediately notice a banner which indicates the next turn to take.

The restaurant itself is facing directly the sea shore and it is situated in a very quite environment. Another good thing is that plenty of parking space is available if you keep heading all the way down, however the road is a little bit rough.

(Banner Indicating Your Next Turn To Lo Squero)
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(The Entrance To Lo Squero)

(The Restaurant Is Facing Directly The Sea Shore)

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The Restaurant:

Lo Squero is set exactly on the sea; therefore you can enjoy unobstructed views of the sea and the opposite shore from your table. The inside of this restaurant is modern but very elegant. First you find a waiting area where you can have an aperitif or a drink on one of the comfortable sofas available. While you are having the drink, you can watch the fish swimming in the aquarium situated near the bar area.

In the restaurant area, the tables are very well set. Everyone would have enough leg room and some privacy. Apart from that, a simple yet interesting feature is the fact that if you would like to have complete privacy, there is a table available, which can be enclosed around with curtains, allowing you to feel completely detached from the rest of the tables. The walls are decorated with paintings which complement the modern yet elegant ambience of the restaurant. Relaxing background music is played, which enhances the environment.

Besides the restaurant area, Lo Squero has also a terrace which is currently (March 09) being renovated. Also another area is available for private functions such as parties, get together, or to simply watch some sports on the big screen available. This area is also equipped with a private bar.

WiFi Connection: Wi-Fi connection is available however it is password protected. The password is provided to interested parties upon request.

(The Comfortable Waiting Area)
.(Inside The Restaurant)
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(Inside The Restaurant)
.(Inside The Restaurant & Private Room)
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The Service:

Once in the restaurant, we were welcomed by a waiter who led us to our table. Once on the table, the Chef himself came to tell us what the fresh fish of the day were. The menus were given to us and after some time we ordered our food. In the meantime some snacks were given. The drinks were served and after some time the starter was served.

Once ready, the empty plates were removed immediately and after reasonable time, the main course was served. Since one of the dishes contained fish, the waiter removed the bones of the fish himself. After that we finished the main course, a dessert menu was given to us from where we could choose our dessert. Overall the service was very good, with very friendly and professional staff always helpful when needed.

(Our Selected Table)
.(The Sea Shore View From Our Selected Table)
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The Food:

Menu: The menu at Lo Squero is quite well varied when it comes to selection and contains some very interesting Italian dishes. On the front page of the menu it  states that “And Important Ingredient In Italian Cuisine Is Time. Occasionally Waiting Is Inevitable“, which however was not the case on our visit since waiting time was very reasonable. The menu starts with an excellent selection of 21 Pizzas to choose from which offer quite a wide range of interesting ingredients as toppings, making 9 of which, suitable for vegetarian.

Moving on, 8 Starters dishes are available on the menu, 3 of which are once again suitable for vegetarians.  An addition to these starters one can also find a good range of 11 Pasta Dishes (2 of which are marked as suitable for vegetarians). An interesting fact about the Pasta at Lo Squero, is that this is one of the specialties and thus it is freshly prepared in the house. Apart from that most of the Pasta fillings consist mainly of fresh seafood ingredients. It was a disappointment however (mostly to David) to see that on such a rich Italian menu, Tortellini was not available amongst the list of available pasta dishes.

Coming up to the Main Course dishes, Lo Squero offers a selection of 11 Different meat dishes to choose from plus an additional 7 fish dishes and 2 Flambe of Meat dishes.  That amounts to 20 different main course dishes to choose from, 31 Dishes if you take into consideration the fact that Pasta dishes can also be taken as Main Course Dish (at an extra charge of 2.50 Euros) and even more if we include the different dishes of the day.As for Desserts, Lo Squero offers a choice of 10 desserts to choose from, plus another 2 Flambe Desserts.

All items on the Menu are very well explained and if you have some basic Italian language fluency, pronouncing them will impress your table mates, since most, if not all of the dishes are listed in their Italian names. This is an interesting feature & well suited for such a rich Italian Menu!

Wine List: A very well varied wine list is available at this restaurant. Wines on the wine list come from all over the world including: Maltese, French, Italian, Spanish, Australian, South African, North American, Chilean, New Zealand’s and German. Obviously, the wines available come from different types such as Red, White, Rose, Dessert Wine, Sparkling and Champagne. If one is searching for a typical region, he could find it in this wine list, because, wines from the major regions such as Burgundy, Bordeaux, Piemonte and many others are all present in this list. All wines available on the list are tagged with the respective region that they come from and have a brief description to help you choose the right wine for your food. The prices are on reasonable scale, obviously varying with the quality of the wine you choose. Our choice was a Californian Woodbridge Rose`, Year 2006.

Our Selection: We started our Meals with Carpaccio Bottini together with La Zuppa Di Cozze Alla Siciliana . La Zuppa Di Cozze was delicious. Piccante is a name that can be easily given to this soup, because it was a little hot. The mussels were very well cooked, leaving them the at the right texture. This starter is surely a perfect plate for a seafood lover. The Carpaccio Bottini consisted of excellent marinated beef fillets, which are a must for any serious meat lover, together with thin sliced Parmesan spread all over the dish which creates a wonderful taste when taken right after a slice of mouthwatering beef.

Following these excellent starters we then went for Calaramata and a special dish of the day, which was very anticipated by Neil, the Cippullazza. As a main course, the fresh Cippullazza (Scaled Scorpion Fish) was fantastic. The tender meat of this fish was excellent. By serving the right sauce with this fish and by cooking it very well, the Chef made this main course a real delicacy. A fish lover must ask for this fish if he visits Lo Squero and will surely be left wanting that this dish doesn’t finish anytime soon. David’s dish, The Calaramata, was prepared using some tasty freshly prepared black pasta rings, submerged in an excellent red sauce filled with fresh herbs, small baby squids that were simply amazing to taste and a hint of Fresh Chili.

Well stuffed by the abundant main course dishes our Dessert selection was made up of La Torta Al Cioccolato and Profiteroles. Accompanied by 2 cups of creamy Cappuccino, these well presented desserts proved to be a worthy way to end up such an excellent Italian Meal.

Our Food Experience: Overall the food served was excellent and definitly with a strong influence and great taste of the Italian Cuisine. Waiting time was kept to a minimum and the overall presentation and preparation of each of the dishes was very good. The fresh use of ingredients was definitly a plus especially when it came to the freshly in-house baked pasta which proved to be fantastic.

(Carpaccio Bottini)
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(Carpaccio Bottini)
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(La Zuppa Di Cozze Alla Siciliana)
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(La Zuppa Di Cozze Alla Siciliana)
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(Cippullazza)
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(Cippullazza)
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(Cippullazza)
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(Calamarata)
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(Calamarata)
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(La Torta Al Cioccolato)
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(Profiteroles)
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The Bill:

Total: Average 60.00 Euros (Two Persons)

The prices on the Menu are at an average of 10~15 Euros Per Dish. The price of the Cippullazza was not requested however it is assumed to vary between 15~25 Euros, of course depending on the weight of the fish served. The price classification of Lo Squero lies in the range of Medium High prices, which combined with the good service provided (which is not charged and left at your discretion) , the excellent taste of food and richness of Italian ingredients used together with the ambience of the restaurant itself, this is a very reasonable price and a provides to a good value for money restaurant.

Our Overall Opinion:

Lo Squero definitly exceeded our expectations right from the start. The restaurant’s location is very ideal if you wish to spend a quiet lunch or dinner, and this factor is complimented even more by the view of the seashore that this restaurant has to offer. Apart from that the design and style of Lo Squero’s interior really struck us, giving it quite a distinctive and poshy look while boasting of several interesting facilities such as a waiting room in the proximity of the bar area and a partitioned table which is able to be converted into your own private room.

The food was also very delicious with some interesting dishes to choose from, while also having quite a good number of available selections for vegetarians.  The in-house pasta and the excellent use of fresh seafood ingredients is definitly a plus for this Italian Cuisine restaurant.  The staff was very friendly provided us with a good quality service.

Lo Squero is definitly a excellent choice for those that have the Italian Cuisine at heart and would like to dine in restaurant that is able to provide good quality food, at reasonable prices, with quality service, and all this in a poshy looking interior facing the sea views.

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