General Review Details:

• Reviewed Restaurant: Paranga
• Review Date: Thursday 15th September 2009
• Current Weather: Rainy Afternoon (23 Degrees)

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Piccante Restaurants Web Awards:

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The Piccante Ratings:

Restaurant Ratings:

Restaurant Ambience: 9/10

Restaurant Hygiene & Layout: 9/10

Restrooms Hygiene & Layout: 8/10

Overall Service: 9/10

Value For Money: 8/10

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Food Ratings:

Timing & Followup: 9/10

Presentation: 9/10

Food Taste: 10/10

Menu Variety: 7/10

Wine List Variety: 8/10

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Overall Piccante Rating

9/10

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In-Depth Review:

Getting There:

Paranga is not a very difficult restaurant to find. It is situated at St. George’s Bay at St. Julians. Once you are near the bay, you will immediately notice Paranga on the right hand side of the bay, you cannot miss it. Parking is not very easy to find near Paranga because this is a very busy area. You can park in the parking offered by The Intercontinental Hotel or else try to find a spot in the surrounding areas.

(Paranga From A Distance)
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(Nicely Situated Above The Water)

(The Paranga Restaurant Logo)

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(A Staircase Leading To The Pizzeria, Which Is Closed During Winter)
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The Restaurant:

Paranga is a very well situated restaurant. On the entrance to the restaurant you will find a bar area were you can enjoy a drink. The bar area is equipped with sofas and is directly on the sea. When we say that this restaurant is situated on the sea it is because it is really situated on the sea, and you can actually see the water underneath the restaurant’s floor (watch out if you happen to be wearing stilettos).

The main restaurant area is equipped with a good number of tables which are situated directly on the sea from where you can enjoy the views surrounding St. George’s Bay. The restaurant is surrounded with plastic walls which can be closed or opened according to the current weather. Also, Paranga has another area which is at street level which is used as a Pizzeria in summer. The tables are not packed together and therefore there is some space between tables, which make the stay more comfortable. Moreover, some relaxing background music is played. The relaxing atmosphere is boosted by the gentle sound on the water underneath the restaurant.

WiFi Connection: We have detected two unsecured Wi-Fi Hotspots at Paranga. It is very common to find free public Wi-Fi Hotspots in this area, so we cannot state that Paranga was the actual host. However having said that, an internet connection is still freely available at the restaurant.

(The Bar & Waiting Area)
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(Tables Available On The Terrace)
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(You Can Dine While Enjoying The Bay View)
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(A Fresh Selection Of Fish Was Available)
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The Service:

At the entrance we were welcomed by the Head Waiter. After greeting us he led us to our table. Instantly, a waitress came to ask whether we would like something to drink before we start looking at the menus. After that we ordered some water, which was served immediately, the menus were brought and the head waiter made some suggestions which were very helpful.

After some time, we gave our order. A bottle of wine which we ordered was served immediately, and after some reasonable time, the starter was served. When we finished the starter the empty plates were removed immediately and after some more time, the main course was served. The waiters at Paranga checked from time to time that everything was going well and whether a refill to the wine and water glasses was needed.

Overall, the service at Paranga was exceptional. The staff was very professional, friendly and helpful when needed, which surely helps the restaurant to retain its clientele.

(Our Selected Table)
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(The Calming View From Our Table)
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The Food:

Menu: Paranga offers contemporary Sicilian cuisine with local influences & specialties and this is without doubt well manifested in the menu that available. All entries on the menu are listed in both their native language (Italian) as well as English.

The menu is divided into 6 different categories, the first one being Antipasti / Starters. With 7 different starter dishes to choose from, one can either opt for seafood (Whitebait, Prawns, Salmon or Baby Calamari) or perhaps a Sicilian specialty dish such as Prosciutto San Daniele e melone Cantalupo. It was also very interesting to note that the Salmon, is actually smoked in-house with oak leaves. The selection of starters is extended even further with the availability of 3 different soups to choose from.

The next category brings to us a vast selection of 10 Pasta dishes, which one normally should expect from any Sicilian / Italian cuisine restaurant. Seafood is once again highly evident in this category and it comprises of the main ingredient in 6 out of 10 pasta dishes. Another interesting dish within this category is the Spaghetti all’astice (Spaghetti with lobster), which can be either taken to serve one or two persons. One should also note that although there is no indication whatsoever, all the pasta dishes can be ordered as a 100G Starter dish.

Moving on to the Main Course dishes, these are sub-divided into two distinct categories; Secondi Di Mare (Seafood) and Secondi Di Terra (basically red / white meats). 5 different seafood dishes are offered, including the availability of seasonal fresh fish. For the meat lovers, an additional 6 different meat dishes are available, comprising of lamb, beef, pork, steak and chicken.

To end up your meal, a wonderful choice of 8 different desserts is available. Overall there was no indication whether any of these dishes are suitable for vegetarians, even though such dishes are available on the menu.

Wine List: A well varied wine list is available at this restaurant. Wines on the wine list come from all over the world, Maltese, Italian, French, Spanish, Chilean, South African, Australian, New Zealand and Argentinian. Obviously, the wines available come from different types such as Red, White and Rose. The wine at Paranga is medium priced, obviously varying with the quality of wine you choose. Our choice was a wine from Malta, Grand Vin De Hauteville from Delicata.

Our Selection: To commence our meal, we were offered a platter of 4 different starters. These included the “Soute di cozze e vongole” (Mussels and clams sauté), the “Passata di ceci con gamberi e lardo di Colonnata, al profumo di rosmarino” (Prawns wrapped in crispy pancetta served on a chickpea puree’and rosemary jus), the “Calamari in guazzetto di pomodoro con crostini” (Baby calamari cooked in a white wine and cherry tomato sauce with crostini) and “Schiacciata di bianchetto al timo e salsa di arance” (Grilled whitebait dressed with a thyme and orange reduction). The mussels and clams were of an excellent taste and flawlessly cooked to keep their texture. The prawns were very good, and the chickpea puree together with the bacon wrapping, made it an unusual yet appetizing dish. The thinly sliced baby calamari were very succulent and the white wine and cherry tomato sauce was simply the ideal companion to the dish. The last part of our starters’ platter consisted of some wonderfully grilled Whitebait accompanied by thyme and orange dressing.

As for main course, Neil opted for a highly anticipated Pasta dish, the Linguine ai ricci di mare (Linguine with fresh Sea Urchins). The dish had simply a remarkably brilliant tang. The taste of the sea urchin sauce is just amazing. It just accompanies perfectly the surrounding sea and by hearing the sea underneath you just makes you imagine that you are sitting on a beach eating some fresh sea urchins.

David decided to go for a meat dish and chose the Filetto di manzo ai ferri o con salsa a scelta (Grilled fresh fillet of beef served plain or with a sauce of your choice), which the sauce of choice being that of mushroom (ai ferri) (Ordered Medium Rare: Click Here To See Possible Degrees Of Cooking Of Beef Fillet). The fillet of beef was surprisingly cooked to an admirable degree of perfection. It was defiantly a dish to enjoy at every single nibble.  The fillet was also accompanied by some nicely diced roast potatoes and well presented steam vegetables.

To end up our brilliant main course dishes some delicious desserts were ordered. Neil had the Tortino al cioccolato dal cuore morbido, which is a warm chocolate tart. It was very good, especially the warm chocolate filling. David went for Traditional Tiramisú which was as delicious as it looked!

Our Food Experience: Overall the food at Paranga was exquisite. The delicious taste of the seafood served as a starter, the linguine with the sea urchins and the fillet of beef were all wonderful. Each dish was enjoy from the first to last bite! We were told that there is a new chef at Paranga, and from here we would like to congratulate him for the excellent food he prepared. Keep it up!

(Passata di ceci con gamberi, Calamari in guazzetto)
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(Schiacciata di bianchetto, Soute di cozze e vongole)
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(Filetto di manzo ai ferri o con salsa a scelta)
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(Filetto di manzo ai ferri o con salsa a scelta)
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(Linguine ai ricci di mare)
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(Linguine ai ricci di mare)
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(Tiramisú Tradizionale)
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(Tortino al cioccolato dal cuore morbido)
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The Bill:

Average Total: 60.00 Euros (Two Persons)

The average price range for dishes available at Paranga is at around 15~18 Euros. The restaurant prices fall into a Medium High category, however one should take into consideration the excellent service offered, the fantastic taste of food, the well situated venue just above the sea and the fresh ingredients that are used in all of the dishes served.

Our Overall Opinion:

The visit to Paranga was more then just satisfactory. The location is very convenient and you can enjoy the nice surroundings and sea view  while eating at Paranga. The food served is of excellent quality and the service provided by the staff is very professional. Surely, when you visit this restaurant, you would be looking forward to your next. Paranga is definitely a restaurant which you should not miss! Especially if you are a big fan of Sicilian cuisine and you would not give up a dish of fresh seafood or a pasta for anything in the world.

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