Under Grain executive chef Victor Borg, who has spearheaded the One Michelin Star restaurant for the past three years, has been hand-picked by the gastronomy world’s most prestigious Guide to participate in its distinguished Michelin Four Hands event.
The Michelin Four Hands are regular collaborative dinners that see international top-rated chefs team up to curate a tasting menu specifically for one night.
These one-off cooking collaborations give the chosen chef the chance to present their own signature dishes or new ones crafted with the hosting chef.
Four Hands has been described by Michelin as “globe-trotting collaborations [that] transcend cultural boundaries” encouraging culinary maestros to break out of their comfort zones, serving as invaluable opportunities that broaden personal and culinary horizons.
The Four Hands event will see Borg collaborate with chef patron Victor Garvey from London Soho’s Sola restaurant, also a One Michelin Star, inspired by Californian cuisine and offering an all-American wine list – the only one of its kind in Europe.
Borg is the brains and talent that steered Under Grain to Michelin star success just five months after opening when the Guide first launched in Malta in 2020. The restaurant has retained the accolade for three consecutive years.
I humbly believe our creations – or expressions of art as I like to call them – will be received positively
Garvey opened Sola in 2019 following international opportunities and invokes the Golden State (California) in everything that is done within the restaurant.
The Four Hands event is taking place at Sola on August 2 with an exclusive guest list of just 30 people including Michelin influencers and Malta Tourism Authority (MTA) representatives.
The chefs will curate a tasting menu consisting of six courses, with both chefs preparing three each. The tasting menu which will have Maltese influence will be paired with Maltese wine which will be flown in from Malta specifically for this event.
“It’s a privilege to have been chosen by Michelin for this prestigious event,” Borg said.
“It has been a childhood dream of mine to produce my own work internationally while also shining a light on Maltese gastronomy. I’m delighted to meet such a creative mind as chef patron Victor Garvey and I humbly believe our creations – or expressions of art as I like to call them – will be received positively.”
These collaborative dinners open chefs to a world of techniques and kitchen challenges that also serve as a learning experience while opening palates to local produce. Culinary maestros get to experience the dynamics of cooking with foreign cuisine while also being awarded the opportunity to dip their toes into another market and familiarise themselves with new techniques and audiences.