History, culture and the arts are served at MUŻA Restaurant, says Kristina Cassar Dowling

Stepping into a museum – whether it’s your first visit or the umpteenth time you’ve entered the building – is an experience that opens your heart and soul to a whole new dimension.

But what if this artistic experience could also tickle your taste buds?

No, it’s not a temporary food exhibition by some alternative installation artist – rather, it’s a culinary go-to built into MUŻA, the Malta National Community Art Museum. And it is absolutely smashing.

MUŻA Restaurant is situated within the museum, bringing Malta’s fine arts and the culinary arts together for an amalgamation of colour, texture and expression, both in the artworks hung and displayed in the exhibition rooms as well as that curated on every dining plate.

Inspiration surrounds you as you grab a quick coffee booster between meetings in the capital or stop to recharge for lunch outside your Valletta office – the surge of energy is contagious throughout the entire building.

Originally, the Auberge d’Italie housed knights of the Order of St John from the langue of Italy. The original kitchen is the first room that welcomes visitors entering from De Valette Square and today serves as the architecturally astounding bar and café area.

“This room was the auberge’s original kitchen,” says restaurant manager Ivan Calleja. “Heritage Malta retained many of the architectural features during the restoration and conversion process.”

Calleja started working for the parent company two years ago, even though MUŻA Restaurant has only been open to the public for one year.

“We started from concept and design stage and I took a hands-on approach in the creation of this space. This enabled me to deliver passion for the building, its history and its architecture, not to mention its contents.

“The room came to life with the innovation of designer Carlo Schembri and his team. The design here did not only have to look good but it also had to carry some sort of meaning – this was important to the MUŻA team and the proof of the pudding here is clearly in the eating.”

As you walk into the bar and café area, you’re met with a comfortable seating area that is dwarfed by the two-storey ceiling that soars above, giving the room a warmer and more inclusive seating set-up. As you look up towards the beamed ceiling and back down towards the bar the modern furnishings of the room are noted and appreciated – but what stands out the most is a giant draping installation that hangs from the ceiling towards the bar. This is meant to represent a smoke extractor, referring to the original purpose of the auberge’s kitchen.

Il-Varjetà tal-Ħajja

The ingenuity of the design though, does not stop there. On the west wall a storage structure confronts the diners, and although seemingly a simple stack of wooden blocks aligned artistically upon the wall, the grid-like pattern it lays out replicates the gridwork map of Valletta, from Vincent Apap’s Tritons’ Fountain to Fort St Elmo. It’s a tribute to the capital’s architect Francesco Laparelli in the finest manner.

Moving out of the former auberge kitchen and into the hallway, angling your vision towards the authentic corbelled ceiling is a treat for the senses. The original beehive archway has been restored to its former glory and replicated in other areas of the museum. This passage leads to a dining area known as the Donato Room, where the original kitchen attendants used to reside. This room serves as the primary dining room and gives off a subtle romantic energy that is enhanced by the shallow lighting and earthy colour tones.

The palette here is inspired by the unveiled fresco discovered during renovation – it presents a foliage motif that runs horizontally, like a band across the top of the walls. Hues of blue, green and burgundy complement this fresco with the soft furnishings chosen for the room.

The motif is further amplified by means of a white, low-hanging  cube chandelier made out of a laser cut two-millimetre stainless steel material. The cut-out patterns create shadows on the pink walls and embrace a warm atmosphere for diners.

When it comes to the menu, which is inspired by the artworks on display, there’s a great focus on locally sourced and produced dishes that are mostly homemade and carry culinary twists, allowing them to stand out in a building full of masterpieces. A quiet dinner in the Donato Room could headline Iklet il-Bidwi, a dish inspired by Il-Barba by Edward Caruana Dingli featuring a rabbit roulade stuffed with rabbit liver and chicken mousse. This dish carries a hint of fresh citrus and is served with sweet grilled carrots.

“With every dish, we try to exhaust a product as much as we can – sustainability is key in our daily running and no edible part of our produce is wasted,” explained head chef Matthew Schembri. “For our rabbit dish we use the loin, offal and the rest of the rabbit meat to create the roulade. We then use the bones to amplify the sauce in which it is served. Nothing goes to waste in our kitchen.”

Much like the other dishes on the menu at MUŻA Restaurant, every plate is as ethically correct as possible and is ultimately inspired by the artwork carried in the galleries, whether by title, colour, texture or composition. And as you eat, in the Donato Room, Emvin Cremona’s Abstract, exhibited as Malta’s first entry in the Venice Biennale, hangs right before an extremely privileged diner alongside other great masters.

Cocktails at the café-bar area

A lunchtime meal in Malta could very well be enjoyed outdoors and a brisk walk past the Donato Room, beyond the vast array of Antonio Sciortino’s greatest masterpieces, is the courtyard where ample seating and a wonderful setting can be appreciated. Sit by the monumental well and enjoy a homemade beef burger made using Piemonte’s Fassona beef for the Frank Portelli Maltese Traditions dish.

The Pulpetta taċ-Ċanġa is nestled between a wheat and quinoa bun and carries the flavour tones of caramelised onion and local bacon. An extensive wine list will also allow you to fully enjoy your afternoon meal – sat in the courtyard, the Mediterranean sun bouncing off the Maltese limestone as you peer upon Sciortino’s Speed or Arab Horses in the distance.

After dinner, head back to the café-bar area for Five O’Clocktails, where in-house cocktails are prepared to the smooth sounds of live jazz played every Friday evening. A get together in this space is never a disappointment, especially when your intention is to meet, eat and exchange ideas.

If hunger strikes in the later hours, the smooth Torta tal-Ġbejniet, is a satisfying option.

This dish, inspired by local traditions, features a creamy royale of local ġbejniet mixed with eggs and is crowned in a delicate savoury pastry – to add to the taste and texture, it is served with fresh salad leaves and broad beans.

MUŻA Restaurant is a social place where people meet to get inspired. The serenity of the building juxtaposed by the rush of the capital city promotes a surge of creativity that through the visual arts and the art of cooking can instil the highest levels of inspiration.