Half buried in alley number 6 in St Lucy Street, Naxxar, you will come across a very quaint, restored farmhouse called Ta’ Marku. From the outside you’d think it’s that little house we were brought up to believe Hansel and Gretel were lured into. Though not made of sweets, there are several ingredients which you might find inside this place that have the makings of a bestseller.
It has an overwhelmingly atmospheric sense of time and place, and the rooms, though small, are spacious enough to have a good seating capacity thanks to the round tables. It is a cosy place, and the owner – a cheerful man who goes by the name of Edward – tells me that he is thinking of renovating one of the rooms upstairs to make the place more accommodating.
Among the various objects that clutter the place in a way that conjures the idea that the house is inhabited, are some small cages with artificial birds. Edward observes me checking them out, and quickly explains that the cages are symbolic, since the owner of the house was a cage-maker.
I’m here with Pierre Portelli – the famous contemporary Maltese artist who has an inborn talent for reducing ideas to visual elements that could knock you off your feet. His installation, titled Feel, exhibited in Austria and Italy is a clear example of this man’s superbly twisted creativity. He used over 200 brooms for it! His charming wife, Georgina, is one of his biggest supporters in his creative adventures.
I fully intend to make use of Pierre’s creative mind to ask him some razor-sharp questions. It’s always exciting to dive into creative bliss and see how one looks at other people through their personal kaleidoscope.
After listening to the colourful stories Edward regales us with for about 15 minutes, we are finally ready to check out the menu.
For the small place it is, they have a very decent wine menu with a selection of Maltese reds, whites and rosés for the local patriots, and for the more adventurous kind
Ta’ Marku have some interesting New World wines to choose from.
Pierre piously goes through the selection of reds, and is obviously excited by the New World wines. Maybe his next art installation will involve wine bottles – and if that happens – we will all know where his inspiration came from!
His pick is a Wyndham’s Estate – Bin 555 Shiraz from Australia (Finally! It takes him ages to choose) which he assures me will be fantastic. “You can never go wrong with a Shiraz”, he says sounding like Liza Minelli prior to her Betty Ford days.
When I do get to taste the Shiraz, during the wine-tasting ceremony that has Edward double-up as the sommelier, I can’t help but agree with Pierre. It’s complex, full, showing some powerful fruit flavours combined with fine tannins, and a generous balance of integrated oak. We let it breathe for some time while Edward disappears into the kitchen to prepare a surprise platter.
I say “surprise platter” because we do not physically get a food menu. Edward tells us that he would fix a lovely platter for the two of us. He also informs us that on weekends he serves more complex food like rabbit, lamb, chicken, etc. and can cater for diabetics and coeliacs, on pre-order. A fortunate discovery, since not many cater for people with this condition.
For being a Tuesday evening the place is decently full, with a couple of patrons walking in every odd hour. This would not be a place Ivana Trump or Victoria Silvestedt would venture into as I assume it would appeal more to the conservative, down-to-earth pack of folks who want a quiet and cosy evening out away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life.
Yet the patrons today are a rather intriguing variety of sorts; from the happy-go-lucky family to the élite couple that are probably celebrating some kind of anniversary, to the three older ladies that could have easily been cast as the Witches of Eastwick and won an Academy Award for best interpretation. Well, Pierre could supply the brooms all right!
I ask Pierre the question I am sure – very sure – most of my readers would want to ask any artist. “As an artist, which Maltese personality would you ask to pose in the nude?” A sip of Shiraz and a mischievous smile follows. “And who would you never even consider asking?”
My question seems to send Pierre’s thoughts in a whirlpool. It takes him as long as it took him to choose the Shiraz to answer. Finally, he sips some wine and says that he would ask TV presenter Claudette Pace to pose in the nude for him and would not consider asking Gloria Mizzi. I inwardly wonder if he is running a fever!
Edward turns up with a spectacular looking platter that even Kate Moss would have devoured. This man has clearly concocted magic somewhere in his kitchen which later becomes very real, and is presented to us in the form of a culinary work of art. I feel he gets some kind of natural high when he sees two “creatives” so excited by his work.
The bread served with the “surprise platter” is warm and feels like it has just been delivered by the Naxxar baker-boy.
There is bigilla, veggies, salamis, three different types of cheeses, olives, of Parma ham, and some Maltese sausage. Everything is very tasty and fresh, though nothing beats my mother’s bigilla! Together with the Shiraz, it is like a little feast made in Heaven, and we eat away like two little pigs fully secure that our roof won’t blow away. Long live a good gym where one can sweat it all out the next day!
The next question I ask Pierre is probably very obvious and boring, but nevertheless curiosity killed the cat. So, in between a cured slice of Parma ham and an obnoxious text message, I want to know who – in his eyes – has the most beautiful face in Malta.
He almost chokes on his food, as I set forward the question, and he stifles a grin.
He reaches for the wine for support, downs some red liquid, and promptly replies: “Rachel Attard ta’ Bondi Plus!”
I’m sure Rachel will buy some of Pierre’s beautiful installations after this! What? He could even arrange a special price!
Several glasses and small bites later, I excuse myself and set off on my toilet expedition. I am surprised to find a rather spacious rest room which really looks like it belongs to a lived-in household. There is a traditional wash-hand basin and some little extras which you can discover on your own.
My advice would be to book on weekends, as the place is not so big. Wine prices start from €7 and for all those willing to try the 2005 Shiraz at Ta’Marku you can get it at €16.50. The “surprise platter” costs us €16, and Pierre ends his evening with an espresso lungo which we later realise is not accounted for.
The venue is quiet and relaxing, and in my opinion worth discovering. The owner is charming and colourful, and the place is dipped in warm lights that help make it the cosy place it is. Though the music is kept at a decent volume, I feel they should focus on finding more suitable music for the place. privateye@timesofmalta.com