Restaurant reservations for Christmas and the New Year may surpass pre-COVID 2019 levels, the head of the sector’s biggest lobby group has said, though other operators gave a lukewarm verdict.
Hotel occupancy is expected to be slightly below 2018 and 2019, “those being the strongest years”, said Tony Zahra, president of the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association.
But the restaurant business could end up doing even better than the two years that preceded the pandemic, he added.
“It appears like people want to make up for two last years when they were unable to congregate,” he said.
The head of another representative body also said bookings had been “extremely good” for the last six weeks but was slightly less optimistic than Zahra.
The president of the Association of Catering Establishments, Michelle Muscat, said several establishments had received cancellations due to sickness and that no-shows had increased.
She said business was good in hotspots like Sliema and Valletta, but in other locations, there were complaints about insufficient custom.
High-end restaurants have had a steady pace of bookings but family eateries had noticed a decline.
This could partly be explained by families travelling for the holidays, the higher cost of living and a cultural shift to spending the holidays at home, she said.
"High-end restaurants have had a steady pace of bookings but family eateries had noticed a decline"
Times of Malta spoke to several restauranteurs yesterday as they braced for a busy Christmas Eve.
Jon Dalli, owner of Hunter’s Tower in Marsaxlokk, said December had been a relatively quiet period but his sizeable restaurant was fully booked for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.
Aaron Degabriele’s two restaurants have been booked for Christmas and New Year’s since the start of the month.
“Families of 15 were quick to book, as they feared not finding a reservation,” the television chef said.
“People are excited to be out again after the COVID pandemic,” added Degabriele, who owns Aaron’s Kitchen in Valletta.
Sean Gravina, who owns Crust, a St Julian’s restaurant, described December as a mixed bag.
“Private events, where groups rent the restaurant’s upper floor, were very strong, but walk-in customers have not been coming at the rate they used to,” he said.
For him, 2021 was better, despite being a pandemic year. The festive attractions in Valletta were drawing people into the capital and leaving St Julian’s and other places in Malta worse off, he observed.
“There aren’t any Christmas lights or music in St Julian’s,” he said, adding that several restaurant owners in the area had made similar comments.