“We are one of the few restaurants in Malta that welcome pets to our outlet. Our four-legged visitors are greeted with a bowl of fresh water upon entry and are offered a complimentary Pooch & Mutt menu for dogs of all shapes and sizes so that their owners do not have to worry about carrying food, treats and water when taking their dogs out,” said Peter Cording, General Manager at Planet Hollywood Malta.

The Canine Cuisine menu features different items and includes a selection of premium, grain-free dog food and a portion of wet complete dog food with fresh chicken and tuna. Customers can also choose to treat their dog with peanut butter treats that are vegetarian and made with nothing more than 100% natural and beneficial ingredients.

Planet Hollywood Malta opened its doors in the Bay Street Shopping Complex in the heart of St. Julian’s on 7 June 2019, celebrating the glitz of Hollywood in its unique style. The venue offers a number of iconic movie memorabilia and props from blockbuster movies to bring back memories from the big screen to life. Additionally, Planet Hollywood Malta offers a menu that highlights Planet Hollywood’s classic dishes, accompanied by a curated beverage selection.

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“The inspiration for this new restaurant was to invite you into our kitchen – we wanted the customers to get the feeling as if they were at their Mum’s dining table enjoying their favourite dish,” says Joe Vella, General Manager of AX Hotels. “We love interior design, and we looked at every detail when completing this project – from choosing the tiles for the table tops that you’d find at homes, looking for the right knobs for the drawers to old stainless steel utensils that are displayed at the counter. We really stop at nothing in providing our customers with the full experience,” the general manager adds.

Another essential element of the revamp project was to cater for families or single parents with children, AX Hotels says in the press statement, knowing that it can be difficult for children to sit through a meal.

“The kids’ play area is now three times bigger than before, and parents can literally see their young ones from every corner of the restaurant. We also created a menu for the little ones full that is full of healthy options,” says Claire Zammit Xuereb, Director of Hospitality at AX Hotels. “Plus if they eat well we have a Special Pantry where they can choose a delicious treat. We really wanted to create an all-round and stress-free experience for the families,” she adds.

Luzzu is owned and managed by AX Hotels part of AX Holdings.

The post Qawra’s Luzzu opens after facelift first appeared on The Malta Business Weekly.

Over 100 restaurateurs participated in PwC’s market research during Q4 2018. Some 48% of the participants talked about an increase in business as compared to 2017, in contrast to 23% who registered a decrease in activity and 29% who reported of stable commercial levels, PwC has found.

“The sentiment emanating from the barometer corresponds to an economic landscape that has experienced an increase in disposable income and a marked growth in population, that has also brought with it the challenges in terms of resources and infrastructure,” says David Valenzia, PwC Territory Senior Partner. “The evolving channels of customer interaction and demands is a further challenge that the industry needs to adapt to and invest in,” he adds.

Restaurants in the St Julian’s area reported a 76% increase in business, the southern part of Malta saw a rise of 63%, while the central area lagged behind with a growth of only 25%, figures by the PwC show.

Labour shortage casts shadows on market

The industry appears to have adopted a slightly more negative outlook recently. As compared to 2016, when 71% of the respondents talked about a positive outlook, in 2018 only 51% said they anticipated positive times approaching in the next half a year. However, outright pessimism was also on the decrease. While in 2016 some 18% held a negative outlook, in 2018 the ratio dropped to 16%, according to PwC.

Unsurprisingly, the sector voiced concern about finding an adequate supply of skilled resources in 2018, which is similar to what PwC found in 2016, even if figures appear to have been dropping. Out of the respondents, 35% identified the availability of skilled resources as their leading business concern in 2018, while in 2016, a significant 63% of the industry had identified human resources as the principal business concern.

PwC’s findings suggest that the drop of the aforementioned figure was chiefly due to the engagement of foreign nationals, although only 25% of the respondents think that the sole strategy of recruitment of foreign nationals should be pursued.

For fighting challenges posed by the shortage of skilled labour, 38% of the respondents said that the industry needs to come together and increase the financial package to its employees, with a view of making a career in hospitality more enticing, PwC says. A further 37% urges policymakers and educational and vocational institutions to position employment in the hospitality industry as a more attractive job opportunity.

An increasing emphasis on infrastructure accompanies the growing demand. Some 53% of the operators in the industry believe that the level of investment in not commensurate to the recent surge in tourists volumes. This sentiment, at 88%, is more acute through restauranteurs who operate in the south of Malta, PwC added.

The whole report including charts and visual representation of data is available for view at the official webpage of PwC Malta.

The post Maltese restaurant sentiment boosts, labour shortage casts shadows first appeared on The Malta Business Weekly.

See the list of the recognised hospitality units below:

• 2019 WRMC Silver Spoon Award: Nan Yuan Cantonese Restaurant
• 2019 Blue Riband Restaurant for Top Ten General Category Restaurants:
o Bistro 516
o Browns
o Q Bar & Restaurant
• Front of House Manager Achievement Award: Ms Charmaine Hue Xu Mei, Nan Yuan Cantonese Restaurant
• WRMC 2018 Lifetime Achievement Award, for 38 experience and service in the restaurant industry: Mr Charles Demanuele, Pintonino Restaurant.

Entertainment facilities investigated in the awards are inspected and adjudicated on a wide range of factors. Such factors include ambience; atmosphere and decor; cuisine quality; preparation and presentation of dishes; management and staff attitude towards patrons and overall demeanour; wine list and price mark-up; value for money and overall quality.

“These criteria are targeted to cover the complete dining experience in the selected restaurants from when the inspectors enter the restaurant to the time that they leave,” the press statement says.

The Valletta Waterfront is a promenade in Floriana, showcasing a selection of shops, restaurants, bars and cafes. What originally used to be stores and warehouses built in the 18th century, today serves as a hub to Malta’s cruise liner business.

The Valletta Waterfront is maintained by the Valletta Cruise Port plc (formerly VISET Malta plc), which took over the cruise and ferry terminal operations following an international tender issued by the Government of Malta in 1996.

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