After the successful opening of the Suq tal-Belt in Valletta a few months ago, it was only going to be a matter of time before someone else tried their luck with another food court.

Welcome, Carob Tree – the new Spinola food court which opened without much hype but which has all the potential to become the place to eat out at if it’s late at night, you don’t know what to eat, and don’t want to hassle to find parking.

What Carob Tree looks like from the inside

Continuing a growing trend in Maltese culinary culture, Carob Tree opens early in the morning and only closes at 11:30pm, which could well make it a lifesaver for hungry people who have just finished a late shift. Parking is available at the underground Spinola carpark and is subsidised for an hour if you spend more than €15 at the food court and for two hours if you spend over €25.

As for the food itself, while the variety isn’t as immense as Suq tal-Belt (no paella and tapas stand unfortunately), the new food court still boasts a number of pretty incredible outlets.

Meat and deli masters Brass & Knuckle have branched out here

As have Asian fusion restaurants Medasia and Genki

Photo: Genki Asian Cafe

There’s also a fishmonger serving up some tasty-looking fish tartares

And an Italian restaurant for those looking for a more hearty meal

Photo: Al Solito Posto

While coffee roasting masters Lot Sixty One have designed a unique concept – a cafe/bar selling both speciality coffee and craft beer

But it looks like the real winner is the authentic south Indian food served up at TukTuk’s long-awaited restaurant.

I asked for a light meal and ended up with this beauty of a kati roll

A health shop and an ice-cream parlour are are also set to open at the food court in the near future, while an outside play area will ensure the kids are kept occupied. Kids will also be given educational colouring books, with each page focusing on a cuisine served at the Carob Tree. A creative zone will also open up in the near future, but not much information on that has been released yet.

So if you have a particular affinity for Asian food, if you feel like eating something substantial after most restaurants have stopped taking orders, or if you just feel like trying out somewhere new in a very central area, then Carob Tree could well be just the place you were looking for….

Tag someone who would love to visit this new food court!

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Tim Diacono

Tim is interested in the rapid evolution of human society and is passionate about justice, human rights and cutting-edge political debates. You can follow him on Instagram or Twitter/X at @timdiacono or reach out to him at [email protected]