Le GV

Le GV, Sliema: Michelin-Starred Dining on the Eleventh Floor

At €€€ per head, Le GV is one of the more considered ways to spend a special occasion dinner in Malta. You're paying for a Michelin star earned in 2024, an open kitchen where chefs Andrew Borg and David Tanti work a deliberately limited menu, a rooftop setting on the eleventh floor of the 1926 Le Soleil Hotel & Spa that places the Sliema skyline directly in your sightline. The question is whether the food justifies the outlay. On the evidence available, it does — but with some caveats worth reading before you book.

A Recent Arrival That Earned Its Star Fast

Le GV is among Sliema's newest serious dining destinations, the 2024 Michelin star is the clearest signal that the kitchen hit the ground running. For context, a first star this early in a restaurant's life is not common. It signals that the panel found both consistency and technical precision — two things that matter more to Michelin inspectors than room design or view. That the recognition came so quickly from chefs working a limited menu is, if anything, more impressive than a sprawling tasting format where one or two strong dishes can carry weaker ones.

The setting itself underwent a deliberate design exercise. The two dining rooms draw from the visual language of the Orient Express carriages, warm panelling, considered detailing, a formality that doesn't feel stiff. For the warmer months, a panoramic terrace opens up, extending the experience outdoors with views over the city. If you're booking for a celebration or a meaningful dinner, the rooftop terrace in summer is the argument for timing your visit carefully. Book between May and October to have the terrace as a realistic option, request it specifically when reserving.

The Open Kitchen and What It Adds

The open kitchen at Le GV is not incidental. Watching chefs Borg and Tanti work is part of the experience, the kind of transparency that tends to sharpen a kitchen's performance and gives guests a clearer connection to what arrives at the table. Where a closed kitchen keeps the mechanics invisible, an open one puts the timing, the plating, the precision on display. At a Michelin-starred venue with a limited menu, that visibility matters: you're essentially watching the full repertoire of the evening unfold in real time.

Menu's deliberate brevity is worth noting before you arrive. A limited selection can feel like a constraint, but here it reads as a confidence statement. The kitchen offers fewer dishes because it has chosen to do fewer things at a high standard rather than hedge with volume. Dishes cited by reviewers include a raw amberjack finished tableside with a frothy Sicilian pink grapefruit cream and sea urchin, a dessert pairing that has included whisky zabaglione with butter-soaked brioche. These are technically precise constructions, not crowd-pleasing flourishes. If you want a wide-ranging à la carte with multiple options per course, this is not the right room. If you want a short, focused, high-craft menu with visible kitchen confidence, it is.

Booking and Practical Detail

The Michelin star makes it the most credentialled restaurant currently operating in Sliema, which also means it is the hardest to book in the area. Plan at least three to four weeks ahead for a weekend table, longer if you want the terrace during high season. A last-minute table here is unlikely.

The address is Thornton, Tas-Sliema SLM 3143, within the 1926 Le Soleil Hotel & Spa building. If you're staying at the hotel, ask the concierge to handle the reservation. If not, contact the restaurant directly through the hotel's booking channels. Dress expectations at a Michelin-starred rooftop dining room lean smart; arriving underdressed at a venue of this calibre is a practical risk worth avoiding.

For solo diners, the open kitchen positioning creates a natural focal point that makes dining alone feel active rather than awkward. Groups larger than four should confirm seating configurations in advance, the two dining rooms suggest some flexibility, but the kitchen's limited menu format is better suited to smaller parties where the pacing works for everyone at the table.

For wider context on where Le GV sits within Malta's dining scene, see our full Sliema restaurants guide. If you're planning a broader trip, our Sliema hotels guide, Sliema bars guide, and Sliema experiences guide cover the surrounding options. For other high-craft dining across Malta, ION Harbour by Simon Rogan in Valletta and Rosamì in St Julian's are the two most directly comparable conversations. Elsewhere on the island, Al Sale in Xagħra, AYU in Gzira, Bahia in Balzan, Commando in Mellieħa, Giuseppi's in Naxxar, Grotto Tavern in Rabat, and Level Nine at The Grand in Għajnsielem represent the range of serious dining options across the archipelago. For Sliema specifically, Chophouse and Fernandõ Gastrotheque offer solid alternatives at a lower booking difficulty. If you want a global modern cuisine reference point, Frantzén in Stockholm and FZN by Björn Frantzén in Dubai are the category benchmarks at the leading end.

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