About Donald Zammit

Donald Zammit was a successful chef for 23 years until hanging up his toque in 2017. His passion for the culinary world started at an early age, and he worked as a chef at various establishments throughout his career.

As a chef, he enjoyed building flavor foundations, mastering sauteing techniques, exploring sauce-making, perfecting the harmony of sweet and savory, and using fresh ingredients. He believes that a dish’s flavor and texture depend heavily on the quality of ingredients you use. Many ingredients can be found at Farmers’ markets, where flavorful fruits, vegetables, and herbs are plentiful.

As his cooking evolved, he embraced using seasonal fruits and vegetables to get the freshest ingredients and enrich the dining experience.

Zammit’s love of exploration and traveling to different parts of the world opened up many cuisines. Food is an integral part of one’s culture, so he was constantly inspired by new ingredients and techniques.

His passion has taken him throughout most of Western Europe, including the cities and countryside of England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, France, Italy, and Malta. He loves immersing himself in each nation’s history, food, and traditions and enjoying their diversity and landscapes. You could say part of why he got into cooking was because he wanted to explore the world.

In England, he enjoyed the flavors of humble pie, which holds a special place in English cooking. The most popular humble pies are cooked with steak and kidney, steak and ale, and chicken and mushroom. A rich pastry holds chunks of meat and thick gravy. It’s served hot as part of a main meal or eaten on its own as a snack. Beef Wellington, a filet of beef brushed with mustard, wrapped in mushrooms, Parma ham, and puff pastry, was another treat Zammit enjoyed in England.

Of course, like most chefs, he enjoyed the culinary delights the French and Italians are known for. French food inspires chefs, and he was no exception when working on his creations in the kitchen. He took a page from the French and used their staple ingredients in his cooking, like garlic, onions, carrots, celery, fresh herbs, butter, cream, and wine, as well as high-quality meats, seafood, and produce.

Italian cuisine also influenced his cooking – from Tuscany’s rustic dishes to Sicily’s seafood fare. He found that Italian cuisine celebrates each region’s bounty and its people’s creativity.