The Malta International Food Festival 2026 brought together food, culture, music and thousands of hungry visitors at The Granaries, Floriana — and this year, we were right in the middle of it.

From Wednesday 5th to Sunday 9th August, the festival turned Floriana into one of Malta’s biggest summer food destinations, with international cuisines, live entertainment, premium drinks and a family-friendly atmosphere from 6 PM until midnight.

And for us?
It was paella season. Big time.

This year, our team welcomed visitors from one of the largest setups we’ve ever brought to a festival: a double stand, designed to serve more people, move faster and bring a full Spanish experience to the crowd.

There was heat. There was music. There was sangria.
And yes — there was a lot of paella.

One of Malta’s Biggest Food Events

The Malta International Food Festival has grown into one of the island’s major summer events. According to the festival organisers, it began in Mdina in 2015 with around 5,000 visitors and later moved to Pjazza Tritoni, Valletta, where it grew even bigger, reaching 50,000 visitors.

For 2026, the festival took place at The Granaries in Floriana, officially named Pjazza San Publiju, one of Malta’s largest public spaces for major gatherings and events.

It is the kind of event where you can walk from stand to stand and taste the world in one evening — from local flavours to international dishes, desserts, drinks and live performances.

And among all those flavours, we came with something very clear:

Spanish food. No shortcuts.

Our Double Stand: Bigger, Busier, Better

For this edition, we came with a double stand, giving us more space to cook, serve and welcome everyone who stopped by.

And honestly? We needed it.

Across several days, the stand was full of movement: paellas being prepared, sangria being poured, people deciding between seafood, chicken or rabbit paella, and plenty of guests coming back for “just one more tapa”.

The energy was constant, and the response was incredible.

The Menu: Paella Took the Lead

For the festival, the menu focused on Spanish favourites that work perfectly in a busy, outdoor food festival setting.

The uploaded festival menu included seafood paella, chicken paella, rabbit paella and Spanish tortilla, with paella available in tapa and full portions. It also featured red sangria, white sangria, rebujito and Spanish beer, plus a tapa paella + sangria combo for €12.

Food served at the stand

• Seafood Paella
• Chicken Paella
• Rabbit Paella
• Spanish Tortilla

Drinks served

• Red Sangria
• White Sangria
• Rebujito
• Spanish Beer

Festival combo

The combo artwork promoted tapa paella + sangria for €12, making it one of the clearest and easiest options for festival visitors who wanted a full Spanish bite-and-drink experience.

Sangria, Rebujito and Spanish Festival Energy

A food festival is not the place for complicated decisions.

People want something tasty, refreshing and easy to enjoy while walking, talking and listening to music.

That’s why sangria and rebujito made so much sense for the event. Red sangria, white sangria and rebujito gave visitors a lighter, summery way to enjoy Spanish flavours beyond the plate.

Cold drink in one hand. Paella in the other.

Honestly, not a bad way to spend an August evening in Malta.

A Festival for Everyone

One of the best parts of the Malta International Food Festival is how mixed the crowd is.

Families, couples, groups of friends, tourists, locals, food lovers, curious walkers, people who came for dinner and people who “just wanted to have a look” — everyone ends up finding something.

The official festival website also highlights the family-friendly nature of the event, including children’s activities and a dedicated kids’ area.

For us, that made the experience even better. Paella is a dish made to be shared, and seeing so many different people discover it, ask about it and enjoy it was exactly why we love doing events like this.

Several Days, Full Service, Great Memories

Over several days, we cooked, served, explained, smiled, repeated and kept going.

Food festivals are intense. There is no quiet corner, no slow service, no “we’ll do it later”. Everything happens live, in front of people, with the rhythm of the event pushing you forward.

And that’s part of the magic.

For Iber&Co, being part of this festival was not only about selling food. It was about showing that Spanish gastronomy belongs in Malta’s biggest food conversations.

A plate of paella can travel far.

See More Photos from the Festival

We’ll be sharing some of our favourite photos from the Malta International Food Festival here on the blog — from the double stand and the paella pans to the drinks, the team and the festival atmosphere.

For the full photo collection, follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

Thank You, Malta International Food Festival

A huge thank you to everyone who stopped by our stand, tried our food, came back for more, asked questions, shared photos or simply smiled while holding a plate of paella.

Thank you also to the festival organisers for creating such a vibrant celebration of food and culture in Malta.

We left tired, proud and very grateful.

And yes — we would absolutely do it again.

Stay Close for the Next Event

Iber&Co will continue bringing Spanish food to events, festivals and special locations across Malta.

If you don’t want to miss where we’ll be next:

👉 Follow us on Instagram: @iberandco @altamira.restaurant
👉 For events and catering enquiries: Contact Iber&Co