Dedicated to serving you the best jacket potatoes on the market, with tasty stuffings, The Happy Spud opened in August 2020, and is located in Gzira. There are options for everyone and for every occasion.
Potatoes! They are life. They have history. Potatoes were so important for ancient Incas, they had their own goddess of potatoes. When in the mid-19th century, potato crops failed in successive years, the Irish ended up with a famine. For most of us through, potatoes possibly represent one of the greatest comfort foods of all time.
So you can imagine our excitement when we learnt that there was a new joint in town, dedicated to serving you the best jacket potatoes on the market, with tasty stuffings. The Happy Spud opened in August 2020, and is located in Gzira. Upon arrival, we were greeted by Dave, a very energetic and friendly Irish guy.
Dave who was more than happy to go through the menu and explain the whole concept behind the place. Food preparation is handled by a chef with over 20 years of experience, working all around the world as head executive chef, gaining vast experience from different hotels and restaurants. We were intrigued.
Dave, from The Happy Spud
The menu is vast. There are options for everyone and for every occasion. The options are constantly being improved and updated. You might initially balk at the prices, ranging from €6.95 to €10.95 for a single potato (which can be easily upgraded to a combo meal deal) but as soon as we were handed our potatoes, it was easy to understand the price!
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First of all, The Happy Spud prides itself in choosing first pick potatoes. In case you do not know what first pick potatoes are, they are the best potatoes our local farmers produce. They are of the highest quality and you can definitely tell when you bite into one of these. In fact, the owners (who are Irish) insist on using all local Maltese ingredients and support local!
Secondly, each potato weighs in at around 450-550g. Add the toppings, and that is a whole meal in itself. This is no side dish offering, and trust us, you do not need it. Each potato will fill you up pretty well.
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Let’s talk about what is available! If you’re looking for some sea inspired filling, our pick is the Gone Fish-Skin Spud filled with tuna, sweetcorn, tomato and onion. If you are a big fan of mushrooms and want to treat yourself for the night, definitely go for the Truffle Mushroom Spud filled with oyster mushrooms and black truffle.
Gone Fish-Skin Spud
Other spud fillings included pepperoni, Mexican beef, cheese, chicken and several others. The pick of the crop, and in our opinion, the best jacket potato we tried, was the Guinness Beef Stew Spud, which is topped with an amazingly rich Irish Guinness stew. Imagine yourself digging into it during the coming cold winter days. Hashtag comfort.
Guinness Beef Stew Spud
If you are vegetarian or vegan, there are plans to include vegan options in the menu, one of which being a mixed bean and vegetable Vindaloo curry option. Then there will be the seasonal specials.
We are particularly looking forward to their Christmas special (ok, we are looking forward to Christmas in general, this is a bonus). A potato topped with a selection of Turkey ham and stuffing topped with cranberry sauce will make the season extra jolly. We have already booked ours!
Vindaloo curry spud
Apart from their very interesting and delicious potato offerings, they also have a very special dessert on the menu. This dessert option puts you in the driving seat and allows you to choose your own sauce, toppings and options on how to decorate.
If like us you love your desserts, it is definitely worth checking out if you will still have room for some (good luck). For a great price savings, consider going for their meal deal option which allows you to choose a spud, dessert and drink at a special price!
The Happy Spud is Malta’s only jacket potato takeaway which offers a delicious alternative to other fatty ‘fast-food’ options. We suggest you check them out at their shop or order via Bolt Food. They have been updating Instagram quite frequently with new menu options and specials so keep an eye on that!
The Happy Spud is located in Triq Belvedere, Gżira
Open from Monday-Friday: 11am-11pm; on Saturday: 12pm-6pm; and Sunday: 12pm-10pm
