All’Antico Vinaio Malta.
Florence, folded into one very generous schiacciata.

All’Antico Vinaio does not need a complicated premise. It began in Florence in 1991 in a tiny 18-square-metre family shop and built its reputation around one of Tuscany’s simplest pleasures: schiacciata, the olive-oil-and-salt flatbread that is crisp at the surface, soft within and made to carry generous fillings. The brand has since travelled far beyond Florence, but the proposition remains refreshingly easy to understand: good bread, bold ingredients, no timid portions.

That simplicity is exactly why the Malta collaboration is interesting. The four schiacciate sent to Comino are not four cosmetic variations of the same sandwich. They move through cured meat, porchetta and ’nduja, a classic prosciutto-and-mozzarella combination and a fully plant-based route. In other words, the set actually shows the range of the concept.

The Comino verdict

All’Antico Vinaio works because it knows precisely what it wants to be. This is not delicate, minimalist food. It is generous, tactile, highly visual Italian street food built around contrast: crisp and soft, creamy and salty, rich and sharp, familiar and slightly excessive in the best possible way.

The strongest thing about the Malta menu is not simply size. It is identity. Each of these four orders has a clear reason to exist, which makes choosing by mood unusually easy. Favolosa is the introduction. Inferno is the firecracker. Italiana is the classic. Vegana proves the format does not depend on meat to make sense.

*Prices and menu descriptions checked against the official All’Antico Vinaio Malta menu on 6 October 2026. Prices and availability can change.

AI-created · editorial visual

AI-created · editorial visual

What makes the format different?

The easy mistake is to describe All’Antico Vinaio as simply a sandwich shop. The schiacciata changes that equation. Bread is not packaging here; it is the architecture of the meal. The fillings are deliberately generous, but the concept depends on the bread having enough structure and character to remain present beside creams, cured meats, vegetables and cheese.

There is also something appealingly uncomplicated about the format. You do not need a tasting menu or a long explanation to understand what you are ordering. The pleasure comes from abundance, contrast and combinations with instantly readable personalities.

Four orders, four moods

And the drinks?

The collaboration included San Pellegrino Limonata, San Pellegrino Aranciata, Coca-Cola Zero and Kinnie. The two San Pellegrino citrus drinks naturally extend the Italian character of the food, while Kinnie gives the Malta menu a distinctly local counterpoint. The official Malta menu lists each of these soft drinks at €2 at the time of publication.

AI-created · editorial visual

AI-created · editorial visual

A Florentine icon with a Malta accent

Malta does not simply receive the international signatures. The current menu also includes two locally named limited editions. Valletta combines turkey, stracciatella, basil leaves and tomatoes, while Malta combines local smoked ham, Maltese cheeselet, roast potato cream and honey. That localisation is a smart move: it gives the Malta operation a reason to feel connected to place rather than functioning only as a copy of an international menu.

Those two editions were not included in the Comino collaboration set, so we are deliberately not reviewing or ranking them here. They are, however, the two we would put on the list for a future Malta-specific follow-up.

Value: where does it sit?

At the time of publication, the four collaboration schiacciate run from €10 to €13. That places the concept above a basic sandwich but firmly within premium-casual territory. The proposition makes most sense when you judge it as a substantial filled schiacciata — bread, filling and brand experience together — rather than comparing it with an ordinary convenience lunch.

Why we think it fits Malta

Malta is well suited to food that can move between lunch, takeaway and an informal meal without losing its identity. All’Antico Vinaio has exactly that flexibility. It is recognisable enough for someone who wants prosciutto and mozzarella, adventurous enough for someone ordering ’nduja and spicy aubergines, and inclusive enough to offer vegetarian and vegan routes that feel intentional.

Most importantly, it has memorability. In a crowded casual-food market, being generous is not enough. A concept needs a visual signature, a flavour language and something people can immediately explain to somebody else. “That huge Florentine schiacciata” is a very easy story to remember.

The Comino bottom line

All’Antico Vinaio is at its best when you embrace the excess. The portions are meant to look generous, the fillings are meant to have personality and the schiacciata is meant to be more than a neutral carrier. Of the four collaboration choices, Favolosa is the most useful first introduction to the brand; Inferno is the one for heat; Italiana offers the familiar Italian comfort route; and Vegana deserves credit for standing as a proper choice in its own right.

Would we explore it further? Yes. The next editorial step should be an on-location Comino visit to experience the Malta operation in full — including the Valletta and Malta limited editions, the bread fresh from the shop, ordering experience, service, atmosphere and how the concept performs when eaten exactly where it is sold. Until then, this review stays precisely where the evidence allows it to stay: a strong assessment of the supplied collaboration selection, without pretending we reviewed a venue we did not visit.