Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/439085
Events 22 maltatoday, Sunday, 28 december 2014 Suruchi named Best Restaurant for 2015 Gagliardi opens first flagship store Suruchi, specializing in authentic Indian and Middle Eastern f la- vours, has been awarded the Best Restaurant Award for 2015 by the Definitive(ly) Good Guide. Recently established in the heart of St Julian's, the interiors as well as the menu offer an exotic feast of colour. Inside, opulent, curtained dining areas offer some privacy from the main restaurant, which can cater for parties of up to forty people. Owner and manager Alan Kawsar makes sure that only the finest authentic Halal ingredients are used in all the dishes, while offer- ing them at a reasonable price for a memorable fine dining experi- ence. Each dish is prepared by experi- enced chefs, who draw on their na- tive knowledge to prepare unparal- leled food experiences. Lunchtime and evening diners can appreciate a large variety of dishes. Try the baba ghanoush and classic Indian dal tadka accompanied by f luffy geera rice. Firm favourites include the tra- ditional Indian clay oven dish of chicken tikka tandoori, kuskse bel hoot (fish stew, cooked with Arabian spices, served on a bed of couscous), and Arabian meat grills, amongst many other typical dishes. Vegetarian dishes are available on request, as are gluten-free and vegan options. The strength of the spices used can be adjusted to match one's preference and lo- cal wine is available by the glass or bottle. World wines and cham- pagnes hailing from Lebanon, and the European, African, Australian and American continents are avail- able, as are some Indian beers. The two hours of complimentary parking at the Portomaso car park make for a hassle-free evening out, any day of the week. Diners have been singing Su- ruchi's praises, insisting that it easily ranks as one of the best restaurants on the island, with au- thentic food, first class décor and reasonable prices. The Bortex Group's 'Gagliardi – Sartoria dal 1964' menswear brand has finally made it to native soil by recently inau- gurating its very first f lagship store in Malta's Pjazza Tigné in Sliema. Although Malta is the brand's original birthplace and the brand is already well known on the Maltese market it had yet to opens its own ded- icated mono branded brick and mortar store on the island. The Gagliardi brand has also been making major inroads on a number of European and in- ternational markets. So far the brand has been extremely well received wherever it has set up a retail presence outside of Malta and there are currently sixteen Gagliardi outlets trading in six countries with plans in hand for further opening throughout 2015. The Gagliardi e-commerce plat- form, which is also based in Malta, is registering triple digit growth annually and ships products worldwide from its warehousing facilities, which are also based in Malta. The Gagliardi retail project is unique in the Maltese con- text as it is the only local retail brand, which offers a com- plete menswear concept cre- ated entirely in Malta. Mal- tese designers working from the Bortex headquarters in Marsa create menswear rang- es inspired in part by Maltese and Mediterranean lifestyle, culture, history and above all joie de vivre. The elegant and distinctly Mediterranean feel of the re- tail environment conveys a clear message. Elegant, good quality clothing for discerning men, which is keenly priced, yet presented in a prestigious envi- ronment and with efficient and personalized service to boot. The Maltese Gagliardi store is located in one of the busiest and most prestigious locations in Sliema's Pjazza Tigné and a well-attended launch event was held last week to celebrate this milestone. Now that this objective has been achieved it gives the Malta based Gagliardi team another platform from which to continue its drive for further in- ternational growth. Manufacturing, merchandising, marketing and distribution teams also operate from the Bortex Groups Marsa headquarters and all are committed to the ultimate objective; that of creating the very first Maltese brand of interna- tional renown and repute. An in- ternational brand that is proud to declare its nationality and heritage and that becomes a testament to Maltese f lair and creativity world- wide. The Emirates Group publishes fourth Environmental Report The Emirates Group has published its fourth annual Environmental Report, which measures and tracks the Group's environmental performance, as well as identifies examples of best practice across the 75,000 strong workforce. Covering the 2013-2014 fiscal year, the report, audited by Pricewater- houseCoopers, presents environmen- tal performance data from a range of Group activities, including airline operations, dnata's cargo and ground handling businesses and a wide range of commercial activities on the ground – from engineering to catering. Airline operations constitute the main environmental impact of the Emirates Group, and the latest report highlights ongoing improvements in Emirates' fuel efficiency as the airline continued to add new aircraft to its fleet and prioritise fuel-saving opera- tional techniques. Key to the Group's environmental strategy is the airline's eco-efficient fleet, which is at the leading edge of fuel efficiency and environmental per- formance. The improvements have been driven by deliveries of 24 new passenger aircraft and freighters, and the removal from service of four older aircraft, together with ongoing efforts to drive operational efficiencies across a fleet which is already one of the world's youngest and most efficient. With an average fleet age of only 6.2 years versus the global IATA wide body fleet average of 11.7 years, Emirates' fuel efficiency results are 14.5% better than the IATA average. Total fuel ef- ficiency for all passenger and freighter flights improved by 0.5%, dropping to 0.3089 litres per tonne kilometre (L/ TK). Similarly, carbon dioxide emis- sions dropped to 0.764 kilograms of CO2 per tonne kilometre (gCO2/TK), improving efficiency by 0.4%. Other report highlights include: - Continued improvement in noise performance. The A380 is one of the world's quietest aircraft, and as Emirates takes delivery of more A380s and Boeing 777s, the fleet's average noise levels continue to fall. We calculate noise efficiency factors for take-off and landing to measure our overall noise impact, and these showed improvements of 2.4% and 10.1% respectively. - Reduction in CO2 emissions in ground operations. In the Group's ground operations, a major efficien- cy initiative for our Dubai ground transport fleet enabled reductions of 2,500 tonnes of CO2 emissions a year. - Recycling. dnata's Airport Opera- tions team recycled 1,700 tonnes of paper products from Emirates air- craft cabins in Dubai, contributing to a total of 7,555 tonnes of waste diverted from landfill across the Group. - Conservation programmes. Emir- ates continues to make significant progress on its conservation pro- grammes in Dubai and Australia, with both wildlife and plant life benefiting from its efforts. In coop- eration with the Dubai Engineer's Office, 15,000 indigenous ghaf trees were planted in the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve to enhance the habitat for wildlife. The Emir- ates Wolgan Valley Resort and Spa in Australia won awards for its sustainability achievements, and worked with research institutions to expand knowledge of the valley's wombat and kangaroo populations. - In 2013 Emirates launched 'A Green- er Tomorrow', a programme to sup- port not-for-profit environmental or conservation organisations through the provision of a funding award. The funding for 'A Greener Tomor- row', which was raised through recycling programmes across the Emirates Group, was awarded to or- ganisations in Malawi, Pakistan and the Philippines. Emirates operates a daily scheduled flight between Malta and Dubai via Larnaka, Cyprus. The Emirates Group Environmental Report can be viewed online: http:// www.emirates.com/english/environ- ment/reports/reports.aspx Kinnie sponsors Red Electrick's new music video, Young Again Kinnie is proud to have sponsored local band Red Electrick 's new sin- gle and music video, 'Young Again'. The single and its music video were launched locally on the 10th De- cember and have already received great reviews. "Kinnie is a Maltese success story and has always supported Maltese talent. We are proud to be a local brand supporting one of the best local bands. Thanks to the collabo- ration between us, Stargate Stu- dios and BPC International, this Christmas we have created a world class music video which really does justice to a great song," said Susan Weenink, Head of Marketing and Communications at Simonds Far- sons Cisk plc. Peter Borg from Red Electrick commented, "Young Again has a nostalgic theme, dealing with the subject of time and how people make use of it. We are all getting older all the time and the moments we live can never be relived. One day, our time will run out so it is imperative that we make the best use of the few days we are given!" "We feel blessed to have been given the opportunity to work with such a great team of profession- als on this project. Each and every person contributed to the success of Young Again. From the amazing Stargate Studios, to Kinnie's sup- port, to Sigmund Mifsud and the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra. We feel that we put together the perfect team to produce a product which can compete head to head with for- eign productions," he added The production of the music video was in the hands of Stargate Studios with the collaboration of agency BPC International Ltd. "It was a pleasure working on such a great track and collaborating with Kinnie in order to promote such fine local talent," said David Serge, Director of Photography at Star- gate Studios. Besides the official music video, a 4-minute behind the scenes video has also been launched allowing fans to get a glimpse of what goes into the making of such a produc- tion. This video may be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=_06Os9AvljQ. Kinnie is produced, marketed and distributed by Simonds Farsons Cisk plc, a member of the Farsons Group. Young Again – Red Electrick