Giada De Laurentiis, former Food network host and chef personality, stopped by at Mdina’s Fontanella Tea Garden on Tuesday (yesterday) and helped herself to the establishment’s much loved homemade classic chocolate cake and strawberry meringue.

Diving in with her fork, Giada expressed a particular fondness for the chocolate cake, one shared by most locals on the island, as she appeared to gulp it down lovingly in a clip uploaded by the restaurant.

Training at the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, Giada spent 21 years with the Food Network, starring as a host and chef personality on popular tv shows such as Food Network’s Everyday Italian, Giada’s Weekend Getaways and Giada in Paradise. Earlier this year Giada announced that she had moved on and signed a multi-year deal for with Amazon Studios.

The very same chocolate cake and strawberry meringue on which Giada indulged have been around since 1975, Fontanella shared in its official biography. Indeed, the beloved eatery claimed that while its menu has developed over the years, the tried and tested recipe pertaining to its famous chocolate cake and strawberry meringue has remained unchanged ever since.

Starting as a hobby, Fontanella became a classic hotspot in Mdina amongst both locals and tourists, gaining a reputation for its cake variety and roof views.