I always love celebrating my birthday. It doesn’t need to be a big celebration or anything that draws attention; in fact, that’s not my style. I like the simple things in life, and it’s precisely because I love celebrating life that I think I’ve always enjoyed marking that special day when I came into the world.

Siempre me encanta festejar mi cumpleaños. No se necesita una gran celebración ni que sea notoria, de hecho, eso no va conmigo. Me gustan las cosas simples de la vida y por eso mismo porque me gusta celebrar la vida es que creo que siempre me ha gustado festejar ese día especial en que llegué a la vida.

For me, it’s not the material gifts that matter, but the experiences and the people I want around me, those who wish me a happy birthday and remember that day. That’s what I value most; even small, handmade gifts, personally crafted by someone, are hugely valuable to me, because that person, as well as giving me a present, has given me their time, which is priceless.

When I was a child, my mum and my maternal grandmother would always celebrate my birthday, a small party at home with my closest family and a few friends. When I grew up, what mattered most to me was that my closest family and friends remembered and spent some time with me on that day, and, of course, my best friend. At that time, I only had one.

Things changed when I moved to another country. Although we do bake a cake at home, that’s all we do. And we’ve swapped everything else for experiences. My family and I love Italian food; we’re fascinated by it, not just eating it but also making it at home. Home cooked food, the best in the world. But as my mum and I have our birthdays two days apart, we celebrate together. A few years ago, when my adoptive aunt and uncle were here, four years ago, in fact, when my mum turned 70, we started a new tradition: celebrating our birthdays by eating out at an Italian restaurant.

There are plenty of high-quality restaurants in the city, where the owners are Italian and even the staff are, so stepping into a place like that is like being in a little slice of Italy. I think my love for this country, especially its food, comes from my maternal grandmother, who was the daughter of Italians and, as I always say, was like a mother to me: she taught me how to cook.

This time we chose a new place, but one with good reviews for its food. My brother had tried the pizza there, and he’s a connoisseur when it comes to food; I trust his judgement on such matters. He wasn’t wrong.

The place is called Da Tonino and is situated at the junction of Calle Cisneros and Calle Camas in the city of Málaga. It isn’t a very big place, but I can assure you that its heart certainly is, and I’ll tell you why.

My brother discovered this place because he used to work nearby and got to know the owner, a very friendly chap. Tonino speaks only Italian and is great fun, with superb customer service, as are the waiters.

We’d booked a table in advance, so when we arrived our table was ready, but the owner didn’t know who’d made the booking. When he saw my brother and my brother introduced us, it felt just like being with family. I’ve never felt like that in a restaurant before. I don’t know if it was because of that prior acquaintance, but the atmosphere was relaxed and it felt just like being at home.

They brought us the menu, but we’d already had a look at it online. I chose a classic calzone, which is made with pizza dough but looks like a large stuffed pastry; my mum ordered a four-cheese pizza and my brother one with cheese, tomato, garlic and meat.

We went at 9 pm and it wasn’t busy; it was a Monday, so there were fewer people about. We decided to celebrate both birthdays, my mum’s and mine, early, as my mum was due to have eye surgery soon after and wouldn’t be able to go out, so we had to take care of every detail. As I mentioned, it wasn’t busy at the time, and there weren’t many people there later on either, given the day it was. It’s much busier at the weekends, but we preferred it that way, it was much more peaceful.

Whilst we were waiting, I asked a waiter if I could take photos of the place; he smiled at me and said, ‘You can take photos of whatever you like.’ And of course I seized the opportunity. I’ll say it again: the staff were incredibly friendly throughout.

The owner himself cooks all the pizzas, and to be honest, he does it incredibly quickly, it was amazing how fast our orders arrived. But when I saw the plates and just how huge each pizza and the calzone were… I couldn’t believe it. Right then and there, I knew I wouldn’t be able to eat all that. My mum’s face was one of such utter amazement that the owner came over and said to her, laughing: ‘That’s enough to eat for a week… it’s just that we Italians eat a lot!’ The whole situation had us all in stitches.

We ate very well; the three of us even tried each other’s dishes, but of course my favourite was the one I’d chosen. Once we’d finished, we ordered two glasses of tiramisu for dessert, and I can assure you it’s the best tiramisu in the world. The chef who makes it is called Michelo, and I’m telling you, that dessert is the quintessential Italian dessert and it was delicious. We only ordered two glasses, which we shared between the three of us.

But then came the surprise: a waiter brought us some small shot glasses called ‘chupitos’ with a bottle of limoncello, and my brother overheard the owner telling the waiter, ‘Leave them the bottle.’ This is because usually, customers are only given one shot of the drink, and not even all customers, as it’s a complimentary treat on the house. I’m sure this happened because Tonino knew my brother and because of the birthday celebrations. I felt treated like a queen and so I absolutely recommend this place.

The surprises didn’t end there; when we were presented with the bill, they’d given us a huge discount. A wonderful birthday present for my mum and me. What’s more, we stayed chatting with the owner, and he told us he’d lived in Prague for 30 years and shared lots of stories. I loved that sense of warmth, which I’ve never felt anywhere else. Once again, I highly recommend it.

These are the most wonderful experiences; they leave us with a lasting smile, especially when we meet such lovely, friendly people. The owner had a brilliant sense of humour, I’d like to highlight that.

I loved sharing this special day with you all. Thank you so much for reading my post today; I send you my warmest regards. See you soon.
Amonet.

All photographs are my property.
Separators made by me in Photoshop
Used translator Deepl.com free version.

[//]:# (!worldmappin 36.720615 lat -4.424605 long How I celebrated my birthday – An Italian restaurant offering exceptional quality and hospitality. (EN-ES) d3scr)