Return to Mallorca! 19 - 25 September 2019

Cala San Vicente

Unfortunately Keith was ill last night with an upset tummy and we really hoped it hadn't been the lunch he'd had at Tannat. We therefore had a slow start to the day but by mid-morning he felt OK to venture out to another of our favourite haunts - the beautiful small resort of Cala San Vicente.

We had stayed here when Sophie was about two and spent a fortnight in a rambling old villa that was a death trap for a toddler! We never let our daughter out of our sight as there were several flights of hard stone steps, one of which led to a musty basement, as well as a drop from a low window in the living room right into the pool. However, it had been a lovely holiday and we'd enjoyed exploring the resort and spending time on the beach where the sea was aquamarine and the towering cliffs never failed to impress.

It was a short drive and we went past La Moraleja hotel which used to have fabulous sports cars in the reception area. They looked to be all gone and as we drove past I hoped it hadn't closed down?
The road goes past several other hotels, bars and restaurants and once you're around the headland you can see Cala Molins below and the towering cliffs that dominate the beach.

Along here there used to be several shops selling beach items, postcards and cold drinks but it looked like they had all closed down, which was a real shame. We passed the small Bar Mallorca and parked next door. Opposite was a block of apartments but underneath there used to be a restaurant where we once met our neighbours, Gill and Tim when their daughter Phoebe, was just a baby.

The clouds were clearing away and the sun was out but the sea looked very rough, with the red warning flag flying above the beach. There were a few people dotted about sunbathing but nobody in the sea at all!

We strolled about and I told the children there was a path that ran all the way to Puerto Pollensa. We had once attempted it with a pushchair but gave up as it was too rocky! Not a lot had changed here, which was a relief, and the Bar Mallorca looked just the same as it always did.

Two restaurants opposite were still in business - La Tasca and Pepe's Bar but some of the others had disappeared, including L'Alba where we met Gill and Tim. We walked over to the Bar Mallorca and ordered some drinks whilst admiring the stunning view.

The sun had come out properly and the sun was a beautiful shade of blue. Several cyclists arrived looking very pleased with themselves and hung their bikes on a special rail outside.

The building next to the Bar Mallorca was in the process of being renovated, but no work was being carried out. I should imagine it takes place during the quieter winter months. We sat for a while enjoying the views and the sunshine and then had a quick drive around the resort, stopping to say hello to the villa we stayed in years ago. Before leaving we checked out the La Moraleja hotel to find it open but the cars were definitely gone. I have always wanted to stay there so maybe one day I will!

We drove back to the villa and had lunch of pizza, crisps and salad. We're not here for a long time and I wanted to start using up the shopping we'd bought the other day!

Later in the afternoon we walked up to the square and had a quick drink before Sophie and I went to do some shopping in a lovely place that sold incense sticks, jewellery, bags and all manner of trinkets and ornaments with a distinctly Indian feel. Sophie found a ring she loved and which seemed to shine with different hues of blue and green. It was beautiful. As a little joke I bought Keith some incense sticks as he's mad about them, and a holder for a birthday present tomorrow. I'll get him a proper gift when we get home!

Keith and Mike had returned to the house so we checked out Cantonet for a meal this evening but they were closed. The supermarket nearby was also closed which was a pain as we needed some water and bread, but it looked like they were shut for a siesta. There was a sleepy, quiet feel to the town and it was great to wander about and soak up the sights and smells!

As a treat. Sophie bought us an ice-cream each from a little place near the Monkey Bar and they were delicious!

The bells ring out...

Back at the house we relaxed by the pool until it was time to get ready. Tonight we decided to have a drink at La Scalinatta again because I really love this area at the bottom of the steps. Sophie and Mike went to book a table at Cantonet and we ordered our drinks. I treated myself to a small bottle of Cava while Sophie had a large glass of Sangria.

Although this is a quieter part of the town, there were still lots of people walking past and cars driving along the very narrow road. As we were sitting there, the bells began to ring out and it was lovely to hear them and was really atmospheric. I imagined what it must be like to live in Pollenca!

After a couple of drinks we walked the short distance to Cantonet and I am convinced it's where the restaurant El Temple used to be. We were sat in the courtyard garden, a really pretty place with white walls, bright paintings, lots of green foliage and small lanterns. It was very dimly lit and extremely romantic!

It was so dimly lit we could barely read the menu and a woman opposite was using her phone to make out the writing! We started off with a very rustic bread with olives and aioli and I ordered a bottle of Macia Batle Crianza that the four of us shared.

Mike and Sophie shared a starter of beef carpaccio, Keith had parma ham with melon while I opted for the goats cheese salad which was huge! Ironically, Keith had this starter back in 2006 when we last ate here! How weird is that!

The restaurant was busy with diners of different nationalities - Spanish, British and German - and there was a great atmosphere in the pretty outside area. For our main courses, Sophie went with the classic dish of ravioli stuffed with Mallorcan sobrasada, Mike and I chose the chicken stuffed with the same spicy sausage and Keith opted for rabbit, one of his favourites. I thought our meal was very rich with maybe too much cream smothered over the top but it was tasty nonetheless. Sophie was a trifle disappointed with her ravioli, of which there were just five...

We managed to find some space for dessert. I couldn't resist the panna cotta which was truly delicious, Sophie had tiramisu, Keith chose the cheesecake and Mike went for a gooey chocolate cake. We were stuffed!

The three courses with wine, bread and water came to a reasonable 150 euros, just 4 euros more than our last meal back in 2006!

We walked back through the dark streets and I joked to Sophie that it was like the narrow alleyways in Don't Look Now which was filmed in Venice. I expected to see a little red coated figure disappearing into the distance at any minute!

Return to Mallorca! 19-25 September 2019

Market Day

After a somewhat restless night, (the house is pitch black at night, because of the shutters and the dark street outside, and Keith couldn't find the door to go to the bathroom!) we awoke to sunshine and blue skies.

We skipped breakfast and visited the fantastic Sunday market that takes place in Pollenca from early morning to midday. On the way I took some photos of the family and the old buildings that make this town so gorgeous.

What I really love about the town are the tall, old, shuttered buildings and the tiny shops hidden down narrow, secret alleyways that have their wares displayed outside. Colourful clothes, souvenir trinkets, shoes and jewellery are all arrayed artfully and add to the lovely atmosphere of Pollenca. You can just glimpse the shadowy, cool interiors of the houses with antique furniture and marble floors.

The main square has stalls stuffed with fruit and vegetables, olives, olive oil and local produce such as hams and cheeses. We eyed up some local olive oil as we are running low at home and planned to take some back with us.

The Cafe Espanyol was doing a fine trade with people having a morning coffee and pastry but we pushed onto the narrow side streets where stalls were selling jewellery, clothes and fabrics. Sophie was on the lookout for a new ring and we examined every stall on the way up to the Calvari steps. We spotted a lovely heart with blue chips of stone in the middle which we noted for later.

Keith with his daily fix of the newspaper - looking at the sports pages of course!

The start of the Calvari steps

By now we all fancied a sit down and a drink so we found a table at La Scalinatta a cafe at the bottom of the steps. I ordered a coffee while Sophie went for a Cappuccino which she said was disgusting as it had cinnamon sprinkled over the froth! Not her favourite spice - she hates it!

Of course, the men had beers and it was lovely to sit and soak up the atmosphere and the sun. It was very busy and Keith decided to go back to the Cafe Espanyol and wait for us as we wanted to explore and look at restaurants for tonight. Sophie, Mike and I had a fantastic time browsing the stalls and the local shops  where I bought an iron cat thermometer for the garden. There was also a great little supermarket near the cafe which sold local meats and cheeses as well as a range of Mallorcan wines. We saw the Mortitx Blanc for about 12 euros.

We walked towards what used to be Cantonet restaurant and discovered that it had moved - it used to occupy a terrace next to a church but there was another one now in its place. We looked at the menu but it didn't appeal at all so we walked on and found Cantonet on the opposite side of the street. I had a feeling that a beautiful restaurant called El Temple used to be here as there was a pretty courtyard at the back where we had a wonderful meal. Cantonet was closed so we couldn't look at the menu but we thought it might be a good choice for tomorrow night.

Some man love going on here...!

Looking from the church down towards La Font del Gall. Cantonet is now on the right.

Lovely tiles in here, but very expensive!

Another huge church!

I loved this balcony!

We strolled down the street and came to La Font del Gall. We turned left and went to see what had happened to Ca'n Costa, my favourite restaurant in the world when we used to visit. It was now called Fogoneu and we had toyed with the idea of going there on Keith's birthday. I had a good look at the menu and saw that it was closed on Tuesday, so that was that! The prices were very steep - 50 euros each for the tasting menu with an added 25 euros each for a wine pairing. The menu was short so that's always a good indication of quality, but the prices were expensive - there wasn't much under 28 euros for a main course.

I felt very sad as I absolutely loved the old Ca'n Costa - I have so many happy memories of taking the children there (Sophie first visited when she was 9 weeks old) and the place was beautiful, elegant and never disappointed. Why do things have to change?

Before going back to Keith at the Cafe Espanyol, we bought the heart decoration so that will be a lovely reminder of our day. Keith was sitting inside the cafe which was rammed with people. We had a drink and decided to go and find something to eat as none of us had had any breakfast yet!

The cafes and restaurants in the square and nearby were packed to the gunnels so we walked further out of the town past the sadly shuttered up Clivia restaurant, another casualty. This used to be the place to go in the town and I was shocked to see it had closed down.

Just when we were giving up hope and thinking of the pizza and salad back at the house, we found Tannat, a cafe serving lunch right on the outskirts of the town. There was even live music to enjoy!

We had a great meal of chicken caesar salad (Keith) beefburger (me) chicken goujons (Mike) and tapas for Sophie. She ordered chicken croquettes and patatas bravas. The waiter who came to take our order didn't write it down and forgot Mike's chicken and Sophie's potatoes, but this was quickly rectified.

The day had started to become very warm and Keith and Mike decided to walk home while Sophie and I visited a lovely supermarket nearby called Agromart Balear. I'm sure it was a farm shop on a much larger scale and had lots of delicious foods to buy. It was closing up so we grabbed a bag of crisps and some little chocolate muffins and made our way back to the house. On the way we called into another beautiful shop selling the most gorgeous clothes and jewellery - everything was so pretty but quite expensive!

Local info...

In the evening Keith and Mike went to the Bar Roser Vell while Sophie and I carried on down to R3spira, a new, very modern restaurant situated at the bottom of our street. We looked at the menu and booked a table for 8.30pm. Inside it looked very stylish and several tables were lined up along the pavement.

After booking the table we walked up to the square and sat right outside the Cafe Espanyol facing the beautiful view.

We both ordered glasses of Sangria while we waited for Keith and Mike.

It was a lovely evening and the sun was just setting. Another thing we have noticed is that the birds don't come down to roost in the trees as they used to. Every night, at a certain time, they would flock down in busy groups and settle themselves in the trees that line the square. Perhaps they go elsewhere now!

Keith and Mike joined us and ordered two beers. They sat next to us so we were all sitting in a row. I noticed a man leaning against the entrance to the cafe and after Sophie had remarked about a nearby baby screaming he started talking to us. He said he had been born in Pollenca but was now living in Harlow in Essex with his English wife. He was in Mallorca visiting a family member who had been very ill and I think he was in a contemplative mood as he commented on how busy the town was and how many tourists there were.

Seeing it through his eyes was quite sobering as he said the town used to be really quiet and there had been a lot of changes in the square. He said he had worked in the Cafe Espanyol when he was 14, 35 years ago! It made me think about how we'd react if one of our local villages was suddenly taken over by mass tourism with people insisting on speaking their own language. An unsettling thought!

This prompted me to ask about the two names of the cafe and he said that Ca'n Moixet was the old name and meant "little cat". He pronounced it "moichette". I had thought it was the name of the original owner, so I was wrong!

Inevitably, the talk turned to Brexit and I was surprised by the vehemence of his feelings on the subject - he believed it should happen and quickly! He said Boris Johnson had "balls"! His concerns were large numbers of people coming into the UK and not working or contributing so this was very surprising. He grew very animated about the topic!

Keith and Mike sat there and didn't say a word, but I enjoyed talking to him and getting a different perspective on things and it was very interesting talking to someone who had been born and bred in the town.

As the time had arrived for our restaurant booking we made our way down to R3spira and took our seats at one of the outside tables. Looking at the menu we were spoilt for choice! We decided to go with a bottle of sparkling wine from Jose Ferrer called Veritas while the men stuck to beer. We were given bread and olives as an aperitif and we chose our meals - a spectacular octopus dish for Mike, bruschetta for Keith, and mussels in a white wine sauce for Sophie and I to share.

Mike's starter arrived with great theatre, with the plate covered by a dome. When the waiter took it off smoke billowed out in swirls which we thought was amazing!

Mike's starter

Our mussels

The food was delicious and the staff very friendly and attentive. For our main courses we chose cod in an aioli crust for Sophie, chicken stuffed with ham and cheese for Mike, lamb chops for Keith and pork in a mushroom sauce for me.

Mine and Sophie's meals

We all agreed the food and ambience were fantastic and it was a great find. We managed to find some room for dessert - Sophie and I shared apple tarte tatin while Mike enjoyed a chocolate brownie. The bill came to 156b euros which I thought was brilliant seeing as Mike's starter was almost 19 euros!