The 17 Essential Mallorca Restaurants

January 18, 2022 Admin 0 Comments

Where to find classic fisherman’s stew, spicy crispy duck, Argentinian gaucho-style beef pasties, and fresh citrus sorbet on the largest Balearic island

Famous for its endless sandy beaches and hordes of selfie stick-wielding tourists (many sunburned to within an inch of their lives), Mallorca hasn’t had the chance to develop a reputation for its gastronomy. But it turns out that the largest of Spain’s Balearic Islands has had the potential to be a top-notch food destination all along.

With a rich agricultural heritage, the central part of the island is mainly devoted to growing crops like olives, grapes, citrus fruit, and almonds, which yield excellent olive oils, wines, preserves, and pastries. Pig farms produce meat for everyone’s favorite Mallorcan delicacy, the tangy sobrassada sausage, while the gourmet salts from the southeastern plains have achieved global recognition. Fish stocks in the Mediterranean are not what they once were, but chefs make good use of local varieties including rockfish, razor fish, and gamba roja de Sóller (red shrimp), used in dishes like sopes de peix Mallorquines (Mallorcan fish soup) or its Ibizan equivalent, bullit de peix.

Recent years have seen the island evolve into a favorite among food lovers. Led by Mallorcan slow food trailblazer Maria Solivellas of Ca na Toneta, top national and homegrown chefs are serving up tantalizing plates of seasonal food made from ingredients produced on the island and enhanced by global culinary influences left by decades of mass tourism. Together, Mallorca’s restaurants are fashioning a slower, more sustainable form of tourism.

From rural restaurants serving contemporary takes on classic recipes to neighborhood haunts with creative menus inspired by Asian and Latin American cuisine, the best restaurants in Mallorca are ready to wow.

Health experts consider dining out to be a high-risk activity for the unvaccinated; it may pose a risk for the vaccinated, especially in areas with substantial COVID transmission.

Prices per person, excluding alcohol:

$ = Less than 15 euros (less than $17 USD)
$$ = 15 - 29 euros ($17 to $33 USD)
$$$ = 30 - 50 euros ($34 to $56 USD)
$$$$ = More than 50 euros (more than $56 USD)

Isabelle Kliger is a half-British, half-Swedish freelance journalist who moved to Barcelona 11 years ago and spends her time writing about travel, food, and pop culture.