Mallorca is an enormously diverse island, with activities, visits, and landscapes for all tastes. The Posidonia beds growing on the sea floor, the presence of protected areas, and difficult access by land have all contributed to many beaches and coves having preserved their natural state. But the gaze of those who spend time on the island is not only set on the sea: inland, along the Tramuntana mountain range, you can find an intimate world of quiet villages boasting excellent restaurants with chefs who have come from all over the world in search of the peace and shelter of these mountains.
“The diversity of Mallorca’s people makes it a unique place,” explains one of our bulthaup partners in Palma de Mallorca, Marc Nicolau.
The island’s cooking is authentically Mediterranean, and you can experience it in a celler, a name broadly used today which originally referred to the traditional Mallorcan eateries set up in wine cellars.
When we ask Marc to suggest a celler, he doesn’t hesitate to recommend Santi Taura’s (both in the picture No. 3 of the gallery). This young chef, widely renowned on the island and with restaurants in three different locations, has his own clear notion of cuisine: simple and successful.
An enthusiast of Mallorca and of its ingredients, traditions, recipes, and landscapes, Santi Taura is, above all, an artisan of cooking. A chef by trade. In addition to the Celler, Taura has other venues where he offers his particular brand of cuisine: a restaurant in the village of Lloseta and the Urbà, his latest and most innovative project in the center of Palma, the island’s capital.
“We all deserve to visit Mallorca at least once in our lives,” states Marc Nicolau. “There is no other place in the Mediterranean that offers white sands, spectacular coves, superb cuisine, hotels with such charm, and evenings that are exciting for people of all ages.”

For those of us with a weakness for gourmet experiences, there is no better way to get to know a place than visiting the local markets. Mallorca offers many where you can sample the wonderful fruits of this land.
In recent years, according to Marc Nicolau, “the neighborhood around the Santa Catalina market in Palma has been developing a young, diverse character that has boosted local business and led to a varied, attractive range of new venues, including cafés and restaurants.”
Our partner on the island recommends that we visit “La Coquería,” a gastronomic space located in stall no. 13 inside the market. As its owners Maria Solivellas and Katja Wöhr tell us, “You eat our flat-bread cocas with your hands. It’s the perfect kind of food for improvising, sharing, taking away… It’s street food, food on the go. With verve, charisma, personality. Never a fad: always contemporary. ” The cocas are served with an exquisite lemonade or a cool almond milk. A must.

If you’re the kind who likes to take some local products home with you, Marc recommends three, which also include some sightseeing:

– “Take a tour to see the many vineyards and visit some of the dozens of wineries on the island. The quality of their products is apparent from the number of prizes they have won in international competitions. Enjoy a little wine tasting and take a bottle or two home with you.”
– Another one of the island’s star products is its olive oil. “Refined, elegant, and very fruity. Cold-pressed, a treat for the palate,” Nicolau tells us.

- “If you visit the island in the summer, you can partake in harvesting the “Flor de Sal d’Es Trenc” salt. Flor de Sal is sea salt in its purest form. Very specific weather conditions are required for this aromatic, mineral-rich salt to crystallize on the water’s surface in the salt flats: a lot of sunshine, a gentle breeze, and low air humidity. This makes for a layer of flower-shaped crystals to form, which are harvested with rakes following a long-standing artisanal tradition. After drying, the salt is blended with Mediterranean herbs, spices, roses or black olives, subsequently packaged, and sent to gourmet stores and restaurants all over the world.
Last but not least, Marc recommends boarding a sailing ship to experience the island from the sea: “The Rossina di Mare is an option that will allow you to enjoy the sea aboard an exclusive 20-meter classic sailboat designed by Sparkman & Stephens and built in Italy by Cantiere Navale Costaguta in 1961.” This magnificent ship has everything you need to make your trip a unique, unforgettable experience, with the spirit of other, slower-paced times.”

We would like to thank Marc Nicolau from bulthaup in Palma de Mallorca for all his help.

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