The past decade has seen something of a culinary revolution on Mallorca, and now a new restaurant in Portixol brings its interpretation of ‘affordable-chic’ cuisine to the island
The gastronomic scene in Mallorca has come a long way in the past decade. Michelin stars have popped up around the island and restaurants everywhere now serve more than just local or Spanish cuisine. But a gap has remained. While it’s now easy to find good upper- and midlevel cuisine, what about something in between? Where can one find star-quality food but without the formality or the price associated with the traditional gourmet restaurant?
Mallorca was badly in need of something a little more cosmopolitan, a stylish venue with a laidback vibe serving quality contemporary food. Now it has just this, courtesy of Bar.co, a new restaurant in Portixol, that offers ‘affordable-chic’ cuisine.
1 THE CONCEPT
Affordable luxury
According to its owners, the idea behind Bar.co can be summed up in two words: affordable luxury. This translates as a combination of innovative cuisine, informal ambience, stylish interiors and reasonable prices. Even before the current economic crisis there were definite signs that people were tiring of the stuffiness, snobbery and especially the prices at many high-end eateries. Bar.co seems to be ahead of the trend; the food is very good, the place is cool and the bill is pretty painless.
2 THE SETTING
Waterfront
The spot chosen for the first Bar.co restaurant couldn’t be better. In the past five years, the tiny fishing port of Portixol, just outside the city of Palma, has been transformed into one of the island’s hotspots. The once rundown string of fisherman’s dwellings along the waterfront have been bought up and restored (gentrified if you will), and the seafront boasts a new promenade that attracts joggers, cyclists and the body-beautiful crowd by day while at night it is the in-spot for a leisurely stroll.
At a bend in the promenade, with a tiny beach to one side and the open sea to the other, sits Bar.co. Its superb location means that whether seated inside behind the huge plate-glass windows or outside on the terrace, diners enjoy fantastic sea views and people-watching opportunities aplenty.
3 THE AMBIENCE
Contemporary chic
The stylish interior design is in perfect harmony with the food served at Bar.co. There is almost a stark minimalist look to the place, with lots of clean straight lines, wood and aluminium. Fresh flowers and bright paintings lend a welcoming bit of colour. The linen-free tables and the waiting staff, clad in monotone (white or black) uniforms topped off with T-shirts, add to the modern, laidback feel of the place.
4 THE PEOPLE
International mix
Enter Bar.co on any given evening and the chatter rising from the tables will be a mix of English, German, French and Spanish. The dining room has been described as a mini Mallorcan UN, or the meeting place for all cultures present on the island. From what we have seen, the clients may speak different languages but they do have something in common: they all look cool, sophisticated and very chic.
5 THE FOOD
Fusion
It’s a scary word, we know, and is often used as a safety valve for chefs that can’t seem to master any one technique, but here the food is ‘fusion’ proper. The dishes at Bar.co subtly blend the flavours of Mexico, Asia and the Mediterranean without forcing the outcome, and in a way that clearly enhances the finest aspects of each cuisine.
Appetisers range from an ever-changing selection of sushi and sashimi, to gyozas (dumplings) served with a tangy soy-mustard sauce. For the Bar.co chicken salad, the meat is marinated in garlic and ginger and then deepfried before being served atop a green salad with fresh mangoes and a mango-lime sorbet.
Main courses vary from grilled fillet of turbot with assorted vegetables and a dash of Mandarin sauce, to the local flavours of lamb chops served on a bed of ratatouille or grilled tuna with mashed sweet potatoes and Japanese tare sauce. The dessert menu changes daily and can be anything from a yoghurt soup with white chocolate and redberry ice cream, to mango and chilli sorbet. – Guy Fiorita