Where To Eat In Palma de Mallorca Post-Covid

A while ago we escaped to Mallorca...Surprise! - travel is still possible post-covid. It takes a little more planning, and a bit more of an adventurous spirit, but that never did stop a true traveller. 

So while I won't go into the ins & outs of how and why in this post (please DO make sure you book the PCR test with your ID/passport number - just in case ;) I promised a friend who is heading to Palma (and I know a few are thinking about it - do it!) to round up some tips on where to eat - because let's be honest, that's what most people missed the most about not being able to leave the house, and that's what we looked forward to most on this trip!

A few restrictions we had:

At this stage hospitality was only outdoors and only until 5pm, so we had to adapt a bit of a different dining rhythm... We always had a big breakfast which lasted us until around 2-3pm when we would go for "luninner" (that's lunch & dinner combined ;)

Another restriction we had was being vegetarian/pescatarian. Spanish cuisine is not known for its plethora of vegetarian dishes. However, as we wanted to experience as many different types of food out while we were there anyway, it turned into quite a colourful list...

Of course a lot of places had also shut down due to covid or weren't yet reopened, but we found some goodies, so here they are (stick around to the end - that was definitely our jackpot find!):

Day one we spent exploring the city, and when we searched for a vegetarian restaurant (which was shut) we stumbled upon this gem in a quiet side street: Celler (de) sa Premsa.

I already had the first blisters on my feet, so we felt extra lucky when we nabbed one of the few outdoor tables and had our first cerveza... I tell you, beer never tasted so good (not even at Oktoberfest! :)

Here we shared some spinach filled croquettas with fries and a vegetable Paella. The paella was a bit on the greasy side, but the croquettas I would definitely go back for!

Day 2 we ended up at Primo Taqueria in Calle de la Fàbrica. This place is pretty hip - but not too cool for school and delicious to boot! 

Make sure you don't get here too late, as it's very popular and try get a table close to side of the main entrance to catch the last rays of the evening sun peeking around the corner.

We had a vegetarian burrito and quesadilla, the quesadilla (flat one). Both were tasty, but we both preferred the quesadilla as it had more intense flavours.

Calle de la Fàbrica and the surrounding blocks (Santa Catalina) are generally a good address to satisfy your appetite and locals and visitors alike dine here. Although do listen out for locals, as there also did seem to be some tourist traps amongst gems like Primo.

There is also a little indoor market a couple of blocks down from Primo with local vendors which is worth checking out and tasting bits and bobs. 

Another gem (two along from Primo) was a gorgeous Italian place RIKITO with vintage mix & match plates and fine pizza (just how I like it slightly crispy but still fluffy in bits and places). 

To cover more continents, one "luninner" we opted for Indian from Sabor a India which was tasty although I wish sans-plastic containers :( 

We were a bit late getting to luninner that day and our airbnb in Cala Major (the beach closest to Palma) had beautiful sea views so we preferred to take away that day and enjoy the view!

Pura Vida (pure life/joy/zest for life) described this modern, fresh, Spanish cafe perfectly...

Moist, gorgeous vegan carrot cake accompanied by a perfect espresso and water in a box to wash it all down with...

And a kind of Tortilla Espanola with a finely seasoned tomato paste on crispy toast (we have since recreated this paste at home because it was so simple yet, flavoursome).

And last but certainly not least we discovered Jazminthing Asia Buffet which offers "Buffet Libre" - a kind of Japanese/Asian-inspired all-you-can eat "buffet" which due to covid is delivered to your table.

The outdoor tables were packed, and even though I thought I had understood that we would pay EUR 12.80 per person (on a Thrusday - a couple Euros more from Friday onwards) and order as much as we like, we thought this was surely too good to be true! So we double checked with our neighbours who kindly confirmed, that yes, we had understood correctly...

Well it was all go from there, and we didn't even keep up with taking pictures, but all the veggie options (and we did try them ALL, some twice!) were perfect (below you just see the first "round"...)

And that's a wrap! I hope this inspired you to quit making excuses and get your butt to Palma if you can. More about where we stayed, and what we did - apart from eating - another time :) 

If you try/have tried any of these places too: let me know your thoughts/further suggestions please (for my next trip ;) below!

Yours truly,

Fräulein SoulFood x