Letter number 195
For a few moments, we became part of the paintings in the exhibition. Tourists discreetly approached the door of the room, where the February sun had stopped being shy and shone with the strength of another season, trying to understand who belonged to that group cheerfully discussing, encouraged by bottles and food. The table looked like a Sunday or special celebration, with heavy white tablecloths and silverware.
The place was unbeatable, a green and stone oasis: the Jardins d’Alfàbia, in Bunyola, Mallorca, a ‘possession’ open to visitors and owned by the Zaforteza family, with Cristina Zaforteza, the manager, acting as the hostess.
Water rituals at the vaulted cistern and the pergola with 72 columns, still without its lush vegetation cover. Everything was unprecedented, and the greatest privilege was to eat in the palace, where these kinds of events were exceptional.
The sisters Maria and Teresa Solivellas had relocated their restaurant from Caimarí, Ca na Toneta, 40 kilometers away, to serve their responsible, personal, and intuitive cuisine, adding the exuberance of the estate and the solemnity of the interiors.
Maria went to pick mandarins from the orchard, which would be part of the dessert with pumpkin in three textures. It was the second time she tasted their dishes without ever having been to Caimarí.
Attachment to the land, to the season, to what is available at each moment, giving up market whims, which is the irrational desire of so many chefs with their heads in the stars.
The cook defined herself without losing her smile: “Taliban of the local product, seasonality, and Mallorquinity.”
The starter was a desirable punch: the ‘matanza’ ensaimada from Can Salem; then, the onion consommé ‘al caliu’ and on the plate, the little fish called ‘jonquillo’ with osmosed apple and ‘allioli’, a tasty extravagance; the cuttlefish tartare with peas and sobrassada juice, a top-notch dish; the red mullets with vegetable sofrito and an imperial potato, and the ‘porc negre’ cheeks with baked apple. Such a pity that this impossible restaurant was born and died the same day.
The wines were part of a game: Quim Vila and Siscu Martí, owners of Vila Viniteca, had organized the trip to present the poster for the 17th Couples Tasting Contest (to be held in Madrid on March 23), created by Sergio Caballero and Franc Aleu. The morning had started at the property Sergio shared with Francesc Grimalt: 4 Kilos Vinícola, who make some of the most elegant reds on the island.
The blind tasting was an awkward moment resolved with laughter and the curious perplexity of the visitors who sniffed.
There were boasts and few correct guesses in the impossible task of announcing variety, vintage, and winery with only the clues dictated by mouth and nose. Wines with top ratings circulated, such as the 2021 Sassicaia, which the guessers saw a future for but was still finishing. Or the very old Valdespino muscatel, a pact with eternity.
Next to the hall was the so-called Queen’s Room, where Queen Isabel II once slept. Tempted by a royal nap, the plane required a prompt arrival at the airport. Probably some tourist asked what time the second performance would be.
