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On the Balearic Islands many restaurants tend to have short business seasons. This is less true of Mallorca, but on Menorca, Ibiza, and especially on Formentera, it might be May (or later) before the shutters are removed from that great seafood shack you’ve heard so much about. Really fine dining experiences are in short supply on the islands; in the popular beach resorts, the promenades can seem overrun with paella and pizza joints. Away from the water, however, there are exceptional meals to be had—and the seafood couldn’t be any fresher.
Located in busy Palma, each menu at fera has between four and seven courses. Some favorite dishes include the wild sea bass and the lamb. Lunch and dinner services also include a dedicated vegetarian menu offering a variety of plant-based dishes. They also have a varied wine selection and an impressive nonalcoholic drink menu. This restaurant has a sophisticated dining palate that doesn't shy away from being top-notch but doesn't alienate new travelers who aren't used to fine dining.
This café, on a side street behind the church of Sant Francesc, is one of Palma's venerable institutions, in business since 1700. Drop in for coffee or hot chocolate with an ensaimada crema—a spiral-shape Mallorcan pastry with a rich cream-cheese filling. With its green-glass chandeliers, cane-back chairs, and marble tabletops, the setting is a treat in itself.
