CELLER SA PREMSA - LUNCH

Address:     Plaça del Bisbe Berenguer Palou, 8, 07003 Palma, Illes Balears

Phone:        00 34 971 72 35 29

I went here for lunch with my husband and 2 Mallorcan friends in April.

My husband was a regular here some decades ago and reminisced on how it was very popular then so we were interested to know if it had stood the test of time.

As you enter the old wooden glazed swing doors into the restaurant you enter a large area with a high ceiling and small windows positioned in the roof.  It is simply furnished in a rustic style with dark wood tables and chairs with vintage artefacts from wine-making and storage.

The waiters are mature men and extremely efficient.  As we arrived just after opening we had the choice of tables and bread and olives were instantly brought to our table and our drinks order taken.  On this occasion all we wanted to drink was water so I cannot comment on the wine here.

The menu was available in English, German, Spanish and Catalan and had mainly traditional Mallorcan dishes to choose from.  You could choose from the a la carte menu or have a "menu del dia" (with 3 courses - each course having a good selection to choose from.  The menu del dia was €12.95 per head including wine and water.

As we were eating rather early we passed on the menu del dia and chose from the a la carte menu.  My husband was the only one to choose a starter - lentils with garlic which was a generous sized dish for a starter and was declared delicious.

For mains 2 chose arroz negra (black rice) which contained cuttlefish and peas and once again was declared very tasty.  Like the starter, this was a generous size.  I chose the "lomo con col"(pork stuffed with 2 types of Mallorcan sausage and wrapped in cabbage with a light tomato sauce containing some raisins).  There were 2 large pieces of cabbage wrapped pork on my plate which I found a bit overfacing but for those with a hearty appetite it would probably have been very appealing.  It was beautifully tender and tasty and I was able to eat one whole piece and the rest was shared between my dining companions who also enjoyed it.  My husband had prawns in garlic oil for his main and it was piping hot and perfectly cooked.

Three of us decided to have dessert and all chose "puding" which is a bit like a slice of madeira cake which has been cooked with egg custard and a served with a light caramel sauce.  Again this was excellent.

To finish 2 of us had coffees - a "cafe con leche" (white coffee) and a "cortado" (an espresso with a shot of hot milk).  The bill came to a very economical €54 for 4 people - excellent value for money.

The whole experience was authentically Mallorcan from the highly professional and attentive waiters to the perfectly cooked Mallorcan food.  It is not surprising that it has been going for more than 50 years.  However, if you favour more modern cooking it would perhaps not suit but for a flavour of Mallorcan cuisine it is a good choice - as confirmed by our Mallorcan friends.