TIERRA DE GRACIA - SUPPER

Address:      Calle Missio 15B, Palma 07003
Telephone:  00 34 971 590 535
Website:      www.surtierradegracia.com

I went here with my husband on a Thursday evening in August.  I booked a table for 8 pm for the two of us thinking that in August it could be very busy. However, many locals go away in August and when we turned up at the restaurant it was completely empty.  

We were greeted by a very professional and welcoming waiter and given the pick of the tables in the restaurant.  We chose one overlooking the internal patio which we were told was not used for dining so as not to disturb the neighbours.

In spite of being decorated in an industrial style, the restaurant had a comfortable and calm ambience.

Our drinks orders were taken quickly and menus brought to the table with the drinks menu.  I had a very generous and well made Hendricks G&T and my husband had a glass of Verdejo white wine which was served at a good temperature as were the glasses of Ribeira del Duero red wines which he followed with.  Both wines were more than drinkable.

We decided to share a starter of prawns in Venezuelan rum.  The prawns were beautifully fresh and perfectly cooked and the sauce was not too alcoholic, with a dash of hot spice, and contained halves of cherry tomatoes.  This was accompanied by tasty and crisp homemade kettle chips.

For mains we went with the waiter's recommendations - veal tenderloin for my husband and sea bass for me.  Like the prawns the ingredients were beautifully fresh and cooked to perfection.  The sea bass was slightly crisp on one side and I was worried that it would be overcooked, but it was succulent and tasty beneath and I enjoyed the contrasting textures of crispness and succulence.  The veal was served with mashed potatoes, vegetables and a black sauce and was a good-sized portion.  The sea bass was served with roast new potatoes and miniature batons of sweet potato.  Again this was a good-sized portion.

Although I was pretty full I was curious to try a dessert and ordered the rosemary panna cotta with strawberry jus.  This was delightfully light to finish on and the rosemary gave the panna cotta an excellent piquancy and the strawberry jus had just the right amount of sweetness.

Finally I had a cortado (espresso with a shot of hot milk) to end the meal.

We complimented the waiter on the food and the chef, one of the Venezuelan partners in the family business, came out of the kitchen and answered our questions about the meal in a very charming way and was happy to talk about with us about his cooking as well as life in Venezuela.

The meal came to €83 without the tip and we felt this was a fair price for a very good quality dinner and drinks.

We really hope that this restaurant thrives, as it is in a back street parallel to La Rambla which means that it does not get too much foot fall.  It is certainly one that we will return to.