Lunch in Soller, Mallorca
One of my most favorite things about Mallorca is how easy it is to get around the island. When I am traveling alone, I like to see a lot and take advantage of every minute, and on this particular day, I was by myself. I had spent the morning exploring some more secluded coves and wanted to check out the beach Es Trenc, but was disappointed when I got there because it was just your average beach, which usually is great except there are so many other not-your-average-beaches in Mallorca. Sitting on the beach, I decided I had to check out Soller, so I grabbed my stuff and headed back to the car to head to the northwest coast of Mallorca.
Side note: the roads getting in and out of Es Trenc are NARROW. Luckily, I was in a Mini, but there were some seriously tight squeezes between passing cars. I highly recommend a small car to get to Es Trenc unless you are comfortable navigating small spaces in a big car. Getting to parking took about 15 minutes, but getting out at peak time took about an hour.
The drive from Es Trenc to Soller took a little over an hour, but it went by fast. Ideally, you should combine Valldemossa, Soller, and Sa Calobra but, hey, when you're renting a Mini convertible it’s fun going coast to coast in a day!
Soller is known for its citrus and has historical ties to France. If you visit, make sure you try some fresh-squeezed local orange juice. A few other things notable to Soller: ice cream and olive oil. Actually, the more I write about this place, it sounds kind of perfect, right? I wonder if anyone there sells orange olive-oil ice cream? Anyway…
I was able to get parking in a garage right in the heart of Port de Soller. One of my big takeaways after visiting Soller is how crucial it is to be mindful of the time and to look up the hours the places you want to go are open. In Mallorca, a lot of places close between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. and a lot are closed on Sundays or only open on Sunday nights, etc.. Given this, my original plan for food fell apart, but I welcomed the adventure.
I ended up coming upon a street called Carrer de Santa Caterina d'Alexandria. It’s on an incline, and if you can get patio seating you have great views of the port. I decided to eat at Restaurant Ca'n Ribes, and it was a delicious meal. After lunch, I decided to find the nearest ice cream stand, sit on a bench and enjoy the breeze until it was time to head back to Palma.
If you’re in Soller, I wanted to check out Ca'n BoQueta and Casa Alvaro. If you have dined at either - leave a comment and let me know how it was. Anywhere else that should be on my list for next time?