1 luxury hotel & 3 fine dining (Michelin) restaurants around Pollença:

Now it is up to where to go for staying and dining in style in Mallorca’s north in the Pollença area. This is the second of four posts in total about luxury hotels and (Michelin) fine dining on this Balearic Island, region-by-region. My last blogpost went into Mallorca’s southwest. In my next one, I will inform on the northeast around Canyamel. And the Balearics’ capital of Palma will make the end. This mini-series about Mallorca started with thoughts to the island’s overtourism. It was followed by a 15-day itinerary that outlined staying and dining in style in an overall way.

First a few lines about Pollença and its surroundings. Then I will deal with a great upscale hotel and three just such (Michelin) restaurants right away.

Mallorca’s north, around Pollença

Pollença (7 km/4.4 mi from the coast) and Port de Pollença (on the sea) are both small traditional vacation resorts. And fortunately, there is little mass tourism here. While the former is an attractive ancient town, the latter is a relaxed beach resort. Palma is about a 45-minute-drive away from Pollença.

When you are in the area, do not miss Pollença’s many sights, just as El Calvari, where 365 steps lead you to the church from the 18th century. As to Port de Pollença, it is a nice thing to stroll along the Pine Walk (Passeig Vora Mar). This stretch of bay is known for many beautiful properties built by rich Mallorcan and Spanish people. Right after Port de Pollença, the Formentor peninsula starts. If you go to its very end – not possible per car anymore – you come to Cap Formentor, Mallorca’s most northern tip.

Staying in style in Mallorca’s north at Hotel Son Brull

The place to go here for upscale lodging is Hotel Son Brull, a member of the Relais & Château hotel group. The accommodation, a former monastery, is boutique and run by the Mallorcan Suau family. It is a 30-hectare/74-acre estate, but most hotel facilities are concentrated on a relatively small surface.

Location

Son Brull is seven minutes by car away from the town of Pollença, amidst beautiful nature. Although you have views of the Bay of Pollença in the distance, it is basically an inland setting. Furthermore, you are here in the foothills of the northern Tramuntana mountains. Although Son Brull is a large property, going for a short stroll is not really an option. The furthest walk you can undertake is the one to the tennis court (about 5 minutes).

Ambiance/Staff

Compared to the hotel my husband and I were before (Castell Son Claret, my post), the vibe here is more relaxed and casual. If you have a request or a question, staff is friendly and ready to be of service. However, pampering guests is not their thing, they rather have an understated approach when dealing with their clientele. Nevertheless, you feel well at ease here.

Rooms/Pricing

There are 27 guest rooms in total. 23 are in the main building, and only a few of them have balconies. In addition, there are four new two-room villas onsite. They are a few steps away with great views of the countryside.

And these accommodations are high-end. Not only have they a separate living room with fireplace but also a private garden with pool. Rates for the least expensive room (Superior Double 32-35 sqm) start from 252€ in low and twice as much in shoulder season.

We had chosen the (one and only) Junior Suite with Terrace (70 sqm).

It is well-appointed in a modern style with a sizable bathroom

and a separate tub in the bedroom.

The room’s best feature is the terrace with a jacuzzi and an outdoor living room.

The rate for it was 730€ per night including breakfast in early April.

Other facilities

Two restaurants and a bar offer dining opportunities for all occasions. For more information on the food, please refer to the section about dining in style. Besides there are a spa, an indoor and outdoor pool,

a tennis court and guest bikes.

Other luxury lodging in the area

As from 2023, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts will be present in Mallorca. They will manage the former Hotel Formentor on the Formentor peninsula. My husband and I passed it while doing a hike in the area.

The setting is truly appealing, right on the beach in a remote location.

While it must be the paradise for beachgoers and hikers, it probably is not your first choice if you plan to explore the whole island from here. This is due to the fact that this beautiful spot draws massive crowds who come here for a day trip. So you might get stuck in the traffic every now and then.

Now to three recommended dining-spots for foodies in the area, out of which two are at Hotel Son Brull.

Dining in style in Mallorca’s north

On our stay in early April not all the dining venues that I had looked into were already open for the season (for instance Maca de Castro in Alcúdia, one-star Michelin, or Fusion19 in Playa de Muro, Michelin listed). So, our choice was a bit limited. Luckily, we could make use of three dining opportunities at our hotel, Son Brull, from which we tried out two. To our disappointment, the nearby town of Pollença does not excel with top gastronomy. Instead, we found a casual foodie place in the nearby Port de Pollença.

1. 365 Restaurant (signature – Michelin – restaurant at Hotel Son Brull)

Hotel Son Brull’s signature restaurant, 365,

offers a superb fine dining experience that is amazingly affordable too. You can have here a multi-course tasting menu only, either six or eight courses. It is up to you to choose the regular (70/90€) or the vegetarian (60/80€) one. As the latter one sounded interesting, my husband and I gave it a try and we were not disappointed. The chef, Andreu Segura, plays well with textures and flavors. He created a great culinary journey, rooted in his home island of Mallorca. For this purpose, he uses produce that stems from the hotel’s own farm and other local producers. We even got a cheese course on the house, a nice touch. My favorite courses – yet all were delicious – were maybe the green peas as an open “panada” (pie)

or the artichoke “negra” (black) with almond.

The setting at 365 is great. While the dining-room inside the old walls is rather dark, it is elegantly furbished in a modern style.

And when the weather is fine, you can have dinner poolside. Service was pleasant and helpful yet rather on the unassuming side. As at the hotel overall, making a fuss or being pompous is not their style. Regarding staff, we especially appreciated the sommelier’s expertise and gracious attitude.

2. Bistro (second restaurant at Hotel Son Brull)

The second restaurant at Hotel Son Brull, Bistro, is for people looking for an uncomplicated yet tasty dinner. From what I understand, they have recently upgraded their offerings, from only some basics to quite a choice of Mediterranean-style dishes. My husband and I had definitely no problems finding something that appealed to us. We started with tapas,

continued by lobster rice

respectively red tuna loin.

Everything we had was of high quality, well prepared and full of taste.

The Bistro is housed in a historic olive mill that was beautifully restored.

There is also a second dining-room plus alfresco dining, weather permitting. As to service, they did a good job and we enjoyed our evening here.

3. Restaurant Terrae Port de Pollença (Michelin)

The dinner at this modern rustic restaurant – Michelin listed – was a memorable one. This because Terrae was special, in many ways. By chance, we were already in town the afternoon before dining here. Therefore, we decided to catch a glance at the Terrae. While doing so, a nice guy from the opposite side of the street asked us whether we are looking for something. And it turned out that he was the dining-spot’s chef, David Rivas. He comes from Margarita, an island in the Venezuelan Caribbean and has been cooking in Port de Pollença for more than six years.

When entering the dining-spot in the evening, the air was smoky from the grill. But things got better quickly. We were ushered to a tiny wooden table, but everything here is so. There are only a few tables, and the chef stands in front of the counter preparing the dishes. At the other side of it, there is the “grill master”.

We received no menu, a server told us what was available. We ordered tapas (bread with hummus, smoked cabbage croquettes, smoked duck breast),

followed by lamb confit with potatoes.

Everything was fabulous, also the dessert, David’s take on lime tart.

He only uses sustainable, local produce and prepares them in a twisty way, we liked it! And the experience was very personable too. The ambiance at Terrae is very casual, I could imagine that it is not for everyone here, but the chef really knows his stuff!

Looking back and forward

After giving an overview of where to go for staying and dining in style when doing a round trip in Mallorca (four places: southwest, north, northeast and Palma), I continued with detailed reports on the individual spots. My last went into the southwest (around Capdellà), the current was about the north and the next will focus on the Canyamel area in the northeast.

The whole thing will be rounded off with information to a luxury hotel and two Michelin one-star restaurant in Palma, the island’s capital.

In case you should be interested in the touristic situation of Mallorca, I also devoted a blogpost to its overtourism and what the island does to fight against it.

Date of stay: April 2022

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