Bistro Senzill, Capdepera
Well-known Mallorcan chef, Andreu Genestra, moved his Michelin-star restaurant from Capdepera to Llucmajor two years ago. But the seasonal, rural hotel where it used to be located – Hotel Predi Son Jaumell – is still home to the most informal and affordable of his three restaurants, the Mediterranean bistro, Senzill.
If you want to eat good Mediterranean food in a tranquil setting in northeast Mallorca, Senzill could be the place for you, and you don’t have to stay at the hotel to eat there.
We went for an alfresco lunch, taking advantage of some pleasant weather to eat at a table on the delightful terrace, under a pergola enhanced by climbing wisteria. The hotel’s pool and poolside Balinese beds are close by. Our previous visit had been before the pandemic, so personnel have changed but the setting is still as we remembered it.
The hotel’s 14th-century building is home to Senzill’s romantic dining room, which has a Mallorcan-stone barrel-vaulted ceiling.
Andreu Genestra has been championing sustainability since he opened his first restaurant at this hotel in 2011. A parcel of land adjacent to the rural hotel is dedicated to growing produce that Senzill’s head chef, Irene Lluch, and her team use in the kitchen.
Senzill has separate, quarterly changing menus for lunch and dinner. This review is based on lunch.
Starters on the lunch menu are designed for sharing and include three types of croquetas, an Iberian ham board with bread and tomato, a Mediterranean cheese board with garnishes, two types of tacos, and two Caesar salads (choice of chicken or red prawn). We opted to share the cauliflower ‘popcorn’ in tempura with a red curry and lime dip – delicious and different (14€).
There are ten main course lunch dishes, including a luxury hamburger, Club Sandwich, Mediterranean lobster roll, pulled pork bun, two pasta dishes, two rice dishes, and fresh fish and meat specials at market prices. My companion chose a richly flavoured mushroom and roasted peppers creamy rice (22€). The lunch menu has a good choice of vegetarian dishes, and I ate and enjoyed roasted aubergine with satay sauce, kale, and bimi (16€).
Desserts are home-made here – Irene has a passion for patisserie – but although they were tempting (priced from 6€-12€), I could manage only one of their home-made ice creams and sorbets. My strawberry and rose ice cream was delicious.
We drank wine by the glass, choosing Andreu Genestra’s own-label Genestral Rosat, made from callet and cabernet sauvignon grapes (8€ a glass).
Photos: Jan Edwards
Prices correct at time of writing.