Coffees, Cakes, Chocolate and Cava

If you are looking for a cool café to enjoy a specialty coffee in Palma, you will be hard-pressed to find somewhere more unique than Santal. Nestled in a disused mill in the Los Molinos neighbourhood, north of Santa Catalina, this new café makes for a very “Instagram-friendly” location, both inside and outside. The terrace is spacious, with big comfy chairs and cushions, and sunny for a good few hours - even in winter. I can easily see myself sitting there writing my columns for an afternoon. The building is likely a protected heritage and I imagine the owners could not change it much. But they have made fantastic use of the three separate rooms. As you enter the mill, you are greeted with a light airy space with an open kitchen and a front counter. The second room houses a large table that could be used for dining in a big group or a team-building meeting. The last room is still a work in progress but will be an art gallery, supporting local artists and offering various workshops. The whole place is furnished with a mixture of practical, standard tables, and low tables with big comfy lounge chairs for a more relaxed vibe. Sitting there makes you feel as if you are in a very stylish friend´s living room.

Rodrigo and another three partners rented the mill from an Argentinian friend in 2019, and from here they conceived the idea of this comfortable living room style space. Santal is a concept of coffee shops that already exist in Buenos Aires, so they used some of the existing brand elements, but adapted them to the local market needs. Due to Covid, their planned opening was delayed for a couple of years but they finally opened this winter and instantly became popular with neighbours and visitors alike.

When it comes to coffee, I note that they exclusively use ‘Nomad’; a very good coffee that you can occasionally get at Nano Coffee Lab, but nowhere

by Mia Naprta photos

else in Palma. My cortado with oat milk has been consistently good. The food menu is still evolving, but what they currently have is good and nicely presented. Rodrigo suggested I try his invention of that morning – oatmeal pancakes with peanut butter, sliced bananas and roasted caramelized nuts topped with bacon, with a tiny pot maple syrup on the side. The plate was huge, tasted excellent, and I finished the whole thing within minutes! I thought that bacon and banana would not work -but they really did!

The cakes here are fantastic! The other day I had a brownie with toasted almonds and a touch of sea salt (possibly the best brownie in Palma!). Their take on carrot cake; dark and moist with a generous layer of frosting, was also amongst the best in town!

Rodrigo tells me that they are planning to extend their working hours and have ‘tardeos’ (late afternoon parties) with tapas and more, so watch this space…

With notice, they can cater for big groups and deliver to boats. Also, if you mention that you read about them in The Islander, you will receive a 5% discount!

Until next month…

Yours sweetly,

Mia

Text: Mia Naprta

E-mail: mia.naprta@gmail.com

Instagram: @mianaprta

Photos: Rodrigo Moreno

Santal

Carrer de la Industria 16, Palma

Instagram: @santalcafe.es

Opening hours

M Closed

T-S 9:00-16:00