Food & Drink
Food and drink in Mallorca
The island's cuisine is rustic, not light Mediterranean: pork, vegetables, olive oil, bread. The coast provides the fish, the interior the classics.
Food and drink in Mallorca ranges from the celler in the interior to the harbour terrace.
Quick answer
What do people eat in Mallorca?
Typical dishes are frit mallorquí, tumbet, arròs brut, sopes mallorquines, lechona as well as sobrassada and ensaimada. The island's cuisine is at its most authentic and cheapest at lunchtime in the cellers of the interior, while fish is best at the working fishing harbours.
If you only eat on the beach promenade in Mallorca, you won't get to know the island's cuisine. The defining dishes come from the interior – frit, tumbet, arròs brut, sobrassada – and are cheaper and better in the cellers of Inca, Sineu or Petra than in the tourist centres. This overview explains what is typical, what it costs and when which cuisine is in season.
What is eaten in Mallorca, which ingredients and customs lie behind it, and where to find it: this page explains the island's cuisine – you will find specific restaurants for every place and occasion in the restaurant finder.
Topics
Cuisine, classics and prices at a glance
Filter by seasonal status if you are travelling outside the summer months – a large part of the coastal restaurants will be closed then.
15 of 15 pages.
Mallorcan cuisine
Tapas
Paella & rice dishes
Fish & seafood
Markets and market halls
Breakfast & brunch
Sweet treats: ensaimada & more
Wine, hierbas & local drinks
Eating on a budget
Special culinary experiences
-
Cellers
Large barrels, long tables, hearty food – the most honest place for island classics. Open all year round
-
Chiringuitos
Grill, plastic chairs, fish – and only between May and October. Seasonal
-
Michelin-starred dining
Eleven restaurants, twelve stars – and reservations months in advance. Open all year round Seasonal
-
Steak & grill
Chuletón is ordered for two and charged by weight. Open all year round Seasonal
More topics
Cafés, sweet treats, drinks and eating with children
Cafés and specialty coffee
Alongside the classic café solo at the bar, Palma has developed its own roastery and specialty coffee scene in recent years, especially in Santa Catalina and the old town. There, filter coffee is served as a matter of course, just like cortado, often combined with breakfast or brunch. Outside Palma, coffee mostly stays traditional: quick, strong and drunk standing up.
Eating with children
Children are naturally welcome in Spanish restaurants, but mealtimes are later than you may be used to: in the evening, many places only start serving from 20:30. Separate children's menus are not standard everywhere; it is more common to share portions or order a half portion. Tapas, pa amb oli and rice dishes are particularly well suited to this.
See child-friendly restaurants in Palma
Sweet treats and products to take home
Ensaimada, gató de almendra, coca and crespells are as much part of everyday island life as olive oil, flor de sal and sobrassada. Origin, ingredients, buying and taking them home are described in detail in the section on Mallorcan specialities.
Wine, hierbas and local drinks
Alongside the island's wine, there are two bottled classics: hierbas mallorquinas, a herbal liqueur in the dulces, mezcladas and secas varieties, which is served in many places as a digestif after a meal, and the bitter palo. Both are found in almost every bar and are among the most popular souvenirs.
To the restaurant finder
Already know what you fancy?
Go to the restaurant finder – by place, cuisine, price and occasion.
Frequently asked questions
What is typical Mallorcan food?
The core classics are frit mallorquí, tumbet, arròs brut, sopes mallorquines, lechona (suckling pig) as well as sobrassada and ensaimada. Fish is typical on the coast, while pork and vegetables dominate in the interior.
How much does eating out in Mallorca cost?
A menú del día is usually 12 to 18 euros for three courses, a main course in a coastal restaurant 18 to 28 euros, and fish sold by weight considerably more. Michelin-starred dining starts at around 150 euros per person.
When do people eat in Mallorca?
Lunch is usually between 13:30 and 15:30, dinner from 20:30. Kitchens in non-tourist restaurants often close between 16:00 and 20:00; all-day kitchens are the exception.
Is it easy to eat vegetarian or vegan in Mallorca?
In Palma, yes, with a dense vegan scene in the old town and in Santa Catalina. In the countryside, traditional cuisine is very meat-heavy; tumbet, trempó and pa amb oli are the reliable plant-based options there.
Another way in: Restaurants by occasion and place – sea view, sunset, with children, town pages
Next steps
Image credits: Mercat de l'Olivar market hall in Palma: photo Enric, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons · Ensaïmadas with figs and sobrassada: photo Malopez 21, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons