Food forms a big part of any holiday for us and so having returned from Ibiza a few pounds heavier this month, I wanted to share with you a handful of the places that we enjoyed for lunch and dinner during our week away.
La Paloma, Sant Llorenç
About a 25-minute drive from Ibiza Old Town into the heart of the island you will find this gem of a restaurant. It is open for lunch and dinner, but we would recommend a visit in the evening and book a table in the Orange Garden. The food is primarily Italian and the menu based almost entirely on locally sourced products. Dishes change weekly according to product availability and season. Like all great Italian restaurants, it is family-owned and operated – the team are knowledgeable and attentive but above all the food is memorable.
The Orange Garden, La Paloma
Macao Café, Santa Gertrudis
Also located in the centre of the island, equidistant from Ibiza and San Antoni, lies the wonderful Café Macao. It’s another Italian (I know this is Ibiza, but those Italians know how to cook!). Located in the village of Santa Gertrudis, it’s worth arriving ahead of your table booking and potter around the artisan shops. As with La Paloma, the restaurant has a delightful garden setting and delicious food including risotto and sea bass served in a Moroccan style.
Macao Café
Ses Boques, Sant Josep de Sa Talaia
This really is a ‘hidden gem’! If you are happy to negotiate the somewhat nervy descent to the beach along a dirt track (maybe best to get a taxi), it is completely worth it. Located right on the water’s edge on a small, stony beach, this is a great restaurant for lunch. If your budget stretches to it, then hire a boat for the day and join the many patrons who had moored up and swam ashore to enjoy their lunch.
Unsurprisingly, seafood rules here with plenty to choose from, including salt-crust roasted fish, lobster, calamari and much more. The setting, food and friendly service from this family-run informal restaurant was a real highlight of the week.
Ses Boques
Vogamari, Formentera
You absolutely must include a day trip to the island of Formentera during your stay. It’s a 30-minute sailing on a high-speed catamaran from Ibiza Town and when you arrive hire a scooter, bike or as we did a somewhat rickety lime-green Mehari (an open-sided Mini-Moke style car), which really added to the holiday mood.
The beaches here are sandy and the sea a stunning Caribbean turquoise blue. There are several bays to pick from and some do get busy but pick the right one and you will find plenty of space to lay your beach towel. One such beach, on the south coast, is Platja de Migjorn and it is here that you will find Vogamari.
Once again it is located right on the beach and you can take in the stunning views from the deck whilst enjoying locally caught seafood, washed down with a bottle of rosé. Then, it’s just a few steps to the sand where you can take a post-prandial nap or enjoy a swim in the warm Mediterranean Sea.
Vogamari Restaurant
This is a selection of some of the places we chose – and I would definitely advise booking ahead before you travel, in order to not be disappointed. Let me know if you have your own favourites – I would love to read about them and to visit next time I am there.
FlyDirect operates direct flights from Jersey to Ibiza weekly in Summer. Stays of 6 or 13 nights are available and flights can be booked alone or as part of a full package holiday on our website.