Day 2 – Mallorca: Exploring Valledemossa & Deià
I surprisingly woke up at 8:30am before Stelios and let him sleep in. I walked out onto the balcony to finish writing my blog from yesterday. Stelios got up around 9:30am. Today’s plan was originally to wake up early, drive to Valledmossa for breakfast then explore Deia, but unfortunately I had an upset stomach so we were off to a slow start. Rather than setting off on a morning Vespa cruise like we had planned we walked downstairs to CapRoig for the hotel breakfast. I had a slice of sourdough bread and some chamomile tea, while Stelios enjoyed the Eggs Royale that came with a hash brown and side of caviar and freshly squeezed OJ. It looked DELICIOUS. Stelios convinced me that I had to try the OJ (I normally don’t really like orange juice but because it was so fresh it tasted amazing and refreshing – nothing like Tropicana or whatever they sell back home that is probably full of who knows how may chemicals). I’m hoping tomorrow morning I can enjoy a full breakfast here because all of the dishes that passed by looked delicious.
I was feeling a bit better after two full cups of tea, so we decided to stick to our plan and explore Valledemossa & Deia. We hopped on the Vespa and it was a 40 min drive to Valledemossa, a cute cobblestone town. This town was definitely a village targeted to tourists because you even had to pay for parking! The lot was full and we ended up finding free motorbike parking on one of the side streets. We strolled around the village, popped into a boutique that sold local cooking salts, olive oil, perfume and liquors. We tasted the limoncello and almond liqueur but I wasn’t a fan. Valledemossa seems to be mostly tourists in the center of town, but I imagine the locals working there must live further down the village. Soller definitely felt more local/authentic.
After wandering around we grabbed a bite to eat at La Viña tapas club. Their menu was a mix of pintxos and tapas which after ordering I’ve come to the conclusion that typical pintxos are smaller than tapas and typically served on a toothpick/skewer. Last nights portions were bigger but I think that was an exception maybe? Anyway, the service here was definitely moving at European speed and our food took almost an hour to be served but it was worth the wait. Stelis favorite was the octopus over potatoes and mine was the quail egg toast with chorizo sausage. We also enjoyed a shrimp mushroom pintxo that they brought to us by accident but I’m glad they did because it was quite tasty!
After exploring Valledemossa we continued on to the next village: Deia. Immediately this village felt slightly more upscale, quaint, and less crowded. Based on other travel blogs that I read, Deia is quite famous for its exclusive property: La Residencia, a Belmond Hotel, now owned by LVMH (the same luxury group that owns Louis Vuitton and Moët champagne) along with its infamous restaurant El Olivo. It is basically impossible to get a reservation to this restaurant unless you’re staying at the hotel. There were lots of people peeking through the front gate taking pictures but there was a big sign that said only hotel guests could access with their key card. Naturally I took a page out of my dad’s playbook and we continued up the side road that I had a feeling led to another entrance around back. As predicted the gates were open, and we strolled right in. Acting like we belonged, though probably underdressed for the occasion, I walked up to the concierge asking where Cafe Miro was (the Belmond’s other restaurant that serves lunch and had good reviews, plus its right next to El Olivo and had similar views). I was happy that my pre-trip research and reading other travel blogs came in handy. The hostess welcomed us and sat us at a table for 2 overlooking the grounds below. Stelios ordered an Old fashioned which they delivered with a generous pour, and I ordered a glass of Sancerre. Since we just had lunch we were craving something sweet and the waitress asked if we wanted to come inside and take a look at the desserts. She went through each in great detail and we ended up choosing 1 local Mallorcan almond cake, and 1 strawberry crème cake to share. The cake slides were HUGE and we probably should’ve just shared one. After finishing our drinks and cake, we decided we might as well continue our self led tour and explore the grounds of La Residencia. We passed by the pool and went up the steps following the signs for the “Poets walk” which had random sculptures and signage through a pretty garden trail. We even got a peek into what El Olivo looked like below. It was quite lovely but if I’m being honest, the online photos look better and the Jumeriah absolutely blows it away. If you prefer Mountain Views and greenery then the Belmond might be for you, but you can definitely explore Deia in a day, and the Jumeriah has much more to offer in my opinion, plus it’s more accessible to other parts of the island.
After we finished our walk we went back down the stairs and the original gate we entered through was closed and locked!! Luckily just up ahead was another couple heading through the main gate which could only be accessed via key card. We quickly but casually cut across the grass and followed right behind them, exiting as if we too were just leaving for the day. Mission accomplished! Could you imagine if we told them we were accidentally locked inside?
Leaving Deia, we hopped back on our Vespa for a 20 minute ride back to the hotel. We passed a lot of traffic going in the opposite direction from us that was bumper to bumper. I guess even those on Spanish island time have rush hour traffic at some point in the day.
We relaxed for a bit on the balcony and then changed for dinner. Tonight we had reservations at Ben’s D’Vall, a Mallorcan restaurant that’s been around for 54 years, and now the grandson of the original owner is the chef. They just received their first Michelin Star this year. Getting to Bens D’Vall in itself was a journey. I asked Stelios if he wanted to take a taxi but he insisted on taking the bike. For that reason I decided to slick my hair back for dinner to avoid a helmet hair situation.
The journey was back the way we came earlier but the last 10 minutes were full of twists and turns down the mountain. Upon arrival we were greeted by the chef who looked like he was only in his early 20s and his mother who was working the front of the restaurant. We were sat in the 2nd row facing the water, only adding to the already serene ambiance. Unfortunately it was a cloudy night so there wouldn’t be a sunset but it was still beautiful to dine looking out into the sea. The menu was 13 courses and we opted to do the wine pairing that went which each course. I was happy that we had a light lunch and I was HUNGRY because 13 courses is a lot of food even thought they are small bites.
By the time we got to the sixth course I was getting pretty full and we weren’t even half way done! I gave Stelios the other half of my shrimp bowl to finish. He’s going to have to eat for 2 moving forward. The funniest part about dinner was that Stelios saw a huge bowl go by and swore that was the lamb course so he kept telling me we needed to save room because it was a huge portion. Meanwhile, the lamb course finally came out and it was about as big as a double stuffed Oreo. We both started laughing immediately while the waitress was confused and tried to explain the dish to us. Stelios then turns to me and says I don’t know what I saw, unless it was a massive rock in a bowl. Fast forward to the dessert course that is raspberry sorbet served on a giant ice cold rock. The both of us were dying laughing. What a way to end dinner.
While the experience, ambiance, and service was absolutely incredible tonight I’m truly a sucker for the local hole in the wall foodie restaurants that are more local and authentic. Tonight was an incredible experience but food wise I preferred last nights dinner better because it felt more authentic and every single dish WOWed me. That’s not to downplay Bens D’Vall though, it was still incredible, picturesque and delicious.
On our way exiting the restaurant the chefs mom gave us a special cake treat in a to go bag as a congratulations for celebrating our honeymoon there. How sweet! I look forward to tasting it later. The ride home was pitch black since there’s no street lights in the mountainous roads of Mallorca. Luckily the Vespa’s headlights were strong and bright, so Stelios could easily see far in front of him. We cruised home and got back by midnight. Tired and full, we went straight to bed. It’s only day 2 of our honeymoon but we are out here THRIVING. It feels like we’ve explored so much in a short amount of time. I’m excited for what tomorrow brings.
