Alaior, Menorca, Spain
Ouch, no coffee today.
There are two big cities on Menorca: Ciutadella and Mahón. Today was Mahón - just 20 minutes away from our Airbnb, here in Alaior. We were nervous about getting back in the car, but it was clear that Bryan has built up some muscle memory. “Error Recovery” is your ability to correct and fix something as you learn it. Bryan’s Error Recovery was definitely in motion. 🙌
We planned to get lunch in Mahón, somewhere suggested by the NYT. But - surprise, surprise, it was closed. This shit is getting frustrating! We are on the cusp of dead season and peak season, so many businesses - mostly restaurants as it turns out, have strange hours. Ugh, fine. Bryan was quick to look for the local mercado in the city and sure enough, we found one: El Mercado de Pescado. It was a treasure trove of fresh fish, tapas and local beers. It was better than what we had originally planned for! We were hungry, so we went a little nuts: olives, sardines, octopus, cheese. And, a local cider, which we hadn’t seen in Spain bars: Maeloc Cider from Galicia. We walked off our respective food babies by walking around the city, stumbling upon two huge cruise ships at port. Apparently, Mahón the second-largest natural harbor in the world. 🤔
Beach, please! We went to the nearby Cala Mesquida late in the afternoon, which was practically empty. The sun was out, but it wasn’t too hot - perfect for drying off after a cold dip in the water. THE WATER. It is perfect. No other words. Within an hour of getting there, young families with toddlers came to the beach. Naked babies on the beach seems much more appropriate than leathery old men - no?
We went back to Mahón for dinner, this time at a place we sleuthed from a list of participating restaurants in some kind of “restaurant week” deal. Because the restaurant didn’t open until 8PM, we went to Nou Bar to get a drink. We had been reading about this “Menorcan gin” and didn’t know what the heck it was. We asked the bartender about it and she said, “Oh, Pomada.” We said, “Dos, por favor!” Any drink with Fanta as a mixer is gold for Yennie. But, the gin was crisp and not too floral - completely refreshing for the warm weather. The bartender gave us healthy pours, so we didn’t need another round.
Dinner was at La Môjigata, which had a nice offering of Menorcan dishes, which we randomly ordered from: Butifarra mediterránea con judías del Ganxet or “sausage with white beans” and Alcachofas salteadas con jamón serrano or “artichokes with Serrano ham.” The calculus always seems to work out. And, we were glad it did: this was one of the best meals we’ve had in a few weeks.
We gingerly drove back to our Airbnb and collapsed into bed. What a day.
Pomada
Xoriguer Gin, Fanta, Lemon Garnish
Nou Bar, Carrer Nou, 1, 07701 Maó
