Your BookmarksBar Abaco Palma de Mallorca Spain
BAR ABACO – BEAUTIFUL COCKTAIL BAR IN MALLORCA
Deep in the old narrow streets of Palma de Mallorca, lies a jewel of a bar.
Most people have to be guided there as the only clues to its presence are a brass name plaque and the occasional inquisitive tourist who opens the smaller wooden door to reveal a sight that would be better placed in the Baroque period.
This cocktail bar isn’t cheap. Nor are the staff especially friendly as they tend to know that they work somewhere very special. I warn everyone that I take here – the service is a little “stiff” – but the ambience soon softens the mood.
Me (at the back) soaking up the beautiful atmosphere in Bar Abaco…
As you enter the bar, your senses are challenged. There’s carefully arranged fruit on tables and floor, filling the main bar area with the scent of citrus. Your eyes take in the low lighting, with many large church candles strategically positioned – all adding to the image of some Bohemian manor house. There’s an array of seating, with some of it hinting at a Moroccan style, which undoubtedly refers back to the days when the Moors ruled most of Southern Spain.
You are greeted by a smartly dressed waiter and shown to whatever table is left. Despite this being a hidden jewel, you realise that you seem to be the last person to know the secret when you step inside that little wooden door and see that the bar is full. I’ve been to this cocktail bar in all seasons and on different days of the week. It seems that it’s nearly always full after 9pm.
Bar Abaco has a delightful outer courtyard, with fountains and light classical music. Part of the experience of meeting in this bar for a drink, before going on to a restaurant, is the fact that it is nearly always full of customers from the four corners of the globe. There’s a complete mix of ages, from groups of late teenagers on a “big night out”, through to families with three generations.
I can’t recall ever suggesting that someone visits the toilets in a bar. But, a trip to the basin area in the loo’s is worth the short walk up the stone classical staircase. You will get a great view of the candlelit courtyard from a Juliet balcony. For the adventurous, walk up another flight of stairs and you will step back in time. I’ve known grown Spanish men weep at the sight, while recalling the similarities to their grandmother’s house when they were little… The rooms are set “in period”, with a kitchen and sitting room laid out in the baroque style.
Bar Abaco. The drinks aren’t cheap, but you get to take part in a little theatre, within Palma de Mallorca.
