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The Merits of Michelin Stars – Muddled

First the good news: two new restaurants in Mallorca were awarded the distinction of the Oscars of fine dining. The new Guide Michelin 2011 bestowed one estrella each to Restaurante Gadus (in Cala d’Or) and Restaurante Zaranda (at the Hotel Hilton Sa Torre, near Cala Blava). Three other Mallorcan restaurants, Tristán (in Portals Nous), Es Raco des Teix (in Deià) and Es Molí d’en Bou (at Hotel Protur Sa Coma Playa, in Sa Coma), managed to hang on to their previously and respectively obtained one Michelin star. Sadly, the restaurant Plat d’Or (at the Hotel Sheraton Arabella in Palma) lost its Michelin star recognition.

Now to the muddle. The restaurant Gadus in Cala d’Or was apparently awarded its new acclaim for the quality creations of its chef, Thierry Enderlin. Neighbours in Cala d’Or insist that Monsieur Enderlin has not been seen since July 2009. In fact it is said that the Frenchman now lives and works in Taounate (Morocco). Gadus continued its business for another year under the aegis of chef, Sebastián Raggiante, before it closed its doors in August 2010, at the height of the tourist season, apparently for good. The restaurant is all wrapped up now and closed (see photo) but, its owner claims that the restaurant will re-open in the Spring of 2011. The proprietor, Antoni Llull Adrover, is also owner of Cafetería Neptuno in Cala d’Or, a place that cannot be recommended to anyone even under the harshest of circumstances. Quite clearly, Guide Michelin has got something seriously wrong here. If the criteria of excellence were applied under the era of Thierry Enderlin in 2009, surely it was omitted to have some follow-up checks done by the Michelin testers.

Gadus, by the way, takes its name from Gadus morhua (Bacalao or cod fish), just in case you wondered.

If you want to dine in Cala d’Or, you might want to give Restaurante Port Petit and its chef, Gerard Deymier, a try. Alternatively you might want to sample food at Celler Sa Sínia with its chef, Gabriel Perelló, in Portocolom. Both restaurants are closed during the winter months, though.

The photo was taken in Cala d’Or (Santanyí), Mallorca, Baleares, Spain. The date: November 27th, 2010. The time was 17:15:14.

3 replies »

  1. Pingback: Super Fine Dining
  2. When “dining” in Cala D’Or the Port Petit or the cellar Sa Sinia are fine I am sure.
    However if you just want to eat, quick basic and fresh because of regular turnover then the cafe Neptuno is as good as I have found over the years.
    So if you want to fill your stomach quickly and cheaply I would certainly recommend Neptuno.

  3. Fui a cenar al restaruante Gadus en Julio de 2012 y fue una total decepción. No entiendo cómo pueden haberle otorgado una estrella Michelin teniendo en cuenta que no:
    1. No nos dejaron escoger el día para cenar.
    2. No nos dejaron cenar dentro del restaurante porque según ellos no podían montar mesas dentro del restaurante. Así que tuvimos que cenar con chaqueta.
    3. Estaron 30 minutos para atendernos y no se disculparon.
    4. La cena fue pésima: mala presentación, platos demasiado condimentados.
    5. Tuve la ocurrencia de pedir una dorada con patatas y me sirvieron una dorada frita con la cabeza, las espinas y crudo en el centro y las patatas de mi acompañante no eran más que una patata al hormo envuelta en papel de aluminio y puesta así en el plato.
    6. Los postres dejan mucho que desear. Lo que debía ser una panacotta de frutas frescas se convirtió en una panacotta con 4 rodajas de fresas y las mousse de chocolate era de chocolate blanco (cosa que no especificaba la carta) e iba acompañada con dos rodajas de kiwi sin pelar.
    7. Entre plato y plato tuvimos que esperar media hora porque según parece hasta que no hayan acabado todas las mesas de comer a la vez el primero, el segundo y el postre no te atienden (según nos explicaron ellos).
    8. Los camareros no sabían más que inglés y alemán teniendo en cuenta que están en Mallorca, sólo pido que cómo mínimo puedan tener una mínima conversación con el cliente.
    9. Los lavabos son un horror. Hay papel secamanos encima de los lavabos y dentro del wc no hay portarrollos por lo que los rollos pululan por encima de la cisterna.
    10. Eso sí, los precios igual que los de una Estrella Michelin: una botella de 750cl de agua costó 5,50 €.

    No lo recomiendo para nada del mundo.

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