Coffee and Bicycles: Café con Nilton and Theo at Plumo

„If you want to know where the good coffee is, just follow the cyclists…“ read a board next to Plumo’s entrance. The corner café and workshop on beautiful Plaça Quadrado has long become one of Palma’s go-to places for cycling fans and lovers of specialty coffee. We recently met with Nilton and Theo, the team behind Plumo, for a chat about coffee and bicycles. And learned that the board with Nilton’s quote got so popular, it was stolen a while ago. Certainly another form of recognition.

Neighborhood Joint

With Plumo, Theo and Nilton created a true neighborhood joint. People come here and feel comfortable right away, they enjoy the open and relaxed atmosphere. „We know many of our guests by name“, Nilton adds. Often, regulars don’t need to order anymore because he knows what they want, and how they like their coffee. And there’s almost always time for a few personal words.

Passion for Detail

Some baristas on Mallorca are also into road bikes. Theo has an interesting theory about that connection: “Maybe its the love for the details of mechanism. Making good coffee and fixing a cool bike both needs a lot of attention, knowledge and fine-tuning.“ Who could describe it any better than him, a bike geek who spends a lot of time in the workshop.

Vintage Bikes

His great love is vintage bikes. From day one, Plumo offered different kinds of bicycles. Rare ones from some former Tour de France as well as inexpensive older bikes for everyday use. „People come to offer their old bikes for sale, others to look for the one-time find,“ Theo explains. And sometimes it’s only that a screw is loose somewhere, or a chain is jammed. Problems that can be solved in just a few minutes.

Recognized Workshop

Recently, the workshop received great recognition from Miguel Blando. The owner of the oldest bike store on Mallorca recommended Plumo when he had to close down Ciclos Blando shortly before the centenary because there was no successor. For Plumo it was an honor to follow in this footsteps, or tires respectively. Now, Nilton and Theo are about to celebrate the third anniversary of Café Plumo.

Favorite Routes

In Estilo Palma’s interview series “Café con …”, the last question is always about the favorite place on the island. In this case, of course, the favorite routes. Theo fell deeply in love with the first tour he did on Mallorca. The coastal route from Andratx via Estellencs, Banyalbufar and Esporles became his absolute favorite. Nilton takes the way from Esporles via Valldemossa and S’Esgleieta. Either way, they both love the Tramuntana rides.