Esment: Cafè Palmanova

The name says it all. Esment is a genuine Mallorcan word. It means doing things with care, attention and tenderness. While in most restaurants it’s the chef who matters most at Cafè Palmanova it is everybody working there. And everybody who comes to this wonderful place in Palmanova. Workers take their coffee in the morning, kids and their parents come for lunch after school, couples enjoy the secluded patio.

There are many more places in this bright and spacious building, a favorite one for every guest. Mine is the wooden terrace under the blue sky. Sometimes I just have a coffee in one of the deckchairs on the lawn. Or I meet friends for breakfast. The buffet at Cafè Palmanova offers homemade bread and pastries, fruit salad or coca. You can even take the extraordinary bread from Amadip Esment’s own bakery home.

I will never forget my visit at Amadip Esment’s bakery in Palma, together with Montserrat Fuster, the wonderful president of Amadip. In my interview with her she told me about the history of the unique foundation and about their current projects.

Amadip works with and trains young people with mental disabilities. For almost 60 years now the organisation is providing professional apprenticeships, accommodation and support. Today, they have their own vocational school and training facilities. And they cooperate with more than 850 companies on the island.

Maybe you also know Amadip’s restaurant Es Pes de Sa Palla in Palma. Lunch on its sunny terrace on a quiet corner of the old town is a real treat. But the terrace at Cafè Palmanova is just as beautiful, the atmosphere warm and welcoming – unmistakably Esment.