PAX Gastrobar, Felanitx

Here’s exciting news for foodies looking to eat out in Felanitx: PAX Gastrobar has opened in the town’s quiet Plaça Pax. I’d been following the progress of the new project on social media – excited by what I was seeing.

Five days after PAX Gastrobar opened, we went to see if it would live up to my Instagram-fuelled high expectations.

The place opens at 18:00h and we arrived early to take photos before it became busy. Only one other couple was there at the time – although the place rapidly filled during that Sunday evening.

Am I really in Felanitx? I asked myself when I saw the stylish interior, which has an industrial-chic vibe, with an exposed ceiling, a long bar with stools, a snazzy open kitchen, and large contemporary paintings on the walls. Good table lighting and the most comfortable restaurant chairs I’ve experienced in a long time were further plus points.

PAX Gastrobar is owned and run enthusiastically by business partners, sommelier Sebastian and Max (Massimiliano). German and Italian respectively, they appear to have warm hospitality in their DNA, as well as experience working in both Berlin and Mallorca.

Sebastian worked at Orania and Grill Royal, both in Berlin, and most recently was the sommelier at Estragon, the only other Felanitx restaurant to have been my Restaurant of the Week. Max worked at the Brooklyn Beef Club, Limonadier, and Chapel Bar in Berlin, and until recently at East 26 in Santanyí.

The focus of the menu is on sharing plates of Mediterranean and Spanish cuisine. The main course dishes are in a choice of two sizes, with the smaller sizes enabling you to share and try more dishes, and the larger if you want only one dish for yourself.

Chef Jerome has brought international experience to PAX Gastrobar’s open kitchen, having worked in Oslo, Prague, St Petersburg, Sydney and most recently, Cala d’Or. His second chef, Marcel, has worked in Budapest and Portocolom.

We started with crusty home-made bread, lemon oil, home-made aioli, and olives (4€ pp). On Sebastian’s recommendation, we chose two starters and three mains, all to share. I was immediately drawn to the golden shrimp cigars with sweet and sour pineapple (15€) and sea bass carpaccio with ponzu dressing, avocado, pears, and ginger (14€). I might have swooned when I tried the shrimp cigars.

Our next three dishes were small sizes of grilled tuna steak with tumbet and straw potatoes (18€), duck magret with honey ginger gel, shiitake mushrooms, broccolini, and orange sauce, (18€) and Angus beef with Café de Paris butter, grilled lettuce, and chunky potato wedges (19€).

The portions are generous, leaving us with space for only one dessert to share: the refreshing and zingy citrus Pavlova (9€).

There’s a good choice of wines, of which around half are Mallorcan. Others are from the Peninsula, Italy, and France. Most of the wines are also available by the glass, with prices from 6€. Bottle prices start at 22€. Sebastian has used his expertise to add helpful tasting notes on the wine menu to make choosing easier.

Cocktails (8€-11€) are also offered here and, as the driver, I had one called Te Quiero, made from bergamot, grapefruit soda, agave, lime, and alcohol-free gin. I loved it.

Both the food and drinks menus are on their website.

At the end of our dinner, we exchanged hugs with Max and Sebastian and promised to return soon. We’d entered PAX Gastrobar in Felanitx as strangers but felt as though we left as family.

Photos: Jan Edwards

Prices correct at time of writing.