Go for the room, not the coffee

When my mother and I went to Ca’n Joan de s’Aigo, I knew the business traced its history back to around 1700. That naturally creates expectations. What does it feel like to walk into a café with more than three centuries behind it?

The answer is: a little strange. And I mean that as a compliment.

We visited the Carrer Can Sanç location in Palma’s old town. Inside are old tiles, dark furniture, antique lamps and odd details that have not been polished into something fashionably new. The room feels faintly ghostly — somehow a little abandoned and full of life at the same time.

Then the coffee arrived. I did not like it. I did not enjoy the classic ensaimada either. This is a personal opinion, not a verdict on three centuries of Mallorcan tradition, but let us say the plate was not the highlight of my visit.

And yet I would absolutely tell you to go.

Ca’n Joan de s’Aigo is one of those places where the room itself is the experience. The history is not confined to a paragraph on a wall; you feel it in the tiles, the furniture and the slightly uncanny sense that time has collected in the corners.

The café itself highlights hot chocolate and homemade ice cream among its specialties. They were also the things I had heard I should order. Next time I will skip the coffee and choose one of those instead — preferably the almond ice cream the house is known for.

Come for the history and the room. Just order more wisely than I did.