FORMENTERA - SANT FERRAN DE SES ROQUES - CAN FORN
- Miguel Renoir Spanish Guides
- Aug 1, 2023
- 4 min read
FORMENTERA CAN FORN
The Sant Ferran de Ses Roques (San Fernando) village is on the Island of Formentera, in the Mediterranean, north of North Africa and east of Spain.
I wanted to take my friend Bernadette Mundy out for a pre-birthday dinner, so I followed my nose to Restaurante Can Forn in the village of Sant Ferran de Ses Roques (San Fernando). As a young hippie, I met Bernadette in the Fonda Pepe bar in 1973.
Tonight, though, I was hungry, and I managed to score a table without a reservation because this place is always crowded.
They specialise in regional food from the Island, and I was excited. I hoped this was not like the other tourist traps on the Island.
The cuisine of the Balearic Islands can be grouped as part of the wider Catalan, Spanish, or Mediterranean cuisines. It features a lot of pastry, cheese, wine, pork, and seafood. They share many recipes that each Island seems to claim as its own! These include.
Caldereta de Langosta (Lobster with peppers, onions, garlic, tomatoes, and local herbs. It can be expensive at €140 per kilo!) It is one of their most sought-after dishes, attracting King Juan Carlos I to the islands.
Sobrassada (a local raw, cured sausage made with ground pork, pimenton, salt, and other spices. It can be spread on toast like a paté)
Mayonnaise is said to originate from the Menorcan city of Maó (Mahón)
Local pastries include Ensaimada, Flaó, and Coca.
Cordero as ado al estilo de Mahón (a slow-roasted lamb dish)
Rostit (roast pork with liver, eggs, and apples)
On all the islands, you will encounter coques, small tartlets of meat, fish, or vegetables.
I made the mistake of asking about the Sobrassada sausage, and she launched into a gory tale about being invited many, many years ago to a farmer lady's house to participate in the killing of the pig and the making of the sausages. She told the story sombrely, as befitting a vegan. I blanched at the details and changed the subject quickly.
I perused the menu and made the choices. Bernadette is a vegan, so that it can get difficult. I chose a plate of grilled vegetables and aioli, first questioning the ingredients, and a mixed salad and calamares en su tinta (squid cooked in its own ink) with potatoes and Sobrassada, the local sausage prepared on this Island and a wine of rio tinto
This was one of the best meals I have enjoyed on the Island. Everything was cooked with love, and you cannot get better than that. There was attention to detail, and the food was as fresh as can be.
The mixed salad, which is an ordinary affair in most places, shone forth with its immediacy. The aioli was made correctly with the right hint of garlic and served with brown bread, winning points from Bernadette.
The calamari was an ethereal dish, and the potatoes and Sobrassada melded into it, delighting the palate. My only regret was that there was not more, as I wouldn't have minded eating on and on.
The grilled vegetables were executed perfectly with a char and laid out pleasingly. Details were paid attention to, and this is a moderately priced restaurant.
Then came time for dessert, which I hardly eat, but one thing peered out at me and beckoned. A homemade ice cream made of cheese with local rich honey walnuts and figs.
This was a standout as I sat in the open-air courtyard, people-watching and listening to a woman singing opera by the plaza at the church next to Fonda Pepe. With each drop, the night took on a suffusing glow.
After we ambled down the street saying hello to friends, we met on the way like Paco, the flamenco guitarist who gets a quick hug and Eric, the longhaired Dutch musician who used to hold court in La Mola Market for years and Brenda, an old friend of Bernadette's for many years who sells in the market her jewellery.
We watched a trio of young women who are the best act on the Island perform songs from Catalan and jazzy French numbers. By the night's end, we were full and content as we drove home.
Words © Jonathon Lipsin.
You can find Jonathon's other Formentera adventures here:
Returning to the Island made Jonathon relive some of his early favourites in music, and the mixes below have some of them. Jonathon's music picks can be found here:
RESTAURANTE CAN FORN
Carrer Major 39, 07871 Sant Ferran de Ses Roques, Formentera. +34 971 32 81 55
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