IBIZA - SANT CARLES DE PERALTA - BAR ANITA / CA N’ANNETA

BAR ANITA - CA N’ANNETA

Located in Sant Carles (San Carlos), a tiny village (near Santa Eulària des Riu), next to the Sant Carles de Peralta church, this old bar and restaurant is one of the most famous and the most beloved in Ibiza.

It became a must for bohemians and intellectuals in rural Ibiza. For many, it is one of the few remnants of the bygone hippy era, probably even the last.

This place still invites you to spend a relaxing afternoon over coffee or a glass of Hierbas Ibicencas.

It was made famous by Ana Mari Torres (Anita), the original owner of the bar, who was awarded the Ramon Llull Prize from the Government of the Balearics for this drink and for her constant work in finding and blending the best herbs on the island to keep this famous drink in production.

Although the wood-burning stove is no longer in use today, it adds to the rustic charm of this historic bar.

There is a billiard table and the much loved, by all Spanish bars, large-screen TV in the well-stocked bar and side room.

The side area can be hired to hold local events.

You can breathe in history and fresh air at the same time. Ca n'Anneta first opened at the end of the 19th century and is a genuine architectural treasure and social institution in Sant Carles and the whole of the Pitiusas.

You will see pictures of a range of artistic styles, which started in the old days when many artists did not have much money, so they used their art as payment for food and drinks.

In the bar and terrace area, you see a lot of small wooden mailboxes. The hippies at that time had no addresses on the island, so they used Ca n'Anneta as their address to receive mail. Some are still in use. There is also an old telephone kiosk, which was the only telephone in the area back then.

It is not a place to go just for the food, although it still serves good tapas and authentic Spanish meals. It is a place to take a trip back to the past and wallow in nostalgia.

They have some excellent olives, aioli, and bread.

Our friend Jonathon Lipsin writes, "Here I am at Bar Anita for a morning coffee on Ibiza with Miguel Renoir, who is familiar with the White Isle after decades of visiting the island.

Miguel has hosted Bernadette and me on various "food and adventure" tours of the island, cruising to hidden, out-of-the-way places.

Ca n'Anneta is also an old haunt of Bernadette's from her hippie days when she lived in Formentera and used to visit Ibiza, returning to 1973 and beyond."