IBIZA - SANT RAFEL DE SA CRUE - ASADOR CAN PILOT

Sep 25

3 min read

Updated: Sep 27

ASADOR CAN PILOT

We returned to Restaurante Asador Can Pilot Ibiza, which has been part of Sant Rafel since 1949, when Joan Ramon Boned built the original Taberna Can Pilot himself. One of the village’s first bars, it became a popular meeting place for locals and, in 1961, even acquired what is remembered as Sant Rafel’s first television.

The original bar closed in 1970, and Boned’s son, Joan Ramon Serra, reopened it with his wife, Carmen Ribas, in 1989. What began again as a simple bar serving tapas, sandwiches, and montaditos gradually developed into the celebrated asador it is today.

The traditional, rustic restaurant is always busy, and sometimes you may have to wait in the vibrant bar.

A large BBQ grill sits in one corner of the room.

The room is furnished with traditional Ibicencan wooden tables and chairs.

We had to make an 8 pm reservation, which is early in Ibiza, as the restaurant was fully booked after 9 pm.

You will find solomillo (fillet steak), entrecot de ternera (sirloin), chuletas de cordero (lamb chops), pluma Ibérica, conejo lechal (baby rabbit), hamburguesa de buey (ox hamburger) and various Spanish sausages, like chorizo and morcilla (black pudding).

To begin with, there is a fine selection of starters, including the ubiquitous pan, alioli y aceitunas (bread, alioli, and olives), to enjoy while you wait for the rest of your meal.

We began with pimientos de Padrón (Padrón peppers harvested late in the season, August and September, tend to be more unpredictable and hotter than those picked earlier in summer; these definitely were).

Superb anchoas del Cantábrico (Cantabrian anchovies with tomato and toast).

Grilled garlic mushrooms.

Jamón Ibérico de Bellota.

Also, look for specials, like frita de polp (fried octopus with potatoes and peppers).

Butifarra (Catalan sausage).

Secreto Ibérica (grilled, richly marbled Ibérico pork).

But the star of the show is the chuletón de buey (large bone-in ox steak). Joan Ramon and Carmen got the idea while visiting a grill restaurant in Jerez, where they served meat on small tabletop grills so customers could finish cooking it themselves. They introduced the idea at Can Pilot, when this style of restaurant was relatively unusual in Ibiza.

It is served to a minimum of two people. You cook it to your liking on a mini charcoal grill at the table.

Other cuts of meat are also available, including solomillo (fillet) and entrecote ternera (sirloin).

Solomillo (fillet steak), all served with homemade chips with mixed peppers and garlic,

We also had a vegetable plate with tomatoes, onions, and aubergine.

We had a bottle of Valduero Crianza Dos Maderas D.O. Ribera del Duero to drink.

For dessert, we have two Ibicencan favourites: flaó (egg, mint, and soft goat cheese cheesecake) and greixonera (cinnamon pudding with an ensaïmada base; it’s a bit like a Spanish bread pudding). Please be aware that ensaïmada contains lard (pig fat).