After two fantastic seasons, I felt it was time to shake things up and establish the next chapter of trobar. Trobat, the digital art platform behind trobar, has always been about discovering and supporting emerging artistic talent. The chef residency programme felt like a natural extension of that philosophy creating a platform where trobar could support emerging talent in its own field: gastronomy. From the very beginning, I wanted trobar, the physical expression of Trobat, to be much more than a restaurant. I wanted it to be a cultural space where food, art, design and people come together through constantly evolving experiences.
In many ways, trobar does for chefs what Trobat does for artists. It gives talented chefs the opportunity to experiment, tell their story, cook for a new audience, and immerse themselves in Mallorca without the commitment of relocating permanently. We provide the platform, the venue, the operational support and the audience, while they bring their own creativity, culinary identity and perspective. Rather than having one fixed culinary identity, trobar itself becomes the constant, while the food evolves throughout the season. Every few weeks, a new resident chef transforms the dining experience, meaning guests can return several times over the summer and discover something completely different each visit.
For our guests, that keeps the experience fresh, surprising and worth coming back for. For us, it’s incredibly inspiring. Every chef brings new ideas, techniques, flavours and cultures into the space, and we’re constantly learning, collaborating and evolving together. That spirit of creativity, exchange and discovery is exactly what trobar is all about, a living cultural space where different disciplines and people come together to create something unique.
Each chef joins us for between two and four weeks, and during that time they essentially take over the trobar kitchen, presenting their own menu and culinary vision within the trobar experience. I work closely with each of them to shape how that vision comes to life in a way that feels true to trobar, while still allowing their own identity to shine through. They stay on the trobar farm throughout their residency, which means they can fully immerse themselves in Mallorca and focus on cooking rather than the logistics of relocating. Many of the ingredients are picked fresh from the farm each day, complemented by the incredible seasonal produce available across the island.
On our side, we provide the accommodation, venue, front-of-house team, bar programme, marketing, reservations, and operational support. The chefs bring their creativity, philosophy, and culinary expertise, building a menu that reflects both their own style and the exceptional produce of Mallorca.
It’s a genuine collaboration where everyone contributes what they do best, creating an experience that feels fresh and unique with every residency.
It was actually a combination of both. We had a shortlist of chefs we were particularly interested in working with, so we reached out to them directly and invited them to complete an application. At the same time, we also launched an open call through our social media, which was shared widely, and I was honestly overwhelmed by the response. We received applications from chefs all over, and we already have a waiting list and have started conversations for the 2027 season, which is an incredible position to be in.
The application process was really important because it wasn’t just about technical ability. It was designed to help us understand whether a chef genuinely shared the trobar ethos, understood the vision, and had the experience and potential to create the kind of residency we wanted. You can invite thousands of chefs to apply, but ultimately it has to be the right fit for what we’re building.
Once I’d reviewed the applications personally, I met with the chefs one-on-one to talk through the residency in detail, explain exactly how it works, and get a feel for whether we were the right fit for each other. Of course skill matters, but personality, values and the willingness to collaborate were just as important. We work incredibly closely throughout the residency, so there has to be genuine alignment and trust.
In the end, everything came together remarkably naturally. We didn’t need endless rounds of interviews because the right people seemed to find us at the right time. I think that’s a real reflection of the community we’ve built around trobar and the kind of creative people it naturally attracts.
One of the things I’ve loved most is how diverse everyone’s backgrounds are. We’ve welcomed chefs from Italy, Austria, Germany, Poland and Spain, and every residency has had its own personality. Some chefs are deeply rooted in traditional techniques and seasonality, while others bring influences from fine dining, fermentation, plant-forward cooking or Mediterranean cuisine. Although they’re all very different, they all share an appreciation for quality ingredients, thoughtful cooking and creating an experience rather than simply serving food. That’s exactly what I hoped the residency programme would become.
It’s been a really interesting journey, and I’m honestly loving it. One thing I always pride myself on is being very honest, and I’d say that while it’s been an incredible experience, it’s also been a huge learning process—for me, for my team, and for the chefs.We created this residency programme from scratch. There wasn’t a blueprint to follow, so we’ve been building the systems, processes and way of working as we’ve gone. You’re also handing over a really significant part of your operations to different chefs every few weeks, so creating clear communication, accountability, trust and a real sense of shared camaraderie has been essential. I’m incredibly proud of the chefs, my team and myself because everyone has embraced that reality. We’ve all understood that this is the very first season, and that if you’re creating something genuinely new, there are naturally going to be teething issues along the way. Rather than seeing those as problems, we’ve treated them as opportunities to learn, refine and make the programme even stronger for the future. At the same time, it’s also exceeded my expectations in many ways. The response from guests has been fantastic. We’ve had people returning specifically to experience each new residency, which is exactly what I’d hoped for. It’s created this feeling that trobar is constantly evolving and that there’s always something new to discover.We just had Marle Rudolph from Germany in residence. Her cooking was incredibly thoughtful and ingredient-led, with a real focus on seasonality and sustainability. She has a background in agriculture and fine dining, and her food feels very honest, elegant and full of flavour.
At the end of July we will welcome Jacint Carafí Sáez and Gerard Blanco from Barcelona. Their approach is deeply rooted in Mediterranean cooking, celebrating seasonal produce and the emotional connection that comes through sharing food. Their style is technically refined but also warm, generous and designed to bring people together, which feels like a perfect fit for trobar.
Absolutely. The farm has become a really important part of what we do, both for our food and our cocktail programme. We’re really passionate about the idea of kilometre zero. Wherever we can’t grow something ourselves, we work with local producers in the northeast of Mallorca, so as much as possible everything comes from the island. For the bar, almost all of our fresh garnishes, herbs and botanicals come straight from the farm. We grow things like basil, lavender, citrus and edible flowers, which we turn into our own syrups, infusions and garnishes. Everything is made in-house, and we’re really proud of that because it gives the cocktails a genuine connection to the place.
On the food side, we’re working towards a true farm-to-table concept. It’s only the second year of our farm, so we’re still developing it, but already we’re harvesting an incredible amount: tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, zucchini, herbs, edible flowers, citrus and so much more. Every season brings something different, so the farm is constantly evolving.
One of my favourite things has been seeing how each chef interprets the farm in their own way. Elias used our fig leaves and citrus leaves to cook his fish. He taught us that when fig leaves are toasted in the right way, they release this incredible coconut-like aroma and flavour, which is just unbelievable. Marle has been using our zucchinis for a zucchini salad, our cucumbers in a cucumber and potato salad, and our tomatoes in her panzanella tonnato and bean salad. It’s amazing to see the same ingredients transformed in completely different ways depending on who’s in the kitchen.
That’s what I love most. The farm isn’t just supplying ingredients: it’s inspiring creativity. Every residency is shaped not only by the chef and trobar, but also by what’s growing in the garden at that moment, and I think that creates a really special connection between the food, the landscape and the experience our guests have.
Very much so. Every plate, bowl, glass and serving piece at trobar has been handmade by our artists from around the world through our art platform, trobat.co. That changes the way chefs think about presentation because they’re not working with identical white plates. Every piece has its own personality and are all handmade.For me, food is another artistic medium, so watching chefs respond to these objects has been fascinating. Some design dishes specifically around a particular ceramic piece, while others completely rethink how they plate food because of the shape or texture of the artwork. It’s become a genuine collaboration between chefs and the artists without either necessarily meeting one another.
This season feels like we’ve really stepped into what trobar was always meant to become. When we first opened, people were understandably trying to work out what we were. Were we an art gallery? A restaurant? A cocktail bar? A shop? The answer has always been yes to all of those. Now guests arrive already understanding that they’re stepping into an experience rather than simply coming for dinner or a drink. The residency programme has helped reinforce that identity because it means there’s always something new to discover. Alongside that we’ve continued developing our cocktail programme using ingredients from our farm, expanded our calendar of creative events and community nights, and we’re beginning to explore taking the trobar concept to other cities through a touring residency format. Keep an eye out for trobar, on tour. At its heart, trobar has never just been about serving food. It’s about creating moments where people connect with great cooking, incredible artists, thoughtful design and each other. That’s what excites me most about where we’re heading next.
