Polish the pistons and tune the carburetors in Soller
Published in the Majorca Daily bulletin
Tuesday 7th October 2014
Photograph by RACHEL FOX
The mountains of Soller have been overwhelmed this weekend and the race was on. ‘The Pujada of the Puig Mayor’ happens every year in October and this weekend they celebrated their 35th anniversary. This is a hill climbing race in smart racing cars and souped up classic cars. The spectacle is magnificent and the noise off the scale. The roar from the mountains can be heard from every corner of Soller and beyond. The mixture of petrol heads competing range from would be Louis Hamilton’s to older drivers taking their lovingly polished highly revved up motors for a spin. It is safe to say that the mountains shut down to all but the participants and their followers and this does cause a little discontent. The rally spreads over two days and the hub of the Soller side of things was in the patio of the Sa Teulera Restaurant.
Sa Teulera Restaurant on the main road from Fornalutx down to Soller is in the memory box of many locals and visitors. Its claim to fame was piglets roasting on rows of outside spits. Then the place closed down after a very long history much to the surprise and disappointment of its many fans. It remained empty and pigless for a couple of years and then nine months ago the experts moved in and a massive renovation was undertaken. Gone are the outside spits and in their place is a great outside terrace. The interior and kitchens have been rebuilt and now art work adorns the walls. The standard of the refurbishment was an indication that the new owners were in for the long haul. Space for up to 200 diners was created and rooms for private parties emerged from the renovations. They announced as they prepared to open that this was a traditional Mallorquin restaurant with a huge emphasis on meat and traditional dishes. No square plates or six versions of foam are coming out of this kitchen. The pigs are back albeit cooked on an inside oven and they are fiercely proud to be a local restaurant, open all year for local people and visitors. The team that created the award winning Es Faro Restaurant in the Port of Soller are the owners of Sa Teulera and it shows.
The restaurant on Sunday lunchtime was full of diners who had the Pujada of the Puig Mayor racing past the window. The crowds and cheers and the smart cars kept everyone on the edge of their seats and was an amazing accompaniment to the suckling pig. The prize giving was a grand affair and the podium was worthy of Silverstone. I have never seen such a huge display of silver cups – it was as if everyone got a prize for just turning up. I am sure that is not the case but the prize winning categories had to be finely tuned to get so many winners. The large bottles of champagne were sprayed over the crowd and it was a very special event for Soller to host this. Rachel Fox our feisty photographer darted in and out amongst the drivers and the cars and I just held my cava aloft from the comfort of the restaurant!
A couple of days before the race I had been contacted on www.sollerweb.comby a visitor currently staying on holiday in Fornalutx. His question was how he could get to Mass at Lluch on Sunday morning with the race going on and if he got there how he could get back. I checked with the local police and the on the notices posted around Soller on the timings of the race to find that there was no way he could get there with the race going on. This visitor was disappointed and I am sure there were others too that would feel the same. This is a dilemma for there are no other roads to use when you are staying up the mountains of the Hidden Valley .
The visit of Fatima this week to Soller might go a little way to make up to our friend who couldn’t get to Lluch. The statue of ‘Our Lady of Fatima’ is an important visitor and Soller is regarding it as an honour that she is popping in. The shrine of Fatima lives in Portugal but a few copies have been made of her so that she can visit the faithful in churches in Europe . Majorca gets the visitation this week and she is spending a day with us and a few other chosen towns on the Island before she heads off.
We started with polishing the pistons and the carburetors of the racing cars and we end with the ladies of Sant Bartholomew Church cleaning and polishing the Church to welcome their special visitor. An eclectic team of Sollerics for all occasions…
NB – Sa Teulera phone number 971 63 11 11
