Review

Tomeu Caldentey Soler

el cuiner

“My kitchen is based on intuition to offer memorable moments”

Tomeu Caldentey Soler was born in 1972 in Sant Llorenç des Cardassar, Mallorca.

He started hospitality studies, specializing in cooking, at the Juníper Serra reference institute in the Balearic Islands in 1986. He did internships in various establishments in Mallorca such as the Hotel Son Vida and the Xoriguer restaurant (*Michelin) with master Juan Romero. In his early years as a professional, he worked at the Eurotel in Costa de los Pinos, the hotel-restaurant ses Rotges (*Michelin) with master Gerad Tetard, and the Son Floriana restaurant (Protur hotels chain), among other establishments. For six years, he worked as a teacher at the Juníper Serra Institute and the School of Hospitality of the Balearic Islands at UIB.

At the age of 27, he took charge of the Es Molí den Bou kitchen. Tomeu Caldentey became the first Mallorcan chef to receive a Michelin star in 2004.

 

After maintaining his star for 15 consecutive editions and exploring ventures like “Taronja Negre” at Club de Mar (Palma), he decided in mid-2018 to voluntarily renounce this prestigious award to focus all his effort and knowledge on a new, simpler, and more approachable concept. With the same culinary excellence, he aimed to reach a broader audience.

 

During the years at Es Molí d’en Bou, he became one of the ambassadors of creative Mallorcan cuisine worldwide, showcasing our culinary treasures in places like the Philippines, Shanghai, Moscow, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, England, United States, Chile, and, of course, many locations in Spain.

 

For five years, he explored his role as a culinary communicator in various television programs on the Balearic Islands’ regional channel, IB3, becoming one of the most popular chefs in the islands.

Tomeu Caldentey Cuiner was born in the same location as Es Molí den Bou, in Sa Coma, Mallorca.

His own words speak volumes: “I went from being a star chef to a regular chef to be happier.”

Since 2017, he has been the coordinator of the national cooking competition for school students organized by the Protur hotels chain. This competition currently enjoys great prestige in the gastronomic world.

 

At the end of 2023, he was awarded the prize for the chef with the best trajectory on the island at the “I Premis gastronòmics de Mallorca” (Mallorca Gastronomic Awards).

 

In his kitchen, originality, personality, surprise, and excellence come together. His creativity is directly proportional to his satisfaction with a model that conveys optimism, uniqueness, a great atmosphere, a family-like atmosphere, and an excellent quality/price ratio. This is probably his greatest success.