ISLAND NEWS
THE
12
JUNE 2023
BIG
INTERVIEW WITH
MATTHEW MEACHAM
This month we talk to Matthew Meacham, the British owner of Sa Punta restaurant in Es Castell. In a very short time, Matthew has made a big impression on the island’s food scene. He has used his expertise in designing and implementing winning strategies to develop this beautiful go-to restaurant and tapas bar. With more than 30 years of experience working with some of the world’s leading food and beverage companies, he has also focused his attention on local company Herbes Biniarbolla. Matthew has been working with Cristina Quintana to relaunch the range of liqueurs and reposition the brands of iNNat and GLOP Gin.
When did your relationship with Menorca begin? I first came to Menorca, sailing from Barcelona, when I was just 16 years old. My wife came first when she was 7, to stay with a British aunt in Llucmacanes. Then, 22 years ago, while living in Dallas, we bought a house here and my family have grown up loving the island. I have worked for Bain & Company for most of my career, living in 8 countries around the world. Menorca became a wonderful place to escape from business and spend time with my family. We used to enjoy a quiet existence on the island, and we were very anonymous for 20 years. Unfortunately Sa Punta has changed that! Your restaurant Sa Punta has been fully booked for the last two summers. It has become a highly popular choice for summer visitors and local residents. Has your background contributed to its success? In 2021, I decided it was time to invest in Menorca and I looked at several options. The restaurant of the historic yacht club, Club Nautico Villa Carlos, had been recently refurbished to a very high standard by a businessman from Ciutadella. He had taken great care to modernise the interior and adapt it to current trends, while maintaining the essence of Calas Fonts. The building has the most fantastic, panoramic outlook over the entrance to the harbour, and it was available on a 20-year lease. I could see that, with the right team in place, we could turn it into a successful restaurant. We also took the decision to open all year round, and this has helped develop a loyal customer base. We have become a sought-after venue for special occasions, hosting club dinners, weddings and offering special menus to mark events such as Christmas and New Year. Our aim is to give you a special experience, offering local fresh seasonal products, beautifully presented by our chef. In addition to Sa Punta, we opened Moll de Sa Punta underneath the main restaurant. This is a less formal tapas bar with direct access onto the quay in Calas Fonts. Historically, it was a ‘barete’ where fisherman used to meet up for breakfast on the pier after returning from fishing at dawn. We wanted to turn it back into a place where local people can meet and enjoy a drink and a snack. This year we have launched an exciting cocktail offer which we hope people will love.
Both the restaurant and Moll de Sa Punta are great places to sit and watch the yachts and boats as they sail up and the harbour. I understand you have just finished a full audit of the sources of the food and drink used in the restaurant We really believe in supporting local producers and have high traceability and low transportation impact of our purchases. Indeed, in 2023 to date, over two thirds of our food and drink purchased was cultivated, caught or produced on Menorca! Tell me how you have been involved with Biniarbolla I heard about Biniarbolla in January 2021. I met Cristina and very quickly agreed a plan to relaunch her family business, recovering, preserving and honouring Menorca brands with such terrific heritage. Her grandparents had started making Herbes for the monks in the 1930s. Her father created the SL, and Cristina took over the business in 2014. She launched the gin brands, first with iNNat, and then with GLOP. iNNat is the premium gin brand of Menorca, winning Best Gin Balearics in 2017 and achieving 92 points from Guia Penin. Cristina was doing so well until COVID hit. The market disappeared and the company ran out of cash. Hacienda came down hard on her business, forcing her to destroy all the stock. It has been such a pleasure to work with her to rebuild the business. What is the history of the company? I hear that there are many stories and legends. The monks at Monte Toro had a secret recipe for ‘herbal tea’ involving 16 herbs and a few grains of coffee with cold maceration from 5 weeks. Cristina’s grandfather bought alcohol to the island and his wife, the abuela picked herbs and aromatics from the finca of Binissaida de Barrancons. With the monks’ recipe, la abuela made the first Herbes. Binissaida de Barracones is in the mouth of the port with access to the sea, and it is said that in times past, the caves below were used to smuggle in contraband from the sea. There are tales of her people dressing up as monks and nuns to transport products hidden in coffins, and many other stories.
D O N ’ T M I S S A N E D I T I O N , S U B S C R I B E T O D AY ! V I S I T: R O Q U E TA M A G A Z I N E . N E T
