2 Michelin star chef, Edwin Vinke has launched a brand-new dining concept in the heart of Ibiza’s fortified Renaissance town, Dalt Vila. 30 years after launching his award-winning restaurant De Kromme Watergang
Vinke’s new restaurant 1742 is a modern interpretation of Ibiza’s traditional island cuisine. Nestled in the heart of Ibiza’s UNESCO World Heritage Site, 1742 recognises the influence the island’s unique history and Mediterranean geography have had on its unique cultural fabric and gastronomic identity. Fusing tradition with modern culinary methods, Vinke’s 1742 showcases local produce and creates undiscovered flavours with a progressive zero-waste approach. In each dish, by-products are reimagined to deliver an unparalleled sensory experience. The new restaurant is home to Ibiza’s most impressive wine cellar. Located in the Dalt Vila’s Palacio Barjardi, 1742’s historic cellar provides the perfect climate for fine wines such as Vega Scilia’s beautifully aged Unico and A. Bichot Domaine Long-Depaquit Chablis. 1742 is a dining joint venture from Vinke and Ibiza’s renowned hospitality providers, the Nassau Group.
The Menu
Swapping the North Sea for the Mediterranean, Vinke’s 1742 nature-driven menu is designed with ample respect to the water’s provisions. Vinke, Gault Millau’s Chef of the Year 2011, takes a unique meditative culinary approach. Drawing upon his own spiritual practices, Vinke’s 1742 kitchen is one of almost silence. Food is prepared with Vinke’s ethos in mind: “Pleasure, Passion and Perfection”.
The menu at 1742 takes diners on a culinary journey from seabed to shore. On arrival, guests are greeted with a delicate amuse bouche perfectly designed to awaken the senses. Starting with oysters found on the Mediterranean bed, followed by fruits de mer, guests then indulge in a dish showcasing Ibiza’s local island fish, Rojta. Also known as scorpion fish, Rojta is a Mediterranean fish commonly found amongst the sea’s coral reefs. Showcasing the white isle’s wonderful native produce, Vinke’s Rojta is a beautiful hybrid of flakey white fish with a tender density not too dissimilar to lobster. The local fish is prepared with delicate seasoning from herbs and spices brought to Ibiza from the island’s many settlers. Vinke’s Rojta is an unmissable creation that captures the island’s melting pot of cultures. Remaining on the seabed, diners then sample fresh blue lobster, beach crab and cuttlefish before sampling meet influences to the island.
The Wine
1742 offers an unrivaled wine list. Featuring some of the world’s rarest bottles, 1742’s bespoke wine list has an authentic personal touch. Curated on a money-can’t-buy basis, 1742’s wine list is a treasured collection of bottles offered to the restaurant by some of the world’s best winemakers and insider word of mouth supplied to Cristóbal Toledo, Operations Director at the Nassau Group. Through key connections and industry insight, Cristóbal has curated one of the world’s most impressive wine lists.
Prior to dining, guests are taken on a personal tour of 1742’s historic wine cellar, where they can hand-select their wine with the assistance of experts. Located in the Palacio Barjardi, the palace’s unique architecture provides the perfect engineering to keep some of the world’s finest wines. Centring around two ancient wells and cocooned in ancient stone, 1742’s wine cellar provides an unbeatable humidity. It is the perfect climate for nurturing Vega Sicilia’s flagship wine Unico., a wine believed to undergo the world’s longest aging process. At 1742, you can find one of Spain’s most sought-after wines, Vega Sicilia’s Unico 1990.
From Spain’s innovative modern winery, Valduero, 1742 offers Valduero Dos Anos. A true collector’s item, Valduero Dos Anos is aged for 4 years in the barrel and made with 100% Tempranillo, giving way to an elegant wine with light aromas of tobacco and leather.
Founded in 1984 by sisters Yolanda and Carolina, the Valduero team are first-generation winemakers and pioneers of innovation, creating world-class wine using sustainable and energy-saving techniques and engineering. Valduero has become a firm favourite of chefs, celebrities and critics globally. Available at 172 is a wide collection of some of Valduero’s best.
1742 also houses an impressive selection of global wines including Chablis from the historic Albert Bichot winery, founded in 1831. World-renowned as the producer of the finest Chablis, the historic family-run winery continuously strives for better production. Since 1996, the house has focused on low-intervention production and organic farming to create pure, crisp and complex wine. From Bordeaux, in particular, the picturesque Saint Emilion, 1742 offers unique bottles from Château’s steeped in rich history such as Château Angelus, Château Haut-Brion, Château Margaux and Château Latour.
For something with a little fizz, special bottles include Comtes de Champagne, Tattingers champagne, Armand de Brignac from the historic Cattier family and many more heritage bottles.
Ensuring 1742’s historic cellar maintains the ideal environment for such precious wines to thrive is… an app. Controlled 24/7, the experts at 1742 hold the ability to monitor the cellar’s climate wherever they are, whenever needed. They are even alerted to changes in the cellar’s conditions via notifications.
The Experience
Inspired by its UNESCO World Heritage home of Dalt Vila and Ibiza’s unique history, 1742 is an old meets new concept. Through gastronomic creation and historic architecture, the restaurant acknowledges the island’s numerous settlers.
In more recent history, Ibiza has become a destination for spiritual hedonists from around the world. Seeking luxury hospitality and nomadic adventures, each summer guests flock to the island for experiences unlike no other. 1742 does not disappoint. Eager diners are picked up by valet service at a disclosed meeting point in the heart of Ibiza Town. From here, guests journey through narrow streets, winding lanes and up to the historic Dalt Vila. Guests are then taken up to the terrace, the highest point in Ibiza to underwind and taken in the exclusive view before being taken to the dining room.
Resembling more of an intimate dinner party than a restaurant, guests dine in unison with other diners. After dinner, Vinke, who heads up the kitchen every night, greets each guest personally, often pulling up a chair to speak with his diners.
This relaxed, modern approach to dining contrasts with the extravagant grandeur of Palacio Barjardi. 1742 is a fine dining experience with a difference. There are no white tablecloths, swinging service doors or torque blanches. Rather, at 1742 you will find an open kitchen with Vinke and his team preparing dishes in simple aprons, Vinke’s sleeves turned up to expose a tattoo sleeve of marine life. The perfect blend of old meets new, ambient light projections flicker lightly on the restaurant’s ancient walls, a nod to the island’s notoriety as a nightlife destination. And once dessert is done, guests are welcomed to experience Ibizan nightlife in the heart of the historic Dalt Vila, with a private DJ taking to the decks.
1742 is a new dining experience that captures the essence of Ibiza’s past, present and future.