The miserable winter of 2015, with its record-breaking cold and roof-crushing snow, has Nutmeggers dreaming of sun-drenched islands. In Hartford, a new restaurant has filled that void with fresh Mediterranean-influenced fare, exotic tapas, vibrant cocktails and warm ambiance.
Majorca, which takes its name from the Balearic Island off the coast of Spain, celebrated its grand opening in January. Owners Rachel Markoja, Rich Perez and Bronislaw “Bernie” Gorski (who also serves as executive chef) took over the space on Park Street, transforming the former O’Porto into their 150-seat restaurant and bar.
“We jumped right on this spot; it’s got easy access to the highway and proximity to West Hartford Center,” Gorski said.
The owners all have deep roots in the city. Markoja and Perez are veterans of the Hartford Restaurant Group; she worked for the Wood-n-Tap restaurants for 10 years; he for 13. And Gorski’s culinary career in Hartford goes back even further – he’s worked at or helped open some of the area’s most iconic eateries past and present, including Peppercorn’s Grill, Black-eyed Sally’s, Pastis, Agave Grill and Vaughan’s Public House. Most recently, he worked with Billy Grant at his trio of restaurants in West Hartford and Glastonbury.
At Majorca, Gorski is once again in an executive chef role.
“I’ve had that itch,” he said. “I had a lot of ideas, so many different concepts I’d like to do. When I met up with Rich again and we started talking about this spot here, for me it was a no-brainer.”
He and his team have designed a menu that rotates with the seasons and takes advantage of fresh produce, featuring nearly two dozen tapas plates, a few salads, six entrees and housemade desserts. The food reflects touches of Spanish, Portuguese, Southern French, North African and Italian influence, and daily specials even highlight a bit of fusion, like a recent Salvadoran-style pupusa stuffed with short rib and cabrales, a Spanish bleu cheese.
Tapas ($6 to $12) are meant to be shared, with best-sellers including the chipirones plancha (grilled squid with vegetables, garlic, lime and olive oil); warm tomato-and-Manchego topped pan Catalan, grilled octopus with butter beans and Spanish olives; rice croquettes stuffed with chorizo and saffron; and albondigas, classic spicy pork meatballs with smoky tomato sauce. Other standouts include boquerones (marinated anchovies); baked stuffed eggplant with goat cheese and hazelnuts and grilled spiced pork ribs with Moroccan couscous.
The small-plate selection has been selling evenly, Gorski said, and he’s been pleasantly surprised by diners’ willingness to try the more unusual offerings.
“When we first opened, the ‘safer’ foods people recognized, like meatballs, were selling heavily. But now we’re selling boquerones, [octopus], grilled calamari. People are being more adventurous [with things they didn’t expect to try.”
While the tapas have been popular, guests have also been enjoying the “platos mas grandes” ($19 to $24) like pan-roasted salmon with a quinoa, lentil and artichoke salad; herb-roasted half chicken served over warm butter bean salad with chili oil; and “carne con huevo,” grilled spice-rubbed hanger steak with roasted potato and prosciutto, topped with a fried egg and saffron basil sauce. The cold-weather favorite of braised bone-in beef short rib over truffled heirloom polenta is a “showstopper,” Gorski said.
Lunch ($7-16) features a variety of bocatas, or sandwiches; a classic Spanish omelet with onion, potato and chorizo and smaller portions of dinner entrees
And those who’ve been following Gorski’s career in Hartford, yes, his signature cheesecake is on the dessert list. “It took me years to get the recipe [just] quite right,” he said; at Majorca, it’s is called the “casita cheesecake” and shares menu space with other housemade sweets like chocolate bread pudding, caramelized pineapple and mango tarte tatin.
Majorca’s enthusiastic bar crowd has gravitated to its selection of Spanish and South American wines, craft beer (with half of the 8 draft lines dedicated to local breweries) and bright cocktails featuring fresh tropical juices. Its signature eponymous drink with citrus vodka and white cranberry uses turquoise-colored Hypnotiq liqueur to evoke the Mediterranean sea.
Happy hour, from 3 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, features $5 draft beer and select cocktails and tapas. The restaurant’s banquet room, available for private parties, also serves as the ideal space for weekly paint nights and group salsa lessons on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
Despite the tough winter, the owners are happy with the support they’ve received in Parkville in the first few months, Markoja said. “We’ve already developed a bit of a regular following. A lot of people are coming in wanting to see the specials because they’ve eaten here so many times.”
“It’s been unbelievable,” Gorski said. “In Hartford, there’s a sense of community with the restaurants. Everyone works hard, plays together…It’s important for us to represent Hartford as being a food mecca, an area for greater culture, just to bring more people in, more diversity, to keep the city vibrant.”
>>Majorca, 2074 Park St., Hartford, is open seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. 860-231-1003, majorcact.com.
