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Sign up Now! Mallorca is a journey for all the senses.
A place to connect with friends where we slow down, eat well, hike through landscapes that have fed civilizations for millennia, and learn the deep story of a Mediterranean island that is so much more than its famous shores.
Mallorca is like a miniature continent — its mountains, valleys, and coastline give rise to a food culture unlike anywhere else in the world. We will explore it through its olive groves and almond orchards, its fish markets and family fincas, its ancient olive mills and its newest generation of passionate chefs — all of it wrapped in the golden light of the Mediterranean.
This is Jan’s first retreat to Mallorca, and she has chosen it deliberately: because the values of this island — caring for the land, cooking with what the season offers, honoring tradition while staying curious — are exactly the values she has built her life and her teaching around.
The Week Includes
Daily hikes (1–2 hours) through the Serra de Tramuntana
7 breakfasts · 7 dinners
Olive oil estate tour and tasting
Almond orchard and honey farm visit
Traditional market experience in Sineu or Pollensa
Hands-on cooking demonstration with a local chef
Wine cellar tour and tasting at a Mallorcan bodega
Fish market experience in Palma
A Mallorcan picnic in the hills
One free day to explore — with our help and local guidance
About This Journey
Agriculture in Mallorca has deep historical roots, dating back to the Roman and Moorish periods. For centuries, the island’s economy has been shaped by the cultivation of almond trees, olive groves, vineyards, and fruit orchards — traditions that continue to thrive today. When you walk through a grove of olive trees here, you are walking through history. Some of these trees are over 500 years old.
The Mallorcan olive carries a protected designation of origin — the Oliva de Mallorca DO. Olive trees must be at least 75 years old, grown on terraces enclosed by dry stone walls in the Serra de Tramuntana, and harvested entirely by hand. We will taste this oil where it is pressed, with bread and salt, the way it has always been eaten.
We will visit the market at Sineu — the oldest market on the island, held weekly in the heart of Mallorca, famous for its agricultural products — and shop alongside local cooks for the ingredients we’ll use in our cooking class that afternoon.
We will learn the story of sobrassada — the spreadable cured pork sausage born out of necessity on this island, where the high humidity made traditional cured hams nearly impossible to produce. We will taste it spread on rustic bread rubbed with tomato and drizzled with olive oil — the beloved pa amb oli — and understand, in one bite, what Mallorcan food is really about.
We will end evenings around a long table, sharing tumbet and arrós brut, local wines from the Binissalem vineyards, and the kind of conversation that only happens when people have cooked and walked and tasted together all day.
A Taste of What We’ll Cook & Eat
Pa amb oli — bread, ripe tomato, Mallorcan olive oil, sea salt
Tumbet — layered fried potato, eggplant, peppers, and tomato, the island’s answer to ratatouille
Arrós brut — the hearty spiced rice of the Mallorcan countryside
Caldereta — a rich, saffron-kissed seafood stew from the fishing villages
Coca Mallorquina — flatbread topped with seasonal vegetables and sobrassada
Ensaimada — the iconic spiral pastry, 300 years old and still magnificent
Fresh almonds, local honey, aged Mahón cheese, and the catch of the day from the Palma fish market
Where We’ll Stay
We will be based in the interior of the island, in a restored finca — the traditional Mallorcan farmhouse estate — surrounded by olive groves, almond trees, and the kind of quiet that makes you remember how to breathe. Here, organic doesn’t mean rustic — it means thoughtful. Dishes are crafted with seasonal ingredients sourced directly from local farms, and every element of the meal tells a story — not just of taste, but of tradition.
Details on our specific accommodation coming soon. Jan personally vets every place she takes her travelers, and this will be no exception.
A Day-by-Day Glimpse
Day 1 | Arrival & Welcome
Settle into the finca, explore the grounds, meet your fellow travelers. Opening dinner together — pa amb oli, local wine, and the smell of rosemary in the evening air.
Day 2 | The Olive Grove
Morning hike through ancient olive terraces of the Serra de Tramuntana. Visit to a traditional molí d’oli — olive oil mill — for a private tasting and tour. Afternoon cooking class: olive oil at the center of everything.
Day 3 | The Market & The Kitchen
Early morning to the Sineu Wednesday market — the oldest on the island. Shop with Jan for ingredients. Afternoon hands-on cooking class with a local chef. Long, unhurried dinner together.
Day 4 | Almonds, Honey & the Interior
Morning hike through the almond orchards of the Pla de Mallorca, impossibly beautiful in blossom. Visit to a local honey producer — Mallorcan honey is prized for its biodiversity and connection to the volcanic-rich soil. Picnic lunch in the hills.
Day 5 | Fish Market & Coastal Villages
Down to Palma’s Mercat de l’Olivar for the fish market experience. Learn to shop the Mallorcan way — talking to the fishermen, understanding the catch. Afternoon cooking class: caldereta and the seafood traditions of the island.
Day 6 | Wine & The Vine
Morning hike. Afternoon visit to a bodega in the Binissalem wine region — one of two official designations of origin on the island, with over 70 wineries producing more than 500 wine brands — for a private tour and tasting paired with local cheeses and charcuterie.
Day 7 | Your Day
A free day to explore on your own — Palma’s Gothic old town, a beach, a mountain village, a bakery visit for ensaimada, or simply a morning of stillness in the olive grove. Jan will help you find exactly what you need.
Day 8 | Farewell
A final breakfast together. Goodbyes that don’t quite feel like goodbyes — until the next one.
About Jan Buhrman
Jan Buhrman founded and ran The Kitchen Porch, a full-service farm-to-table catering company on Martha’s Vineyard, for 26 years. A food advocate and authority on local sourcing and sustainable agriculture, she has taught thousands of cooking classes on technique, seasonal eating, and the vital connections between food and health — on Martha’s Vineyard, in Vermont, New York City, Taos New Mexico, and Washington DC, and now on the international stage in Costa Rica, the Azores, and Mallorca.
Her teaching has never been confined to a single kitchen or a single philosophy. Whether she is standing at a wood-burning stove in a Taos adobe, sourcing from the farmers markets of New York, cooking alongside Vermont cheesemakers, or leading a retreat group through an Azorean fish market at dawn, Jan brings the same commitment to every room she walks into: that the most important thing you can do for your health — and for the planet — is to know where your food comes from and learn how to cook it with care.
She has raised pigs and chickens, tended gardens, composted, and fed her family from the land. She has partnered with regenerative farmers, small fishermen, and producers who see soil and sea as partners. And she has spent decades translating the science of nutrition into food that is not just healthy, but deeply, genuinely delicious.
Jan’s retreats are not wellness programs. They are invitations. To slow down, pay attention, cook something real, and remember that eating well is one of the most joyful things a person can do.
“Food is medicine. Lifestyle is medicine. You get to choose, every single day.”
What Travelers Say
“I’ll be honest — I thought I was just tagging along for a nice trip. I had no idea what I was walking into. Jan had me engaged, curious, and completely loving every single minute of it. She has a gift for making you feel like the whole thing was designed just for you.”
— B.H., retreat participant
“Sophie and I loved every single minute. From the first morning hike to the last dinner, you just know how to put a great trip together, Jan. We are already talking about the next one.”
— C.M. & Sophie, retreat participants
“I have traveled a lot in my life, but I have never experienced anything quite like this. Jan knows how to gather the most remarkable group of people around a table — the conversations alone were worth the trip. The food was extraordinary.”
— R.T., retreat participant
“What surprised me most was how much I learned without ever feeling like I was in a classroom. Jan weaves the teaching in so naturally — through the farmers she introduces you to, the markets she takes you through, the way she explains every ingredient as she cooks. I came home a different cook and a more curious person.”
— A.W., New York
“You have a gift of connecting people and places. And your subtle style of teaching shines through. Thank you!”
— A.S., Azores retreat
“I loved the daily hikes, even though I have never considered myself a hiker! The food was sensational. The landscape was amazing, the locals were warm and welcoming, and the travelers you assembled were extraordinary.”
— M.L., Azores retreat
“Make no mistake, I am joining you in Croatia. You did a superb job of putting together a remarkable trip in the Azores. The food was superb, and the chefs, hosts, and farmers you introduced us to were marvelous.”
— I.Z., Azores retreat
Pricing & Details
Dates and pricing coming soon. Space will be intentionally limited to a small, intimate group. A deposit will be required to reserve your place.
Not sure if this is for you? Call Jan: 508-360-4491
*Before signing up, please read our Cancellation Policy in full