Palma's historic Bar Plata finds a successor as Tolo Serra retires

Tolo Serra, who has run Bar Plata on Carrer de l'Argenteria in Palma for 45 years, is handing the 70-year-old bar over to a new team by the end of 2026, according to Última Hora. The buyers are Mallorcans in their thirties and forties who still work elsewhere and have asked to stay unnamed for now: "Serán mallorquines de entre treinta y cuarenta años" ("They'll be Mallorcans between thirty and forty years old"), Serra said.

Serra is adamant the bar's identity won't change. "No habrá aguacate ni tostadas de avena" ("There'll be no avocado or oat toast"), he said, and the llonguets, the traditional Mallorcan sandwiches Bar Plata is known for, will keep coming filled with camaiot, sobrasada with cheese, and serrano ham, all dressed with olive oil. He's agreed to pass on his techniques to the new owners, but after that, "luego que ellos hagan lo que quieran" ("they can do what they want").

Serra also turned down offers to push up the price of the handover, opting instead for what he called "un traspaso y un alquiler ético" ("an ethical transfer and rent"). The news follows a March 2026 announcement from Serra's son Alejandro that the family was looking for someone to take over. Serra, whose father Joan Serra Obrador took over the bar in 1956, told Última Hora at the time: "Necesito jubilarme, llevo 45 años en el negocio" ("I need to retire, I've been in the business 45 years").