A bohemian beach haven – El Silencio Ibiza

Hugged by towering, rocky cliffs and lapped by water so clear you can see your toes through it, Cala Molí is a bastion of unspoilt, wild Ibiza. A pebbly cove where the clued-in come to escape the chaos of the island in midsummer, it’s bohemian to the core; the gem planted at the end of the long, winding road. Perched atop its shores is El Silencio Ibiza, a louche and laid-back beach club that’s cut from the same cloth, and by the same hand, as the famous Parisian nightclub of the same name. It’s a place where nature and art interact freely, unbridled by typical boundaries.

Born from the minds of French tastemakers Arnaud Frisch and Antoine Caton, El Silencio Ibiza is now in its third season, already entrenched as a must-visit on the island’s culinary map. Effortlessly intertwining gastronomy, service, music and art, to while away time here is to surrender to the elements, and in doing so to enter another realm of relaxation and creative inspiration. Whether dining in the stylish beachfront restaurant that’s enveloped by the sea breeze; reclining and dining around the laid-back swimming pool beneath palm-fringed parasols; or checking out of reality in the innovative installation space, exploration of the moment is encouraged.

To help guests into that distinctly unparalleled groove, El Silencio Ibiza has enlisted Argentinian chef Mauro Colagreco, previously of highly decorated restaurant Mirazur on the Côte d’Azur, which was awarded three Michelin stars, to run the busy kitchen. Colagreco has designed a simple, seasonal menu inspired by the beach club’s convivial atmosphere; by the Spanish way of life, which whisks him back to the warm embrace of his home country; and by the crystal-clear sea, which while crashing gently into sand and shingle, somehow interweaves with the deepest depths of his imagination, reemerging as a deliciously formed plate.

Typical Spanish traditions such as sharing are dutifully honoured at El Silencio Ibiza with a range of flavour-packed tapas and hearty salads that can be delivered to your table, or your daybed by the pool. Try the now-famous heritage tomato salad — made with Ibiza’s homegrown produce — plus peach, verbena, candied lemons, ginger, almonds and pistachios, or for refreshing respite on a warm summer’s day, tuck into the lush watermelon salad with cucumber, avocado, feta cheese, red onion and coriander. For something indulgent, there’s nothing better than the creamy burrata salad, served with tomatoes, cherries, anchovies and pine nuts. All classics reinvigorated with flourish, these dishes taste best with the sun’s golden rays slicing through the restaurant’s straw-topped canopy.

Raw ingredients are treated with precision delicacy at El Silencio Ibiza. Think classic Peruvian ceviche made with catch of the day, then served with tiger milk and cancha corn; pert oysters served simply with red wine vinegar and shallots; and hamachi sashimi accompanied by local herb ponzu gel, gomasio and toasted sesame. Decadence continues at the grill, with flamed Ibicencan lobster served simply with alioli sauce, salt and lemon so that its natural sweetness shines through, and wood-fired king crab legs served luxuriously with brown butter, trout roe, chives and zesty sudachi sauce.

Continuing his passion for clay-pot cooking, Colagreco uses an ancient-inspired clay oven to breathe a certain smokiness into other parts of the El Silencio Ibiza menu. Sicilian aubergine is baked and served with smoked Scamorza foam, tomato, basil and sweet fried shallots; veggie lasagne is bursting with tasty fillings like spinach, tomatoes, onions, aubergine and mozzarella, and pizza is luxuriously adorned with truffle, fior de latte mozzarella, and spring onions. Toes dug deep into the sand beneath the table, eyes looking out toward the horizon, dining on these dishes, amid the aromas of salt and flame, is like stepping back in time.

Moving onto main courses, fish dishes include grilled turbot with pil-pil sauce, mashed potatoes, olive oil and chives, and extravagant linguini with lobster, with a luxe lobster and saffron fricassee. Cuts of meat El Silencio Ibiza are of the finest quality – try the melt-in-your-mouth lamb shoulder served with Basquaise sauce with olives, meat jus, espelette pepper and fresh herbs, or the butter-soft Wagyu beef sirloin steak with Creole sauce, romesco and shallot jus. Pair with an abundance of sides like grilled sweet potatoes drenched in herb butter, and the mouth-watering spring onion gratin with chunky chorizo and Parmesan.

It shouldn’t need to be said but be sure to leave room for dessert because El Silencio Ibiza boasts one of the most extensive selections anywhere on the island. The churros with dulce de leche, chocolate sauce and whipped cream are hard to beat, but the hibiscus and lemon infused melon carpaccio with Batak’s black lemon sorbet is an invigorating alternative. There’s a touch of Argentinian heritage in the dulce de leche fan, made according to Colagreco’s traditional family recipe – a comforting nod to the past to those who grew up with this sweet treat. Alternatively, sip on a liquid dessert, with a well-curated range of spectacular wines, champagnes and cava also available.

After sunset at El Silencio Ibiza, the lilac skies give way to starlit nights, and guests arrive – whether straight from a hazy beach day or as a pre-party destination – ready for post-sunset dinners in one of the most beautiful destinations in Ibiza. A well-curated soundtrack sets the scene as the venue transforms from day to night – let the Balearic atmosphere and bohemian ambience inspire you. This is Ibiza at its very best, and there’s not a single moment to lose before the summer slips away…

Clandestine encounters – El Silencio Ibiza Cabaret

Ibiza morphs into a different beast after dark. The crisp blue lines of the horizon become hazy; sea salt clings to the body, prickling the skin; and a hush-hush, clandestine atmosphere is ushered in. Anything can happen on a hot Balearic night, when every second brings fresh opportunities to the fore and the air crackles with possibility. These are unequivocal facts at chic Ibiza beach club, El Silencio Ibiza, on Cala Molí. Set on the sands of a usually quiet cove on the island’s southwest coast, come twilight, it twists and transforms into El Silencio Ibiza Cabaret, where world-class performers contort and writhe for the sensorial pleasure of a select few.

Hidden behind a heavy green velvet curtain that shrouds the spectacle still to come after dinner, El Silencio Ibiza Cabaret unfolds in a low-lit space on the beach club’s upper terrace. Walls and ceilings are painted in lucid tones of turquoise, purple and orange, and in the centre of it all rises a giant, phallus-shaped installation adorned in mirror ball tiles, glistening in the kaleidoscopic light. Tight-knit tables are peppered across the floor, a low ceiling evokes the feeling of being in a slightly sleazy, Parisian backstreet bar, and the stage sits at eye-level, within touching distance of eager and excitable spectators.

First brought to life from the wildly vivid imagination of Rodolphe Salis, who unleashed the now infamous Le Chat Noir on to the streets of Montmartre back in 1881, the concept of cabaret was initially deemed too off-the-wall for the well-to-do residents of Paris. But for the city’s slew of bohemian-minded artists, writers, poets, and philosophers, it promised a kind of exoticism that was hard to resist. Providing a nightclub experience where contemporary music entwined with performance, erotica and shadow play, it was the beginning of a new era for entertainment – one that would play out in Ibiza, at El Silencio Ibiza Cabaret, over 100 years later.

Today, creative powerhouse and multi-hyphenate Ali Madhavi has reimagined the idea in the creation of El Silencio Ibiza Cabaret. Artistic consultant to celebrities including Dita von Teese, Karl Lagerfeld and Kylie Minogue, as well as high-end fashion houses like Balmain, Thierry Mugler, Jean Paul Gaultier and Agent Provocateur, he cites a fascination with the human body and the exuberance of beauty, as well as the fantastic and subconscious realms, as influences. Respected across multiple genres, including photography and filmmaking, each visual element forms a pillar of the captivating show that unfurls at the legendary beach restaurant.

A groundbreaking production in which tradition and modernity collide, El Silencio Ibiza Cabaret plunges spectators into an immersive world conjured by Madhavi and his right-hand man, Djanis Bouzyani. Whisked on a journey that merges the ambience of Le Chabanais, a luxurious French bordel, with the seedy, post-Franco underground of Spain’s La Movida, every night, six sensational performers take to the diminutive stage in six distinct productions. No two nights are ever the same, as world-class artistes improvise and respond to stimulus from the crowd, weaving their way from stage to floor to aerial hoop in fluid motion to the hypnotic sounds of a soundtrack that wouldn’t be out of place in an episode of Euphoria.

The night’s proceedings are led by the divinely dramatic performance artist Mina Serrano, whose slinky, figure-hugging gown is painted with vignettes of intertwined body parts (mirroring the evocative prints on the ceiling and the floor), and whose playful ribbing of the crowd deepens as the night darkens ¬– be warned: she speaks multiple languages, so no one is safe from her suggestive soliloquies. Drinks flow freely as Mina meanders through the maze of tables at El Silencio Ibiza Cabaret, introducing an ever-evolving parade of performers whose talents range from pole dance and flamenco to classic burlesque striptease and daring acrobatic feats – each carefully crafted movement more sensual and intriguing than the last.

Though the staging at El Silencio Ibiza Cabaret is minimal — all eyes here are on the voluptuous curve of a silhouette or the sky-high heel of a stiletto thanks to expertly wielded lighting – abstract visuals can transport the crowd to something akin to a David Lynch set. Picture a veiled cinema screen with a live action film noir scene being acted out in the moment. Two magnificent burlesque dancers appear, dressed in classic French trench coats; cigarettes languidly hanging from their mouths as smoke snakes around their necks. They begin to strip, slowly, removing one item of clothing at a time, until eventually, just the dewy reflection of skin glowing beneath the light remains.

On other occasions, El Silencio Ibiza Cabaret plays host to solo performers, with dazzling artists defying gravity as they fly through the air, limbs wrapped seductively around an aerial hoop or strategically placed pole. One statuesque beauty sports a towering pair of perspex platform heels and heads out on stage to tempt the crowd with a trance-like simulation of sensual self-gratification, before reaching a breathy, hypnotic climax, while another performer, glistening in equal parts body oil and silver shimmer, dons a diamante-encrusted g-string before swinging up and down a pole with deft. At other times, trios take the spotlight, a jumble of mesmerisingly entangled body parts symbolic of the salacious acts that usually take place in secret.

When they’re not performing, members of the beautiful cast pop up in unexpected places – at behind the bar, in the crowd, at the tables – before graciously heading back to the stage to take a well-deserved bow at the end of the night. The crowd is kissed, embraced and thanked, and as the curtain falls, they snake their way out onto the terrace to mingle with their now adoring fans – sheer stockings, high heels and red lips silhouetted in the moonlight. Exclusive but never exclusionary, there are two showings at El Silencio Ibiza Cabaret each night at 9.30pm and 11.30pm, and though everyone is welcome, seating is limited.

Bringing flashes of ebullience to the island in the style of Crazy Horse or Moulin Rouge, El Silencio Ibiza Cabaret is a dazzling addition to Ibiza’s cultural line-up, and a fine example of the unique creative vision of the beach club’s founders, Parisian tastemakers Arnaud Frisch and Antoine Caton. While you’re there, be sure to check out DJ and producer Dan Ghenacia’s immersive installation, The Oracle, a 15-minute sensory journey guided by unique soundscapes and frequencies that conjures similar emotions to a psychedelic trip – the perfect pre-amble to your cabaret experience. A slice of sultry Paris on Ibiza’s pristine shores, open minds will relish this prismatic experience.