There was a time when the Vía Púnica was the epicenter of Vila. Its proximity to s’Alamera, Dalt Vila and the old Military Command made sa Capelleta a nerve center of the city when the Cine Cartago was built in 1969. It was one of those huge neighborhood cinemas, with more than 600 seats and dozens of sessions. In 1983, this street became the Diario de Ibiza headquarters and the now extinct Radio Diario, multiplying the activity in the area.
Along the stretch of Vía Púnica in front of the Cine Cartago block, five bars came to exist: Cafetería Le Mans, Bar Cartago, Bar Miami, Bar La Sirena and, above all, the Cafetería Milán. Now, only the Dalt Vila Café will remain, in the former Carnicería Dámaso butcher’s shop.
There was also a time when it was normal to enter the workforce as a teenager. Vicent Losa is a clear example. When he was only 14 years old, he began to earn a living at the Hotel Marítimo de ses Figueretes and, a year later, in 1975, he moved on to the Cafetería Milán. “La Milán”, plain and simple, as it is known by the Vila locals. “Back then, we worked in a jacket and bow tie”, he remembers.
Photo gallery of the closing of the Cafetería Milán | Vicent Marí
That touch of distinction, along with impeccable old school service, has been maintained until the very end. In this last stage, Losa and José Becerra, waiter for 15 years, have worn a green polo shirt, with the name of the business embroidered on the chest and black pants.
But the most memorable and long-lasting uniform was the beige, short sleeved shirt and brown bow. Back then, there was as much dark tobacco as blond in the tobacco machines, with Celtas or Record competing with Ducados, and it was not shocking to see glasses of cognac in the morning.
In those years of splendor, there were five waiters at Cafetería Milán. Along with Vicent, another young man, Juanito Orvay, joined them. Later, Pep Saliner arrived. From the beginning, the brothers Pep and Joan Serra were in charge. But the founder of Cafetería Milán, and owner of the premises, was Rafel Marí, aka de la Philips, who, in 1949, opened the first store where electrical appliances could be paid for in installments on Aníbal Street.
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