Bjorn van der Toorn - Manager at Diferent Restaurant

Björn van der Toorn, manager of Diferent Restaurant, tells us what is so special about his job and about living and working on the beautiful island of Mallorca, a place that this Dutch man has made his home.

Tell us a little bit about your business, how it started out and where you're based...

My story in Mallorca started 8 years ago, well, perhaps a little bit earlier because 14 years ago I worked behind the bar in a nightclub during a summer here. My uncle, Adriano Rensen, creator and one of the best Dutch entrepreneurs in Mallorca, has been living on the island for 35 years, and it all started with him because he's always been an example to follow for me. We always went on holidays to Mallorca, and I spent a lot of time here in the summer. I grew up in the Netherlands in a lovely family where sport, hard work and food are really important.

I went to university to study sport management, and when I graduated I needed to find a job so I started in a bank as part of the commercial office staff. I learnt a lot there, but after a while I was approached by an employment agency and started as a recruiter and accounts specialist, where I had a lot of freedom to do things how I wanted to. After 3 years of hard work, I felt really driven and motivated to open my own business, so I organized some events, set up a call centre for people with disabilities, met nice people and found some opportunities, but it wasn't the right time for me.

Together with my girlfriend Denise, I've travelled a lot and been to plenty of special places where we've been inspired by different cultures and food. Before one of our trips, I spoke with my uncle about his future and ours and about Mallorca. He told me how the way of life on the island is so different compared to the city I used to live in in the Netherlands. There's always sun, no stress, no traffic jams and people have a different mentality, they eat together and food is very important, not something they do quickly or in a rush. If they can't do something today, they leave it for "mañana". This sounded so great that it was the moment when our collaboration was born. I'm still very grateful to him for the opportunity.

So, 10 years ago, in 2006, we decided to come to Cala d'Or and open a restaurant called Diferent Restaurant. It was built by my uncle, and he put all his money and love into it, as it was his last project.

What are the best bits about your job here?

We want to give guests a special experience, treat everybody the way they like to be treated. Right now we have built a really good name in Cala d'Or, and even in Mallorca. We have lots of guests who keep coming back, as well as locals from all over the island who like to eat in our restaurant.

And the worst bits?

The first couple of years it wasn't easy running the restaurant. But we slowly started to change things, and brought our own identity into the business, which was a great decision. We built a new team of people who have the same mentality and are willing to work and to create a wonderful experience for each and every guest. We work with quality and unique combinations and produce in a way that nobody else does on the island, we mix and fuse traditional with modern, we offer healthy soul food, we work and experiment with liquid nitrogen... The atmosphere is really important as well.

What makes Mallorca a special place to be for someone in your profession?

We have access to fresh local products from the island, which is amazing. Mallorca has so much to offer: local wines, olives, oranges, oil, premium gin, salt, vegetables, fish and meat... You don't need anything else if you love food. We're all passionate about food and service. Of course it's a lot of hard work, but it's definitely worth it when you have so many lovely happy guests passing by, all with different backgrounds and stories.

What is in store for the future with your business, any exciting projects in the pipelines that you can share with us?

Hopefully in a few years we can open one or two more restaurants. The concept is ready to expand, we're only waiting for the right spot. I'm now 32 years old and full of energy, I have lots of ideas... I've just started!

What do you do on your days off?

The perfect day off for me starts with a nice breakfast at home and then working out a bit in our garden or boxing at the gym. After, I'd walk our dog, an Akita Inu, around Cala Mondrago, where I'd go for a nice cup of coffee with an ensaimada or some pa amb oli. If there's still any time left in the day, we like to go to different places in search of inspiration, such as local small shops, restaurants and bars or just to Es Trenc beach.