The bulk of the menu at this Spanish-owned restaurant is, fittingly, Spanish — however, not everyone knows that Café Balear is also one of the best steakhouses in the city. Chef Pedro Masoliver runs a tight ship here, and the service and quality of the food, especially his tender cuts of beef, are consistent — which is not true of most steakhouses in Panama City.
The restaurant is in a converted chalet-style home and is neither formal nor casual, rather somewhere in between. Try the rib-eye with mushrooms, filet with anchovy sauce, a traditional paella (a Catalan-style seafood risotto), grilled octopus, or fresh tuna steak in peppercorn. Can Masoliver has a well-chosen wine list, too, with mostly Spanish (along with a few Chilean and Californian) varieties.