Mallorca: When Rod Stewart dropped by for an ice cream

Rod Stewart and son Liam in front of Jonathan Heaps' ice cream parlour in 1996

Cala Bona, a small town on the east coast of Mallorca, was my home for a good two years. There are hardly any better places to live your life. 350 days of sunshine a year, the beach and the Mediterranean on your doorstep. Plus lots of nice restaurants and bars - you could really live there.
There is no shortage of entertainment either. Cala Bona is a tourist resort and the numerous hotels and bars offer endless music entertainment. From my balcony, I could hear the numerous bands and musicians performing in the surrounding hotels every evening. There was Elvis, Abba, Tina Turner, Take That and a very good Motown band from South Africa, as well as many others. But what was missing was a really good Rod Stewart show. Nevertheless, Rod Stewart left his mark on this small coastal town.

A short video with some impressions from Cala Bona

This is the story of my good friend Jonathan Heaps, who has lived on Mallorca with his family for many years, and who took part in a karaoke evening at the Hotel Levante in Cala Bona in the summer of 1996. That evening there was a jury whose task it was to choose the best karaoke singer from the numerous candidates. And this jury actually included none other than Rod Stewart himself.
‘It leaked out beforehand that a celebrity would be on the jury,’ recalls Jonathan, who ran a very successful ice cream parlour in Cala Bona until 2024. ‘But nobody had any idea that it would be Rod Stewart. There were a lot of holidaymakers among the contestants, with only a few residents mixed in. So the atmosphere was great - people are usually in a good mood on holiday.’ And when the evening began, the organiser let the cat out of the bag and presented the celebrity jury member from good old England to the astonished audience and the completely amazed competition participants. Sir Rod was on holiday with his family in and around Mallorca this summer.
Johnny’ no longer has any great memories of the karaoke evening in general. That's why we can no longer pay tribute to the winner afterwards. ‘It certainly wasn't me,’ laughs Johnny. ‘But I still remember my ‘performance’,’ he says. ‘I don't know what possessed me to pick a Rod Stewart song that very evening. But my choice actually fell on SAILING. Overall, I probably didn't do too badly, because Rod said to me after the performance: ‘You sang it better than me’ and grinned at me.’ Of course Jonathan was as proud as Oscar - when do you ever get a compliment like that from a world star? He would have liked to chat to Rod a little more, but he disappeared straight after the competition and turned his attention back to his family and companions.
The next day Johnny, as I always call him, was back in his ice cream parlour selling his ice cream scoops to the holidaymakers. Around midday, a man with a cap and sunglasses suddenly stood in front of his counter and ordered ice cream for himself and his companions. ‘I was really busy at that moment, topping up ice cream and cleaning the shop, so I didn't realise who was standing in front of me at first,’ laughs Johnny. It was Rod Stewart - who had had to endure the ice cream seller's singing skills the day before. ‘He seemed to remember me, because he grinned at me and jokingly asked if I had thought about a career as a singer’. Rod and his family savoured the ice cream and then strolled on - just like any other tourists. ‘I think they then took a taxi a little further on,’ Johnny recalls.
He never met Sir Rod in person again after that. ‘I don't know that he came back to Mallorca after that,’ says Johnny. ‘But of course I followed his career and I have a few of his albums on my CD shelf.’ However, a Heaps version of SAILING has not yet been released. ‘And that's probably best for everyone involved,’ laughs Johnny.

Incidentally, Rod Stewart was not the only celebrity to savour Johnny's ice cream. His guests have included Man City coach Pep Guardiola and former England international Michael Owen. In 2007, he opened his shop with the simple name ‘IceCream’ and from then on was a permanent fixture on Playa de Cala Bona. By 2024, the Leeds United fan had had enough. ‘I would like to thank my customers from all over the world. I'm calling it a day and will play a bit more golf in future,’ says the passionate golfer, who also no longer wanted to pay the rent for the shop, which had been significantly increased by his landlord. ‘Rental prices on Mallorca have recently risen to insane levels - both for flats, houses and business properties.’
Finally, a personal note from the author: I know from my own experience that Cala Bona is now missing something. Johnny's ice cream was the best on the whole island and my dog Polly still misses the little cookies she got from Johnny every time we passed his shop on our daily walks. Thank you Johnny, for your friendship and the daily meetings on the playa.
Hasta pronto amigo! - our next meeting can also take place together with Rod Stewart 😊