As I’m midway through paying up, I’m having a chat with the gent who served us. His name is Nick. I believe he’s the general manager and he’s an outstanding host. We’re talking about how he used to live in Madrid and how every time he’d get a flight for a visit home he would pick up a particular Nougat from the airport, a Nougat that he was unable to find until he found out that Spanish Wines by Ultracomida on Penarth Road were a stockist, we then move on to discussing how they also stock one of my favourite beers at the moment and Nick tells me that he’d take a look and see whether it’s a beer that might work at Poca. I pay up and he asks me to sign the Poca guestbook as I leave. I do, even signing it off with @flavouristfood because at this point I’m about 4 cocktails, a glass of Vermouth and a large glass of a very, very good White Rioja down and I’m feeling cocky. You'd have hardly known, such was Nick's warmth and genuine interest in the conversation that we'd only met barely over an hour ago and I feel like that's representative of the type of restaurant Poca wants to be - warm, open, genuine and just about any other adjective that can be used to describe that you're completely welcome here.
There is an argument to be made, and indeed some have, that Poca could be Cardiff's most exciting new opening this year. You can see why it's a compelling one, especially when you consider the pedigree behind the opening. Chef Patron, Antonio Simone who has carved out a rock-solid reputation over the years thanks to his consistently well-received work at The Humble Onion in Dinas Powys and Alium in Barry has teamed up with Head Chef, Lali Suto whose cooking you may recognise from his work as head chef at Nook. It's a killer sounding combination that instils optimism from the very get-go which is lucky because Poca has some big shoes to fill that were left by the restaurant's previous occupiers, the much missed La Cuina (my altogether much too late review of their final service here) and establish themselves as a sincere successor to their community focussed, neighbourhood restaurant.
The menu itself is straightforward enough. Yes, it is small plates and yes that will cause some eyes to roll but I'm very much in the camp that loves them as an opportunity to not only try a breadth of what the kitchen has to offer but also to learn from our European counterparts and indulge in the fun that comes with sharing food. There are four sections to this menu, one pre-dinner “Morsels” section and three main sections of Fish, Meat and Vegetables/Dairy; such is the quality on offer, we gladly take refuge in the Morsels with a plate of fiery Salame Ventricina and top quality Nocerella Olives as we try to navigate our way through a menu where temptation lies to order one of everything.
We're advised that three plates per person should do it, we just about abide and order seven between us and they come out almost as quickly as they're ordered. It's an approach that can be overwhelming, forcing you to move quickly from plate to plate to avoid anything going too cold. My preference is a staggered approach, allowing time to savour what you're eating and maybe even indulge a little further in to the wine menu. It's something that I'll proactively request next time, anything to just prolong my stay.
The food itself is mostly near faultless from the very get-go: one plate you'll be hearing a lot about are the Prawns, three big buggers line up on the plate with uniform precision. They come swimming in a bisque that is as well made as any I've had anywhere. Your only job here is to get stuck in: extract the meat, suck the heads, eat the legs and don't forget to ask for a spoon. Oh, and that White Rioja I mentioned above? order a glass and drink it alongside this, it's a lesson in how incredible wine can be when paired with the right food. Nick comes to check up on the meal as I'm finishing the plate, I tell him he's lucky that he hasn't caught me licking up the remnants of the bisque from the plate, he tells me that it wouldn't be the first time it'd happened if he had, fair enough I suppose.
A Crab Rarebit is about as delicate as a bit of cheese on toast can be, the rarebit element thick and humming nicely of Cheese. The little mound of Devonshire Crab could easily be overpowered here but it works valiantly to ensure that the last thing you taste is its delicate meat. Then there's the potatoes. If you've read my review of Kindle you'll know that I waxed lyrical about their potatoes and if those are an attitude laden, existential crisis inducing slap to the face then Poca's crushed new potatoes are the ones to bring you back to Earth and remind you that everything is going to be okay. They come lathered in fats in the form of an artery thickening application of garlic aioli and parmesan and seem to get better with each bite, especially when you get a slab of the torched Parmesan.
One potential issue with restaurants serving small plates is that there are plenty of examples where what you get may not necessarily reflect the price that you pay, this isn't something to worry about at Poca. Take the Chicken Thighs for example. You get two, and they're huge. They could double up as pillows if you really wanted to. You could easily share one between two and have no complaints, the fact you get two for £8 is just obscenely good value. The Kohlrabi Kimchi to the side only adds to that. It's robust, heavy with fermented chilli and is best used sparingly lest it overwhelm the teriyaki glaze on the thighs, get that balance right though and you've got another stand-out dish.
I am gracefully afforded a taste of some of my girlfriends individual choices, while the Lamb is a lovely, well intentioned tribute to La Cuina’s signature dish, it’s a little on the gamey side which in turn washes over a more subtle Salsa Verde that accompanies the dish. The Cauliflower Cheese croquettes however are every bit as stunning as those three words already tell you they’re going to be. They're moreish, satisfying and if you're not careful you could you could easily find yourself getting in to double figures if you really wanted to and god damn did I want to.
We're left sans any room for dessert, it's all the more reason for a return visit, and another, and then several more after that. This visit saw a bill for around £115 including service. For that we get two cocktails, a big glass of wine, 2 Morsels plates and 7 very generously sized "Small" plates. If it seems like good value, that's because it is. Poca promises a changing menu in line with the seasons, as all good restaurants should do and with things this seemingly polished at this very early stage, it's hard not to feel excited about what Poca might look like in 6 and 12 months time. If you haven't been yet, don't do what I did with La Cuina and wait until it's too late. This is your chance to get in on the act early and it's one you should take as quickly as possible.
