I can’t believe this restaurant has been around for 8 years and I am only now getting to know about it. Granted I wasn’t a blogger 8 years ago and wasn’t really paying much attention to food-related things; still, this only fell into my radar this year. I’m like: Where have I been? How did it take me so long to eat at Poco Deli Ayala Triangle?
Poco is Italian for ‘little’ while Deli is the shortened form of delicatessen. This place is both a restaurant and a shop for selling smoked and pre-packaged meats, wines, cheeses, and even cakes and ice creams, but what they aim for here is to create a friendly neighbourhood feeling while doing so.
Poco Deli has expanded from its original Kapitolyo location as they most recently opened a branch in BGC, but we visited Poco Deli Ayala Triangle for this meal. I have to say, the moment I entered the restaurant, I understood what they were going for in terms of ambiance.
There’s a warmth to the place. It makes me imagine myself dropping by at any random moment to grab a pack of sausage to go, and I’d be greeted by friendly and familiar faces from the staff, asking me if I wanted my regular order or something else. You know, the sort of thing the Westerners do with their neighbourhood delis as well.
Poco Deli specializes in artisanal sausages and prepared meat products. They also sell accompaniments that go together with said meat products. They season their own sausages and smoke their own bacon, then they package the meats neatly enough to even be given as gifts if you want to. With a bottle of homemade sauerkraut (German pickled cabbage) on the side perhaps?
Or what about some wine? To pair with your meal or meat is a good selection of wine from all over the world. It’s something that the owners themselves selected to go with their mix of dishes, which hail from the countries whose flags you see hanging all over the deli. Make no mistake: Poco Deli is all about European dining, and they make sure you remember it too!
After ordering, we decided to further check out the things we wanted to take home with us from Poco Deli Ayala Triangle. The sausage display case took all my attention, but it turns out, my Dad was looking through the craft beers on top of the sausage display. We’re not really a family of beer drinkers but my Dad indulges occasionally, so curious, he wanted to try one.
The waiter quickly busted out the frozen beer mug. I really love the idea of freezing your mug instead of chilling the beer. Probably something they do often in Europe, but I wouldn’t know since I’ve never been there haha!
I think it was by the recommendation of the waiter that he picked Exit Wounds IPA (Php 180), an Indian Pale Ale brewed by the Crazy Carabao Brewing Company. I thought it was quite bitter compared to other beers I’ve tried. Not that there have been a lot haha!
I’m not a beer person at all so I don’t really know how to appreciate this, but I bet for all you beer drinkers out there, you are going to love this place. Sausage and beer! And they don’t serve just any sausage, mind you, the same way they don’t serve just any beer.
German Sausage & Cheese Platter (Php 750) 🌟
For the platter, you can choose any three kinds of sausages from Kielbasa, Nurnberger Bratwurst, Cheese Krainer, Chicken Sausage, Bockwurst, or Frankfurter. Alongside that you can pick three kinds of cheeses among Gorgonzola, Pecorino, Grana Padano, Emmenthal, and Manchego.
For our platter, we had Kielbasa (Polish smoked sausage), Nurnberger Bratwurst (German seasoned pork sausage), and Chicken Sausage. For the cheese we had Manchego, Grana Padano, and Pecorino.
Going for this option is a great way to sample the selection of products Poco Deli has, most especially when it comes to their sausages. If you’re not too confident about picking from the display case, this is a nice way to get to know some of the products, so to speak. I think in general you can’t go wrong with any of the sausages Poco Deli offers, so just pick whatever you feel like eating! (Personally, I always crave something spicy.)
Now I’m not going to pretend to be an expert in the world of deli, but I’d sure love to learn more about sausages and cheeses because I do love to eat them both. Everything in this platter was delicious, and you can really see and taste the quality of the meats they used to make the sausages. The cheeses were delightful as well!
Prosciutto Pizza (Php 380) 🌟
Thin crust pizza covered with Mozzarella cheese, then topped with prosciutto.
By no means the best pizza I’ve eaten, but it was good nonetheless. The pizza crust tasted fresh, and to me the flavour of the cheese was just enough to allow the prosciutto to come through. Some people will probably want something more savoury or cheesy, but when I ate this with some hot sauce I thought it tasted just the way I like– not too rich, but with some good flavour!
Irish Beef Stew (Php 380)
Inspired by the hearty stews from Ireland, the beef is simmered for hours in dark beer to bring out a caramel-y flavour. Best eaten with the bacon rice it is served with.
The first thing that hits you when you get this in your mouth is the taste of beer. I feel like not everyone will like this unless you’re okay with tasting beer in your food. The beef is quite soft and the sauce was flavourful for sure, but maybe I’m just not used to having the beer taste so strong in my stew. It was almost a bit bitter. The stew itself is a small serving that’s enough for maybe two people as a main dish.
Spanish Callos (Php 380)
A traditional family recipe where beef tripe is slow cooked for 10 hours, and then flavoured further with chorizo, pancetta, some black olives, served with bacon rice.
Because of the slow cooking, the tripe was nice and tender. I actually liked this better than the Irish stew, and it probably had something to do with the fact that I like chorizo (which this had as well). But the sauce had just the right amount of savoury richness, with a light sweet tang that made it lovely with rice.
Bacon Slabs (Php 400) 🌟
Thick, savoury slices of bacon served with sunny-side up eggs and bacon rice. Looks like a breakfast dish at a glance, but I assure you, you can and will want to eat this all day!
Poco Deli describes this as “a taste of heaven for bacon lovers” and oh my goodness. This was AMAZING! This is how bacon should be instead of those paper-thin pieces of fatty meat! Juicy, tender, smoky and sweet at the same time– it was absolutely flavourful! We loved this so much we actually bought one of their pre-packed Bacon Slabs from the display case. It was by no means cheap but it was worth it to the last bite, I tell ya!
Chilli Seafood Pasta (Php 4oo) 🌟
Pasta with slightly spicy pomodoro sauce and seafood.
There’s not too much to say about this other than it’s a solid pasta dish. I was in the mood for seafood, and I’m always going to pick a spicy option off the menu. This hit the spot nicely.
Now let’s talk about dessert.
It’s really interesting to note that Poco Deli not only hits it out of the park with their food, they also do so with their desserts! Well, that’s something I can say about the desserts I’ve tried from here anyway. Specifically, I want to talk about Poco Deli’s selection of Artisanal Ice Cream.
It’s a rather short list with just 6 flavours, but among the six I’ve already tried two before this visit. My Dad and brother took some home one time and that was when my love affair started. First two flavours I tried were Rum Raisin and Pistachio. My other brother raved about the Rum Raisin to no end, but for me I thought the Pistachio Ice Cream was the best I have tasted locally. Period.
And one this day we wanted to try some new flavours! I know that Php 140 seems like a lot of money for such a tiny portion of ice cream, but believe me when I say it’s worth it. From the four ice creams I’ve tried, I can say they have some things in common, the first being the quality. You can really sense that real ingredients were used to make the ice cream instead of artificial flavourings. The taste is not something you can fake! Second, the texture of the ice cream is just lovely, meaning good quality cream was used.
Bourbon Walnut Ice Cream (Php 140) 🌟
I like ice creams with some liquor in them but only if they’re done the right way, and after the Rum Raisin I had high hopes for this one. It did not disappoint! This was a little sweeter than the Rum Raisin (that one was a bit fruitier in a way) but you get a mild hit of bourbon and some crunch from the walnuts. Yum!
Gorgonzola & Fig Ice Cream (Php 140) 🌟
Although both ice creams were good in their own ways, this was my runaway favourite. I’m a huge fan of eating cheese with dried fruits and honey, and this was kind of like that but in cold creamy ice cream mode. The gorgonzola is not at all overwhelming and was rather pleasant. It makes its presence known without being too demanding about it. I loved digging up the bits of fig because they taste so good together! The closer you get to the bottom, the more pronounced the taste of gorgonzola.
Okay, I’m officially craving this Gorgonzola & Fig Ice Cream now. Just great.
One of our family friends who had eaten here before me told me not to miss the Blackout Cake. They have a bunch of interesting other cakes on display but our tummies were close to full capacity already, so I just took the advice and ordered a slice of that specific cake to share.
Blackout Chocolate Cake (Php 220) 🌟
Poco Deli’s rich and moist signature cake deserves top billing. It is less on the sweet side, allowing the deep dark chocolate flavour to really grab hold of your attention. This is made using French Valrhona chocolate, and no matter what angle you look, it’s a chocolate-lover’s dream cake. Oh, and the icing is made using Belgian chocolate!
This cake is a showstopper both in looks (because it is so black) and in taste (because it is SO GOOD). I feel like if you served this with some other cakes, everything else will pale in comparison. It just makes such a statement!
Of course, this cake should only be eaten by chocolate lovers, and I don’t recommend eating one whole slice on your own or else it might be a bit too rich. Still, I thought this was another winner for Poco Deli in the dessert department. An unforgettable way to end a meal for sure!
How come I feel like Poco Deli isn’t getting as much buzz as it should? A restaurant as good as this one should be packed all the time shouldn’t it? When we went to Poco Deli Ayala Triangle for Sunday lunch, we were literally the only ones in the restaurant! And you know what I realized after our meal? Wow, I have been missing out! I think you’ll find that same thought fly through your mind after you visit this place for the first time. And then you’ll just keep coming back!
For those of you who have tried Poco Deli, what are your thoughts? Share them with me below! 😉
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Poco Deli
Ayala Triangle Park, Paseo De Roxas St.,
Makati, 1226 Metro Manila
Hours: 11AM to 1PM / 5PM to 10PM
Contact Nos: (02) 246 9072
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