Tucked into the vibrant, graffiti-daubed corner of Jamaica Street in Bristol’s Stokes Croft, Poco Tapas is more than just a restaurant - it’s a passionate manifesto on a plate. Since first serving up mountains of charcoal-grilled goodness at UK festivals back in 2004, Poco has evolved into a bricks-and-mortar favourite, a local institution celebrated not just for bold, seasonal flavours but for putting sustainability at the heart of everything it does.
Inside, the space is warm and welcoming - the kind of place where plates are shared, ideas are sparked, and meals feel more like gatherings. Chalkboard menus change almost daily, scrawled with dishes that follow the rhythms of nature, rather than a rigid recipe sheet. Whether it’s a quick carafe of organic wine with a friend or a celebratory tapas feast, the experience is always grounded in fresh, British-grown ingredients and proper hospitality.
The food? Colourful, creative, and driven by a zero-waste kitchen philosophy. Think: fried polenta with beet-top pesto and Old Winchester cheese, wood pigeon with beetroot, apple and dark chocolate, or Brixham hake in a rich bouillabaisse with smoked mussels and rouille. There’s a nose-to-tail, root-to-fruit ethos here - whole animals are butchered in-house, and surplus ingredients are reborn in inventive “rescue” recipes. Sustainability is incredibly important to the team and on the website you can see their long list of eco-friendly commitments including ensuring that over 90% of the produce is British, with much of it coming from within 50 miles. Fish is strictly sustainable, while the wine is natural or organic, and even the house gin is made just down the road with reclaimed citrus peels.
It’s no wonder Poco has scooped awards like Sustainable Restaurant of the Year (twice), or that Bristol locals return week after week. For a meal that’s thoughtful, exciting, and rooted in both place and purpose, Poco delivers - plate after plate.