Pontus Pocket

Good, hardy food that is elegantly served. Great value (for the area) for a high quality lunch. The daily special is 125 kr — you get two courses to choose from. The ambiance is professional but laid back.

Really nicely prepared lunch cod for both palate and eye. And comparatively cheap, as I recall. Nice atmosphere and attentive service too. Absolutely nothing to complain about. But for some (inexplicable) reason, I cannot bring myself to giving this place five Unilocal stars.

Pocket, not far from Stureplan, is a nice, easy-​going restaurant with a decent wine list and Östermalm prices.
When I visited Stockholm again a few months ago, Pocket was one of the places I wanted to check out. It is a pretty down-​to-​earth, modern restaurant by the Swedish chef Pontus Frithiof. I was a bit surprised when I noticed that he had recently opened a Burger & Lobster branch right next to Pocket. As I already knew Burger & Lobster from London, Pocket was the more interesting choice.
I was very happy to see a good wine list at Pocket. The friendly waiter recommended a Chablis Laroche from 2013 as a dry white wine, so I went with it. As you would expect from a decent Chablis, the wine was really nice.
I was at Pocket for lunch and because of my schedule, I only had a main as a quick option.
After reading through the menu, I ordered the flap steak with Café de Paris butter and fries. The beef steak had a lovely buttery texture and taste, almost a bit too smooth perhaps, but still very delicious. The crispy fries were cooked to perfection. When I had seen it on the menu, I did not really know what the Café de Paris butter was. On the plate, it tasted a bit like a béarnaise sauce.
To be honest, I thought Pocket was probably a little bit overpriced for what it is, at least if I compare it to London restaurants. But then, being located in Stockholm just off Stureplan in Östermalm, these are probably standard prices for the area. And actually, I’d rather pay a bit more for a tasty lunch, than a bit less for a horrible lunch.
Overall, Pocket is definitely a nice place for lunch or dinner at a very central location, not exceptional, but good. Just be aware that this is in general not the best neighbourhood to eat out on a tight budget.

I was there today for lunch and got the daily special which was chicken with couscous and yogurt. My chicken was raw and the waiter disagreed with me and I ended up not finishing my plate.

Finally ate here, which is funny since I’ve eaten everywhere else nearby (& live nearby). Its… OK. Which is also a surprise, because it has always been packed. I’m guessing its The Beautiful People of Ostermalm displaying themselves, rather than for the food?
The décor is ‘lightweight bistro’. Its a bit dated. Our waitress was super friendly & sweet, but the hostess less so (she ignored us standing at the door for several minutes, clearly not recognizing that my Hermes belt & Rolex identified me as ‘Seatable Right Away’). Wines were fine, pretty good selection, pretty pricey. Menu was interesting: we ordered the artichoke snack (looked great on the plate, greasy & tasteless), the Poulet Roti (Sweetie wouldn’t eat it as it looked pink inside, I did: not much to the bird, but I didn’t get diarrhea so all’s well), and the Flap Steak (house specialty, very good. Curry butter was a nice twist, but ultimately over-​powering. I ended up eating it with the Poulet’s Bearnaise). We couldn’t be bothered to order dessert.
It was as expensive as anywhere in the neighbourhood — e.g. Sturehof, Nosh & Chow, ets. — & nowhere near as good.
I give it three stars only because our waitress was a sweetheart. Better places to be an Ostermalm Flanneur…

Having been here a few times over an extended period of time I am sorry to say Pocket has gone down a slippery slope. It is a nice looking place, and convenient for the more spontaneous diner since they seem to have a lot of seats which are not bookable in advance (or is it just that they are never full). But it seems like some sort of change has been done to the concept, the service is noticeably more strained and inattentive. Dishes come out bordering on cold, vegetables are cut in pieces that go beyond rustic and worst of all the flavors are just not on par with anything i have had from Pontus restaurants before. It all seems so rushed and unloved. Maybe the staff is asked to run a restaurant that is not a possible equation. It felt that way. And i can not say i will be going back.

I love the steak tartare (main), I try and have it once a week for lunch :) the fries are also fantastic that come with it. One of my favourite work lunch spots

Inexpensive, spontaneous & delicious dinner with great service!
Firstly the maincourses were 185 kr at the most which is a bargain in Stockholm. Pontus Pocket is a good option to the fancier Pontus diningroom one floor down.
We tried the duck, the oxcheek & the Wallenbergare made of fish & they were all tasty although I prefer the fishdish! On the downside there was only one vegetarian starter & no vegetarian maincourse. Among the desserts the tiramisu & the spicy apples were good but nothing exceptional.
This is one of the few places in the city were you can not book a table & I appreciate the spontaneity that it offers! While at the subject I’d like to make a small note about our table; the air con was breathing down our necks in cold puffs, which could have been nice on a warm summers eve but less so in this chilly autumn night. Perhaps the tables by the windows are better from this point of view.
Lastly I would like to mention our waiters who were professional, swift & fun. It is a good sign to see the staff having a good time at work, joking with each other & the guests!