M Pocha
★★★★☆ 4.2 (155) • $$
"We had a great dinner at M Pocha in downtown Durham. Our well-traveled friend from Nashville, who ate with us here, said it was the best meal he's had in a year. He told me I could quote him in my Yelp review. In barbecue circles, he's known as Speedy of the Barbecue Bros: https://bit.ly/3KlTpgdI personally wouldn't go as far to say this was the best meal I've had in a year, but it was certainly very good. I give M Pocha a solid four stars.If you're not familiar with the "M Restaurants" of Durham, they're among the best Asian restaurants in the Triangle. Their most popular restaurant, M Sushi ( https://bit.ly/3QnVQTo ), has the best sushi in the Triangle, in my opinion. M Restaurants set the bar high. The "M" stands for Michael, Michael Lee, chef-owner of the M Restaurants.M Pocha is named after Korean street tents/stalls called pojangmacha. While Michael is Korean and this restaurant was inspired by pojangmacha or "pocha," the menu spans a variety of Asian cuisines, from Chinese to Thai. Like many restaurants in this part of Durham, M Pocha doesn't have a dedicated parking lot. My friends got lucky and found a spot in the nearby free lot off Morris St (same block). Otherwise, it's metered street and surface lot parking. If you don't want to park on the street, I suggest parking in the municipal lot at 111 W Chapel Hill St. You can walk through a brick alley and across Five Points to get to M Pocha. Parking is enforced Monday-Friday, 8am-7pm, except for city holidays.This is a small restaurant. If I recall correctly, the max occupancy I saw on the wall was 49 people. Reservations are recommended. Like all the M Restaurants, except for M Kokko, M Pocha is on OpenTable. Book your reservation using OpenTable and earn dining points which can be used to redeem restaurant discounts, Amazon gift cards, and hotel stays.Here's we, four adults and two kids, shared:Cocktails* Cocktail of the Day ($16) - some sort of whiskey sour cocktail with egg white (I don't remember the exact description)* House of the Rising Sun ($20) - Hibiki Whisky, Bekseju (Korean herb wine), charred lemon, miso caramelSmall Plates* Lobster "Mac" & Cheese ($26) - crispy rice cakes, Mornay sauce, herb breadcrumbs, chili poached lobster* Shrimp Toast ($17) - Japanese milk bread, white shrimp, wasabi sweet chili sauceDumplings* Meat Mandu ($12) x2 - traditional Korean dumpling: ground pork, mushrooms, chili crisp, kimchi, buchu chives; handmade fresh daily* Crab Shumai ($16) - crab meat, shrimp, kani, cabbage, scallions, yuzu and truffle ponzu sauceMeat* Chicken Karaage ($14) - marinated fried chicken, special spicy dipping sauce* Spicy Pork Buns ($17) - DIY steamed buns, spicy Korean BBQ pork, pickled cucumbers, ssam* Meat Plate ($48) - grilled galbi marinated Korean short rib, dry rub Iberico pork chop, duck fat pickled oyster mushrooms, seasonal kimchi, grilled onions, choice of rice or side salad (we chose rice)Rice* Chashu Don ($19) - braised pork belly, gravy, spicy cucumber salad, six-minute egg, scallionsNoodles/Soup* Xiao Mian (Chongqing Fire Noodles) ($19) - alkaline noodles, ground pork, gai lan, pickled mustard greens, housemade chili oil, sesame sauce, peanuts, cilantro* Drunken Noodle ($16) - stir-fried rice noodles, tofu, broccoli, carrots, peppers, tomatoes, beech mushrooms, Thai chilis, spicy chili sauce, peanuts, Thai basilSides* Chili Crisp Garlic Fries with Kimchi Aioli ($6)* Kimchi (regularly $5, but we got this for free; I think it came with a dish or maybe we got it because we ordered a lot)In general, everything was very good to excellent. I think the group favorite dishes were the Lobster "Mac" & Cheese, Shrimp Toast, Spicy Pork Buns, and Xiao Mian. My favorites were the latter two. The buns were freshly steamed and the pork was succulent. I enjoyed the Sichuan hot and numbing spice of the Xiao Mian. Every dish contained high-quality ingredients and was presented beautifully.I also really liked and recommend the Chicken Karaage for a simple, comforting fried chicken dish. The Drunken Noodles were tasty and are worth getting as well. M Pocha's Drunken Noodles can stand up to the best Drunken Noodles I've had in the Triangle. The noodle texture was terrific.What kept me from giving M Pocha five stars was the Meat Plate and Chashu Don. While tender and good quality, the pork chop on the Meat Plate lacked flavor. The Chashu Don pork had fantastic slices of pork belly and a perfectly-cooked egg, but there was too much rice and it was just soaked in sauce (didn't taste the best).We and the table next to us got complimentary dessert. It was like a sweet version of Crab Rangoon.The cocktails were well-made, refreshing, and delicious.Service was great. Our server was Ben and he did an amazing job. The dishes were paced as they were ready. Due to the limited table space, Ben was quick and creative in making more room for us as new dishes arrived.M Pocha opened in June 2019."
"Name is a beautiful sensory experience. From the time you walk in until the time you leave, you are taken away from Durham and into a tranquil garden of so many colors, scents, and tastes. I did not want to leave as it was absolutely amazing to experience! My coworkers and I met for a birthday and made a reservation. We had some difficulty finding the table, but the staff were very nice and helped us. We sat outside under an awning and ordered via a QR code on the table. Next to the QR code was a red flag that we could put up if we needed assistance. I decided to order the beef gimbap, which was delicious! I like that the roll came stuffed with the beef, carrots, and onions. I paired it with their mix of sauces. My favorite was their spicy aioli and house sauce. I got to try the shrimp gimbap, which was also delicious. The food did take a while to come out, but the servers were nice and let us know that there was a backup. It was worth the wait!I would love to come back and try one of their rice bowls as well as their kombucha that is on tap. The atmosphere alone would bring me back."
"I have yet to try their Korean BBQ but their Dolsot Bibimbap (hot stone bowl with meat n veggies) is solid. Loved the shallower bowl which gives more surface area for toasted rice flavor. The Kimchi Jigae was decent and the banchan side dishes were good. The side dish of mayo-based macaroni with raisins was reminiscent of church meals that someone's mom or grandma always made. I requested a refill on that one. Nice way to offset the heat and spice. We'll be back for the Korean BBQ!"
