The Pocket

Get the buratta

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Burrata, Spicy Crab Noodles

Excellent steak and extensive wine list. Sunny is the manager and always takes great care of us.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Black Cod and Spicy Crab noodles were 5/5. Absolutely amazing.

I have had better octopus and ribeye so I deduct 1 star for that. Braised short rib was great as well. Service was phenomenal.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Black Cod, Spicy Crab Noodles

First and last time. Duck breast was tough to chew. The duck confi was too dry. Curry chicken had small pieces of bone in it so my wife couldn’t eat it. The curry sauce was very good and spicy. The octopus was very good and tender. Unfortunately, it’s hard to justify the cost for the food quality. Nearly $200 (before tip) for one appetizer, three drinks and two entrees.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 3

Service: 4

Everything we ate here was delicious. Great atmosphere as well.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 4

WOW, WOW, WOW.
Amazing elegance inside. Unbelievable staff and the best food in Carmel.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

We saw really high reviews for this place and seemed like a nice fine dining experience. The staff was nice and the atmosphere was too. The food was a different story. I ordered the black cod and it was undercooked. We usually wouldn't send food back, but even saw another person send their pork chop back. We got the fish a second time and it was still undercooked. We probably should have learned when the wait staff said "we have to do a brand new fish because it will fall a part if we continue to cook the same fish, we have seen this before." It is a shame because the food here looks good, but the dishes was nothing to write home about. My husband got a crab noodle dish that sounded good, but the flavors were odd. We saw people ask for to go boxes for an uneaten meal and even ended up leaving the food anyways. The restaurant was nice enough to give us a free bread pudding, unfortunately this was not good either. Carmel probably has better fine dining out there. A shame this was our final meal here, very unmemorable and not worth the price.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 1

Service: 4

What an amazing little restaurant and bar!!! Definitely pop this on your list to visit when going through Carmel By the Sea!!!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Fantastic restaurant in Carmel. Service very good and passionate about the food and drinks. Cocktails were really good as was the wine list (varied). We ate on a Saturday night and the atmosphere was buzzing. As for the food, it was all excellent. The menu is really good and they have a list of specials with 3-4 starters and mains.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Burrata, Grilled Octopus

I recently dined at “The Pocket” and found the experience disappointing. The service was just okay, and the food was similarly underwhelming. To make matters worse, I discovered an issue with the billing: I had left a $10 tip, but the restaurant altered it and charged me $20 without my consent. This unauthorized adjustment overshadowed an otherwise mediocre meal. I hope the management takes this feedback seriously and resolves the billing practices to ensure a better experience for future customers.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 2

Service: 1

Incredible food

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Black Cod

Great hidden place

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

I’ve been to this restaurant at least four times. The fourth was a week ago. And we had such a great experience, we booked again for last night. Our server was a nice guy. He was great at taking our orders. Terrible about seeing how our drinks and food were after they were served. And, we dined with another couple: The wife’s dish, seafood risotto, was cold on arrival. Our dishes were warm…we’re sitting outside…our server comes to the table across from ours and spends a very long time taking that order. We’re waiting, waiting…the waiter starts to head inside…and the husbands have to catch him. By the time the risotto is re-delivered warm, three of us were done. A very bad experience. So please tell your staff to make it a priority to check on tables after food and drink are served. Timing is critical. And rectifying a cold dish served should be of first order.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 4

Service: 3

This is the most underrated restaurant in Carmel. When in Carmel, just go to The Pocket.
I honestly feel most of the restaurants on the ocean street are over hyped.

But Pocket is the one I would highly recommend which is couple blocks away from ocean street.

They have amazing drinks and top notch service.
This easily belong on Michelin guide.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Best experience in town, best food we had..

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Rack of Lamb