the pocket

Four adults, one baby, a busy brunch service — the kind of setting where cracks usually appear. At The Pocket, none did. What arrived at the table was composed, confident cooking. Not oversized, not gimmicky — just intelligent flavour, proper seasoning, and ingredients treated with respect. The full breakfast was balanced and precise; every element had purpose. As a chef, I don’t hand out praise lightly. This was, without exaggeration, the best breakfast my wife and I have had anywhere in Ireland — and we’ve eaten in a lot of places. The coffee was excellent. And the tea service — presented with a timed hourglass — is a small detail that reveals a larger philosophy: someone here cares about the experience. Vibrant room, professional service, serious food. Belfast is fortunate to have this place. Will be back for sure.

Really enjoyed our visit to The Pocket, it felt super cozy. The vibe is relaxed but stylish. I had the Chicken French Toast, and it was perfect: fresh, flavorful, and beautifully presented. My husband had the Chicken Bombay Hash, which was perfectly spiced, and the bhajis were a highlight. We went on a weekend, so we had to queue for a bit over 45 minutes, but once seated, the service was fast and not rushed. It’s definitely on the pricier side, but worth it for a treat.

Such a nice place. The pocket fry is a great solid breakfast after a night of sampling the local whiskeys. Service is impeccable, vibe is comfortable. Coffee is excellent, they even have single origin batch brew. So good!

This place has been on my list for a while, and we finally made it. When we arrived, there was a queue outside and it took over half an hour to get a table. It was absolutely freezing. I don’t usually wait in queues — that’s a big no for me — but we were already there, so we waited. And it paid off. Once inside, the place was warm and cozy, which felt incredible after standing in the cold. We ordered two cappuccinos, and they were excellent — properly hot and really well made. My husband ordered the fried chicken waffle, and I had the sourdough with mushrooms and two poached eggs, plus two beef sausages on the side. That was a standout for me. You rarely see beef sausages offered; it’s almost always pork or vegetarian, and I don’t eat pork, so this was a big win. Our daughter had French toast with honey and raspberry jam, and we also ordered her a hot chocolate (not pictured). Everything we ordered was excellent. The flavors were incredible and the portions were massive. The bill came to around £50, and it matched the experience. The food lived up to the hype. One thing to note: the space is a little cramped, and the tables are quite close together. Overall, a very strong spot. We will definitely be coming back again 🙌🏼🤩

Popped in for breakfast during a child free stay in the city. Service from David was amazing, so helpful and kind. The food, yummy, so good! I had the confit duck hash that is only served on weekends - to die for! The little tea timers were a cute touch!

A great experience! Visited the Pocket with my mum and cannot recommend it enough. The green eggs were delicious and the tea was fresh. The staff were friendly and incredibly accomodating. I would recommend to anyone.

Delicious breakfast brunch, we had the Pocket Fry and the Chorizo Brunch and we were so amazed by how gorgeous it was. The service was warm & welcoming. We had to wait for a table but it was so worth it to be able to eat this! 10/10 recommend!

A wonderful modern cafe in Belfast. The food excellent and the coffee the finest, no doubt. We had a wee wait for a table but no issue. Once seated the service was great. The food was of high standard and unlike some of the other places we'd had breakfast. If you're looking for a really nice place for breakfast, this is it..

Lil l rates this restaurant swaggity swag I appreciated the company of the cat however I feel that staff should not be locked in cages, just my personal opinion, might just be me :)

I dropped into The Pocket today to try it out and was impressed. Located on University Road directly facing Queen's University Belfast, The Pocket as its name suggests, is a tiny independent coffee shop. Décor is minimal with tiny wooden tables and chairs (not the comfiest), free Wi-Fi, a warm atmosphere and chatty staff (really excellent service). I never know when somewhere is considered 'hipster' or not, but reckon this café definitely would fit the bill. Menu is small with a few breakfast/ lunch options e.g. toast, sandwiches and porridge etc. I ordered an Americano (£2.60) and poached eggs with relish on sourdough (£4.00). The Americano was small for the price but exceptionally good. My food was good but perhaps a tad lacking in taste. I often think sourdough is quite a bland bread which this was, plus the homemade beetroot relish definitely lacked flavour. It was really just mashed beetroot and needed more sharpness, spice and seasoning to help lift the dish overall. However the poached eggs were cooked to perfection and the food looked great on the plate when served to me. I will return to The Pocket as I want try their porridge and sandwiches, plus I have heard great reports about the brunch waffles they serve on Saturdays. A very good café overall, but maybe my choice of food today wasn't the best for my personal taste. I noticed a couple of customers calling in for takeaway coffees and as I am often around Queen's Quarter will do this myself in future. I would recommend The Pocket to others plus it's great to see such a distinctive, stylish and independent coffee shop opening in this area.

I struggled to find somewhere that was deserving enough of my 1000th review for a couple of reasons. One, because I've already reviewed all the main Belfast landmarks and two because I wanted to make the review particularly special. But today I visited The Pocket and I thought to myself, isn't this the type of place that Yelp is all about? A new, small independent coffee shop looking out at one of Belfast's most famous landmarks! Whilst trying to get inspiration for this review I looked on The Pockets website and one word struck me more than others, that word was 'passion'! Passion is a great word because it means different things to different people. But to me, if a business uses the word it shows they 'care' about what they are doing and that is certainly true of The Pocket. I sat in The Pocket with my laptop out sipping on a Flat White for over 2 hours and I noticed that the staff interacted with every customer in a warm and friendly way, for example they sell loose leaf tea with decanters and egg timers and every time they served this hot beverage up they explained how best to brew your tea in meticulous detail - I thought you'd get bored after a few explanations but they didn't - that's passion! The decor in my opinion is great. The huge single glazed windows allow natural light to burst through in to the interior creating a lovely working/meeting environment. As others have mentioned it's very minimal, pages from Peter Rabbit books decorate the white walls and wooden science lab style tables and stools act as seating (not hugely comfortable - but it's a style thing). There's plenty of plugs available for wifi sappers like me and you won't feel like you're being forced to leave at any point. There's a lovely wee fenced outside seating area on University Street that's a real sun trap. In terms of food there's four options for Breakfast, lunch and Brunch which to me is great as you know they are going to be good and served up quickly. I decided to order the Jambon, Dijon, Mozarella and Sun Blushed Tomato Toasty. This came skewered by a stick with melted mozarella oozing on to the accompanying napkin. The taste was excellent with the dijon mustard complimenting the jambon perfectly and adding that extra little kick. I'm sure I am going to have plenty more productive mornings and afternoons in The Pocket, I might even come here to complete my 2000th review!

Firs few times 5 stars. Today 3 at best. This was the busiest I have seen the place. They must not cope too well over busier times. Asked what flavour a scone was. Was told cranberry and almond. But into it and it wasn't. No real apology or refund for their mistake. I didn't eat the scone. It was ming. Hat choc is also very watery and powdery tasting. Best bit about it was the wee choc sweet that came with it. Very disappointed today. Won't be rushing back.

Best breakfast for the passed two weeks in the UK! Classy, delicious, friendly! Try the French toast. GF really enjoyed the coffee as well :)

Went here for a quick lunch date today. Really very happy with the level of service and the quality of food. Service was very quick, with a small but varied menu on offer. Pork features quite heavily on the menu, so if you're looking for something that doesn't contain bits of pig, it might not be the best place to go if you're wanting a decent feed for lunch. I went for a freshly made crumpet, topped with a chunky apple sauce and some pulled pork belly, with hazelnuts and a crumb of sorts. It arrived quickly, and was gone even quicker. Would gladly come back for lunches, the place has a nice atmosphere, friendly staff, plus it's nice to sit and look out onto University Road and people watch.

I've been in Belfast for a month and this is the best food I've had in town so far. Their presentation was stunning, but even better, the taste... phenomenal. I had the avocado pesto toast with an egg and my boyfriend had the lavender strawberry French toast. It taste even better than it sounds. Even if you're not a lavender fan, I'm sure you'd love this. The avocado toast had some sort of nuts and here were all sorts of beautiful surprises in every bite. It was amazing. The pour over was from Ethiopia perfect. The atmosphere was adorable and quaint and aesthetic. Highly recommend.

Nice new coffee shop which uses really good coffee beans by 3fE. Have only had a flat white in there, but the dude who made it, made it like a piece of art. If you are a bit of a coffee snob like me, you'll really like this place. Pretty damn hipster looking too with it's white tiles, wooden floors and tables and large lightbulbs that have the crazy filament in 'em. Looking forward to my next visit... Every day next week...!

Hadn't even been in Belfast for more than 24hrs and we had visited The Pocket TWICE! It's that good! The earl grey tea, americano, and porridge with banana and honey are all delicious. It is a great place to sit and read while enjoying good food and good coffee/tea, but it is also fairly quick service for those who are on the go. The workers are so friendly (one barista even gave us directions to where we could exchange currency and drew me a map of how to get there), I would recommend this place to anyone!

Became one of my new favourite places almost overnight. Belfast is almost spoilt for choice with good coffee shops these days, the pocket manages to find its place quite nicely. Lovely atmosphere, caring staff, they genuinely ask customers for their opinion! Yes it fits in to the 'hipster coffee shop' bracket, but in a way that is welcoming to all. What would I recommend? Coffee and Bacon. Of course.

First visit to The Pocket for breakfast this morning. Staff very friendly, coffee very strong and tasty. Porridge is the prettiest presentation I have ever seen (but got tore in before I remembered to take a photo!)

I think it's rare to find a cool coffee shop with good coffee, good food, *and* good service; this place is a must if you're in town!

So sad I didn't find this place sooner! Great food and drinks, cute place and staff :) They were trying out diffident iced tea concoctions and mine was delish.