Soph booked us into the recently launched Stori Restaurant after seeing how the refurb had come along when we were last down at Gong over the festive period.
This restaurant is a coming together of the Fetta Nera team and also the guys from Fishbowl, both places we have visited previously.
What We Had
This is on paper, an intriguing menu, and there is no fixed price menu option. They have an extensive drinks menu too.
Drinks
I had a pint of Estrella Galicia and Soph had a Long Island Iced Tea cocktail.
Food.
As there are so many tempting starters and snacks, we really were not sure which to try.
To Start.
We decided instead of a proper starter, we’d have 4 of the snacks to share, instead.
The Warm Sourdough Bread was the first, which came with a really interesting and tasty tomato and onion butter.
Then we had the 2 different fritters, the Ham Hock Black Pudding Fritter, which was excellent. I love black pudding, being a Northener, but Soph isn’t keen on it; she enjoyed the fritter as the taste of the Black Pudding was there, but very subtle.
The Smoked Haddock & Parsley Fritters were also very good, the taste of the Smoked haddock was there and noticeable, but again it wasn’t over powering.
Last but by no means least was the Irish Stew Croquette, which comes with a side of Guinness Aioli. This was a really good dish, rich in flavour, the tenderness of the meat all combined really well.
Mains.
My main was the Three Little Pigs, which is a combination of Pork Belly, Pork Fillet and Ham Hock. This came with Swiss Chard, the most wonderful Champ and a really tasty Cider Jus.
This was topped off by a light yet crispy piece of pork crackling. The meat was all very tender, tasty, and succulent. This was another dish packed with flavour, but nothing too strong to take over the taste of the plate.
Soph went for the STORI Burger, a delightful combination of sirloin beef burger patty, pulled short rib, with relish and Irish Cheddar. This came with Truffle seasoned fries.
Visually, it looked very good but taste-wise it was amazing. She’d been asked how she wanted it cooking at the point of ordering, which we always like, and it was cooked to perfection.
Dessert.
I was tempted by the cheese board and Soph said that had she been made to order she’d have gone for the Pear Tarte Tatin, but we were both pleasantly full after enjoying what we had just eaten.
What We Liked
The service was impeccable, Gary and the young lady working the front of house were fabulous. When she was taking our food order, she offered us sides and sauces. It’s rare that places do the upsells.
There was a checkback during both the starters and also the main, which again is great. The staff had a genuine interest in ensuring you were enjoying the food.
The decor is interesting, in a good way. The food was really, really good. The meat in all the dishes was seasoned but it also had taste.
The restrooms were spotless and nicely decorated, the Fox & Wolf liquid soap was really fresh to the smell. Tables were quickly cleared, and the staff were very efficient and worked well together as a team
What Could Be Improved
There’s nothing major at all. A sign on the front door asking people to please close the door would be good. It was amazing the number of people who swanned outside for a cigarette and left the door wide open.
Secondly, to avoid relationship breakups, the Warm Sourdough Bread if a couple are sharing should be 4 pieces, not 3!
What It Cost
Our evening meal came to 98.50€ in total.
Estrella Galicia for the pint 4.50€
Long Island Ice Tea cocktail 13.00€
Ham Hock Black Pudding Fritter ( for 2 ) 9€
Smoked Haddock & Parsley Fritters ( again these are for 2 ) 9€
Warm Sourdough Bread with artisan butter 5€
Irish Stew Croquette 10€
STORI Burger 22€
Three Little Pigs 26€
Would We Return To Stori Restaurant
Yes, we would, for a birthday or something special. Is it budget friendly? Not really, however, you get what you pay for at the end of the day. We visited Rustica when we first moved up here from Granada, and we were very underwhelmed.
Compared to our Rustica visit, this was head and shoulders better.
How To Find Stori Restaurant
They have a quite active Facebook page, which is good. However, this looks like they have kept the old Rustica page and renamed it, which means the reviews are not all of the new restaurant.
They’re easy to find if you know Gong, they are next door.
This is their address: Commercial Centre, C. Sta. Alodia, Local 22/21, 03189 Playa Flamenca, Alicante
