Kevin A. Roberts
A small poke bowl with freshahi tuna
It’s hard not to smile when you say PokeDoke (pronounced “poh-kay doh-kay”). As owner Andrew Shih explained, “I wanted a name that was representative and catchy, something people would remember.”
The catchy kawaii name is a good fit for the fast-casual restaurant. Its poke bowls are an interpretation and amalgamation of Hawaiian poke, conjuring visions of blue water and sunny skies.
The original PokeDoke opened in the Central West End in autumn 2017. At the time, it was the first poke-centered restaurant in St. Louis. The fast-casual choose-your-ingredients model was instantly popular.
A second location, in the Delmar Loop, opened this spring in the former Chipotle space near the Tivoli Theatre.
Kevin A. Roberts
You begin by choosing the type and size of base you want for your poke. Both the rice—hot brown or white sushi—and cold soba noodles make tasty textural foundations. Salad greens and wonton chips are also available. Next comes your choice of poke: raw diced salmon, ahi tuna, minced spicy tuna, octopus, shrimp, tofu, chicken, or, for an additional $3, deep-fried soft-shell crab. Both tuna preparations and the salmon are fresh and bright; the poached octopus and shrimp are firm yet tender. Diced tofu is deep-fried for extra texture and chewiness.
Next, a top-secret poke sauce in your choice of heat level is added to your bowl. Then you select from more than a dozen toppings: Mango and pineapple add juicy sweetness; pickled ginger, wasabi, and masago give your bowl the taste of sushi. Crabmeat, kimchi, edamame, avocado, and seaweed salad round out the options. Finally you’ll decide which drizzle, or drizzles, you want to add to flavor your bowl. Most choices provide heat or sweetness. Both the spicy and wasabi mayo and eel sauce are great choices; sweet Thai chili, sriracha, gochujang, soy sauce, and a teriyaki mayo are also available.
The poke bowls are made in front of you, but some items are fired in the kitchen and delivered to your table. Chicken wings with a thin, crisp, caramelized skin are coated with a sweet, tangy glaze. The potstickers are offered, per your preference, steamed or fried. The generous nugget of minced pork, ginger, and scallion tucked inside each is tender and juicy. The crab Rangoon is both simple and superb: The scallion-spiked cream cheese filling—velvety, peppery, delicious—is devoid of fake sea flavor.
The various boba shakes pair well with the other menu items, and regular and mochi ice creams, in a variety of flavors, are a cheery way to finish off your island-inspired meal.
It might be hard to settle on a poke combination, but PokeDoke’s bright, fresh, flavor-packed ingredients ensure that no matter what you select, the result will be perfect.
