A little Little Italy? Little doubt.
Pro Interesting North American-Italian menu.
Con A tad on the noisy side if it's dinner for two.
Dough
€€€
Per Person €30. Shared; beer, starter, dessert & bottle of Sicilian red. A full main. Gratis: olives. El tenedor bookings available.
Find the Joint
Website https://www.jackpercoca.com/
Access Step free entry. Tight between tables.
In Short
Hopes. A touch of the Italian-american. Think Robert De Niro stroking your arm. Gently.
Reality. Consistent and enjoyable selection of not-quite-Italian food.
First Impressions. A warm haven on a freezing February night.
USP lookin' at me? That transatlantic twist.
The offer in three little words. Tasty, consistent, organised.
Service! Absolutely first class. Couldn't be more impressed.
Friend friendly? Menu's pretty meat- and dairy-centric.
Rating for dating. Cosy and suitably lit, but almost noisy.
Tip? Generous one for splendid service.
Change one thing? Some tone issues on the menu.
Revisitability. Pretty good, with more things to provoke curiousity than one visit allows.
Compare & Contrast
Pizza Massa for something away from the Italian.
Menomale classic flavours and smart starters.
In Pictures
On Google Images
What's the story?
A freezing February night, with a biting wind whipping off the Sierra left us happily opening the door into Jack Percocoa. Good news: we were soon warmed up with the enjoyable food offer.
The one-page menu's shortish, and I'm not entirely easy with "a list of ex-girlfriends' pizzas" on the back. While obvously a joke on the bar's 1920's-style mythology and its eponymous hero, I'd be more comfortable with a different tone there.
Intent on trying some of the menu's distinctive ideas, we kicked off with deep-fried macaroni bullets (that's a tone issue again, for me) stuffed with cheese. Arriving seemingly within seconds of our order, this is an excellent mood-setting starter. A Caesar-style dressing means it's a pleasing flavour combination; cheesy bites with the oregano-flavoured sauce to the fore. It's not, by any stretch, what you'd usually call Italian, so job done. Worth a try, we think.
With only a couple of meat and fish options, none of which tickled us, we decided to test out the pizzas. A good decision as, at pretty much authentic Italian diameter examples, they didn't disappoint.
As a rule, delays on course coordination don't improve evenings, but we didn't mind one of these two turning up a few minutes late as a) staggering them helped appetite management; b) the terrifically well-organised server had come round to tell us about the delay (to the minute!) and c) by accident or design, arriving later meant the salami pizza's intense flavours didn't swamp the milder ham and pecorino offering. Said pig 'n' sheep topper was a smidge shorter on tomato than I'd choose, but the cheese added acidity. Dough was crispy and tasty on both. Black pepper arrived as soon as we asked for it.
Well recruited by now, we were struggling a little in the very warm atmosphere, so took a breather. Ongoing curiosity eventually lead us to Margherita Cheesecake. Even before it arrived, the prospect of a dessert based on savoury pizza was worth the challenge. This was our mission, and we'd chosen to accept it:
A tasty but not overwhelmingly rich dessert, after the previous courses that's a smart decision from the kitchen. Tomato chutney was sweet, but not overdoing it on the tommies. Pesto was a surprise but not overbearing, either. The cheese balanced the whole thing nicely, with a base that was crumbly, moist and lighter than I'd expected. An amusing, on-brand successs, it's one to put on your list.
A bottle of La Virgen's Jamonera came perfectly chilled and we followed it with a bottle of Sicilian Red which went well with all four dishes.
Last but not least, if we had at fanfare we'd play it as we're going to blow JP's trumpet when it comes to service. Our server was simply one of the best we've had in Madrid. Quick, with good communication but also finding time to be chatty and amiable. Said friendly fella was handling six other tables at the same time without even a hint of confusion or frazzlement. An extraordinary effort.
Decor, still with hints of Christmas to be seen, is themed as one might expect, but not heading to kitcsh. Lighting is certainly on the dim side - our photos needed the brightness turned up - and menu-examination needed some squinting at first. Table spacing is as tight as we're comfortable with, but a bias to tables for two kept the volume levels manageable.
So; food, ambience and service, all score on the right end of the scale. The menu could probably do with a more diverse range of options for the V-minded, but if it suits your tastes, you're in for a satisfying experience.
Pro Interesting North American-Italian menu.
Con A tad on the noisy side if it's dinner for two.
Dough
€€€
Per Person €30. Shared; beer, starter, dessert & bottle of Sicilian red. A full main. Gratis: olives. El tenedor bookings available.
Find the Joint
Website https://www.jackpercoca.com/
Access Step free entry. Tight between tables.
In Short
Hopes. A touch of the Italian-american. Think Robert De Niro stroking your arm. Gently.
Reality. Consistent and enjoyable selection of not-quite-Italian food.
First Impressions. A warm haven on a freezing February night.
USP lookin' at me? That transatlantic twist.
The offer in three little words. Tasty, consistent, organised.
Service! Absolutely first class. Couldn't be more impressed.
Friend friendly? Menu's pretty meat- and dairy-centric.
Rating for dating. Cosy and suitably lit, but almost noisy.
Tip? Generous one for splendid service.
Change one thing? Some tone issues on the menu.
Revisitability. Pretty good, with more things to provoke curiousity than one visit allows.
Compare & Contrast
Pizza Massa for something away from the Italian.
Menomale classic flavours and smart starters.
In Pictures
On Google Images
What's the story?
A freezing February night, with a biting wind whipping off the Sierra left us happily opening the door into Jack Percocoa. Good news: we were soon warmed up with the enjoyable food offer.
The one-page menu's shortish, and I'm not entirely easy with "a list of ex-girlfriends' pizzas" on the back. While obvously a joke on the bar's 1920's-style mythology and its eponymous hero, I'd be more comfortable with a different tone there.
Intent on trying some of the menu's distinctive ideas, we kicked off with deep-fried macaroni bullets (that's a tone issue again, for me) stuffed with cheese. Arriving seemingly within seconds of our order, this is an excellent mood-setting starter. A Caesar-style dressing means it's a pleasing flavour combination; cheesy bites with the oregano-flavoured sauce to the fore. It's not, by any stretch, what you'd usually call Italian, so job done. Worth a try, we think.
With only a couple of meat and fish options, none of which tickled us, we decided to test out the pizzas. A good decision as, at pretty much authentic Italian diameter examples, they didn't disappoint.
As a rule, delays on course coordination don't improve evenings, but we didn't mind one of these two turning up a few minutes late as a) staggering them helped appetite management; b) the terrifically well-organised server had come round to tell us about the delay (to the minute!) and c) by accident or design, arriving later meant the salami pizza's intense flavours didn't swamp the milder ham and pecorino offering. Said pig 'n' sheep topper was a smidge shorter on tomato than I'd choose, but the cheese added acidity. Dough was crispy and tasty on both. Black pepper arrived as soon as we asked for it.
Well recruited by now, we were struggling a little in the very warm atmosphere, so took a breather. Ongoing curiosity eventually lead us to Margherita Cheesecake. Even before it arrived, the prospect of a dessert based on savoury pizza was worth the challenge. This was our mission, and we'd chosen to accept it:
A tasty but not overwhelmingly rich dessert, after the previous courses that's a smart decision from the kitchen. Tomato chutney was sweet, but not overdoing it on the tommies. Pesto was a surprise but not overbearing, either. The cheese balanced the whole thing nicely, with a base that was crumbly, moist and lighter than I'd expected. An amusing, on-brand successs, it's one to put on your list.
A bottle of La Virgen's Jamonera came perfectly chilled and we followed it with a bottle of Sicilian Red which went well with all four dishes.
Last but not least, if we had at fanfare we'd play it as we're going to blow JP's trumpet when it comes to service. Our server was simply one of the best we've had in Madrid. Quick, with good communication but also finding time to be chatty and amiable. Said friendly fella was handling six other tables at the same time without even a hint of confusion or frazzlement. An extraordinary effort.
Decor, still with hints of Christmas to be seen, is themed as one might expect, but not heading to kitcsh. Lighting is certainly on the dim side - our photos needed the brightness turned up - and menu-examination needed some squinting at first. Table spacing is as tight as we're comfortable with, but a bias to tables for two kept the volume levels manageable.
So; food, ambience and service, all score on the right end of the scale. The menu could probably do with a more diverse range of options for the V-minded, but if it suits your tastes, you're in for a satisfying experience.
