Food review: Dishee, Albert Road, Southsea

You might be stumbling into or out of one of the pubs outside the Kings Theatre, or maybe you and your gang want something delicious before getting the first round in. But where to go?

May I suggest Dishee, a stone’s throw from the theatre and next door to the Lord John Russell. All manner of Mexican grub is on offer in this small cafeteria, which creates a Pop Art/comic book vibe with brightly-coloured posters and seating inside.

The menu offers burritos (with shredded chicken, beef, or vegan no carne for £8.50), fried tortilla chimichangas (£8.95) and sizzling fajitas (from £7.50, depending on filling choice) as well as a range of Smash! burgers and panko chicken sandwiches.

You can choose from the maple bacon burger (£8.50) - two 3oz patties with maple bacon and the trimmings - or the Mr Spicy chicken burger (£7.95), which includes a crispy fried chicken thigh in panko breadcrumbs with cheese, home-made salsa, Frank’s sauce, jalapenos, lettuce, onion, and tomato.

Plant-powered customers can also eat well with the Vegan Mama menu, which offers a number of meatless burgers and several Moving Mountains plant-based frankfurter hot dogs as well as cauli wings (£5.95).

Always looking for a bargain, my eye was initially caught by the ‘DEALS!’ sign outside which promises double cheeseburgers, chicken burgers, mariachis burritos, Vegan Mama burritos, and loaded nachos - each for £5 a pop.

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Inside, I was pleased to find you can grab yourself a burrito (I recommend the halloumi wrap), a tray of fries and a can of drink for the tasty price of £10.95. This is a very decent burrito, as well. Not one of those hastily thrown together numbers, but properly mixed and structurally sound so it doesn’t fall apart in your hands. It also comes with plenty of sauce and cheese.

I’ve made a few Dishee pit stops now, taking friends as we paint the town red. Food comes quickly, although most recently, my Dish Detective companion and I had a 20-odd minute wait - unsurprising given the continuous flow of Just Eat drivers picking up brown paper bags for delivery.

Downing his pre-pub nosh, my companion said the Frank’s buffalo wings (£6.90) were ‘possibly the best chicken wings’ he’d ever eaten. ‘Amazing crust, juicy meat, and not too spicy. You can really taste the sauce,’ he effused.

On another night out, a different dinner buddy opted for a plate of American dirty fries (£7.50), which came topped with cheese sauce, onion rings, maple turkey bacon, crispy onions, and Dishee’s jerk and chipotle sauces. Judging by how quickly this was put away, the dirty fries seem capable of hitting that dinner spot.