Sonflour's pizza is rectangular Roman flatbread.

Back in the 90s, I worked as head chef of a vegetarian restaurant. Vegetarianism was still a ‘minority sport’ but on the cusp of breaking through to the mainstream, morphing from middle-class hippy concern and finding a whole new body of support amongst urban, often working-class youth; from sandals to Doc Martens in one fell swoop.

I knew plenty of vegetarians, of both tribes. I’m a recovering vegetarian myself. Yet the few vegans hovering at the fringes were considered downright weird, even extremist, by vegetarians. Choosing to live a life without eggs, dairy, or honey? I briefly dated a lovely woman who happened to be vegan. I liked her a lot but, honestly, I didn’t take veganism seriously.

In 2011, Doc Martens released a leather-free ‘vegan’ version of their iconic footwear—‘They’ hadn’t gone away.

I discovered My Goodness Food, a progressive Cork-based vegan food company who have satisfied thousands of committed carnivores at festivals around Ireland. I now add Sonflour to these meatless milestones, for an Italian vegetarian/vegan restaurant in Cork city is certainly unique.

Yes, ‘Italian’, a cuisine that gave us salami, myriad cured meats, mostly made from pork, that might read like a poem to pig-ness:

Prosciutto, capocollo, lardo, guanciale,/Mortadella, ‘nduja, pancetta, salami.

I could go on, but you get my drift; most people associate ‘Italy’ with ‘meat’, the way they associate ‘heart’ with ‘beat’. But Italian cuisine is laden with meat-free, even vegan fare, particularly Southern Italy’s La Cucina Povera (‘cuisine of the poor’), where hardscrabble peasant life saw meat viewed as a rare luxury.

It has resulted in iconic, delicious dishes: Cacio e Pepe, a vegetarian Roman dish of spaghetti and black pepper, exquisitely sauced with cooking water and Pecorino Romano; vegan Cicera e Tria, from Puglia, ribbons of egg-less pasta made semolina and water, some fried, some boiled, served with chickpeas. It reads as bland, it is extraordinarily good.

The Sonflour experience begins as you cross the door, an indefinable something bubbling in the air, speaking of effortless ease and joyous relaxation, none of the laboured ‘dolce vita’ schtick of more calculated Italian establishments.

Perhaps it is the dogs, snuggled under several tables, equally welcome in Sonflour. Maybe it’s the record player, diners are free to choose albums. Or maybe it’s how young Italian proprietors Eugenio Nobile and Lorenzo Barba have turned a tight little room into a funky, light-filled space. Blackboard counter encloses a tiny open kitchen, hanging plants are suspended from the ceiling, and 17 seats, plus a couch, are squeezed into whatever room remains.

Starving SpouseGirl orders emergency Socca Farinata Bites, salty herbed chickpea flour pancake, with vegan pesto, Genovese-style but shorn of Parmesan, and slow-cooked tomato passata; a simple, tasty appetiser to get the juices flowing while we order.

The name gives the game away but wheat is at the heart of the Sonflour menu and, as impeccable sourcing is almost entirely local, seasonal, and highly sustainable — other than certain speciality Italian items — flour comes from Little Mill, in Co Kilkenny.

It is used to make fresh focaccia, pizza and pasta. Save one salad and fried potatoes, that about sums up an elemental, pared-back offering. La Daughter (herself 98% wheat, mostly bread and pasta) has found her spiritual home.

Focaccia Vinyl 45 is thin layers of Ligurian-style dough, sandwiching melted Macroom buffalo mozzarella and herbs, crisp edges, soft and creamy centre. Sweet garlic bread is lightly fried focaccia, with caramelised garlic, and Irish sea salt, again a cut above the norm.

George Costanza salad is fresh, green, Derek Hannon’s Greenfield Farm leaves with marinated rosemary apple, baked chickpeas, tomatoes, carrots and seasonal flowers, with thyme and soy yoghurt dressing.

Pizza is rectangular Roman flatbread, plump pillow, riding high, golden crunchy edges, fluffy, airy heart, topped with that slow-cooked passata, fresh herbs, garlicky sautéed mushrooms and oven-roasted peppers, sweet astringent marinated juniper onion a nip in the tail.

There is a selection of pasta sauces. La Daughter has linguine with vintage, slow-cooked tomato, carrots, garlic and herbs, reduced to a tantalising, earthy-sweet purée, dressed with EVOO. Our other linguine comes with a creamy purée of ground walnuts, garlic and EVOO, anchored by the fungal umami of truffle oil.

Nutty, al dente ravioli, housing demure sweet potato, is with Norma(l) People, a garlicky, oily melange of fried sweet creamy aubergine, brightly acidic caramelised tomatoes and toothsome walnut. It is my favourite of the three.

A minuscule wine list is perfectly pitched, including four natural wines. SpouseGirl has bold, medium-bodied Soave (Filippi, Soave Colli Scaligeri DOC Monteseroni); my Barbera (‘Brich’, DOC Piemonte, Agricola Gaia), is crunchy black fruit, easily handling each dish.

Desserts are good: white chocolate and raspberry cheesecake, light, with spritely tart berries; vegan Belgian chocolate mousse combining deep cocoa with a delightful and ineffable airiness.

Sonflour is a joy from start to finish. Certainly, it can improve: adding textural crunch, perhaps including more raw, preserved or pickled vegetables and increasing acid notes would bring further contrast and intrigue to a singular yet still splendid menu; it is perfect for a single dish and a glass of good wine but more variety would greatly enhance full meal options. 

This is all in prospect: Nobile and Barba had anticipated a gradual, gentle introduction, allowing for slow evolution but have been quite stunned by the immediacy and vigour of the local Leeside welcome, almost instantaneously embracing Sonflour to its collective bosom. That welcome is entirely understandable; Sonflour will only improve to become a true Cork keeper.

€140 (excluding tip, including coffee, wines and soft drinks)

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