Polish Food: Eating and Drinking in Krakow
In my experiences growing up as a third-generation American of Polish descent, Polish food always symbolized a holiday: pierogi on Christmas Eve, stuffed cabbage on Easter. Eaten only a few times a year, such dishes became endowed with a heightened sense of significance.
Upon moving to Poland, however, I felt like a kid in a candy store when I realized that the traditional holiday dishes I’d grown up with were woven into the daily Polish diet!
While there is some regional variety in Polish cuisine, most Polish dishes have become ‘nationalized’ (partially as a result of people like my great-grandparents carrying them to new countries). Variety comes in more nuanced forms, such as individual chefs’ preferences. Krakow is a great city to taste and experience a variety of Polish food, with Polish restaurants ranging in style from traditional to more experimental.
Breakfast (śniadania) serves as a good introduction to Polish food. One of my favorite breakfast dishes is naleśniki, or Polish pancakes. Similar to French crepes, naleśniki are rolled from a flour-based batter and stuffed with fruit, cream, chocolate, cheese or meat. Paper-thin yet filling, naślesniki are a strong way to start the day.
A bar mleczny, or a milk bar, is an inexpensive place to try naleśniki. These starkly decorated and sparsely equipped cafeterias have been serving cheap, home-cooked meals since the Communist days.
There is a milk bar in the Old Town on ul. Grodzka, near the Church of Sts Peter and Paul. Just around the corner, on ul. Senacka, is a small joint specializing in Polish pancakes, simply called Nalesniki. This is a good place to try a wide variety of both sweet and savory pancakes. If you’re looking for a dining experience away from the tourist center (and with Polish-only menus), there’s another neighborhood milk bar in the Podgórze district, south of the Old Town, on the Podgórze rynek (town square).
Obiad, the word for lunch in Polish, carries with it a set of customs and habits. The main meal of the day, it’s usually eaten in the late afternoon. Pierogi, Polish dumplings, are my all-time favorite Polish food. Ever since my grandmother showed me how to make her personal recipe (with hand-rolled dough, it’s an all-day affair), I’ve become a connoisseur of the various kinds of pierogi dough and stuffings; each and every recipe is different.
Standard types include pierogi ruskie (potato and cheese), pierogi z serem (sweet cheese), pierogi z kapusta i grzybami (cabbage and mushroom) and pierogi z miesa (meat). Ul. Sławkowska in the Old Town is a good option for pierogi. Just a few doors down from each other, Domowe Przysmaki and Pierogarnia both specialize in pierogi menus.
Other common Polish lunch dishes are kotlet schabowy (pork cutlet), gołumbki (stuffed cabbage) and bigos (meat stew). Salads, called surowki, usually consist of shredded root vegetables in a vinegar-based dressing. In Krakow’s Old Town, Polskie Smaki on Ul. Świętego Tomasza has a wide choice of typical Polish food. With an English menu, I’ve seen both locals and visitors every time I’ve eaten there. Bazylia, on Ul. Limanowskiego in the Podgórze district, is another great place for traditional Polish cuisine, and a great local neighborhood experience.
If you’re interested in more experimental Polish cuisine – or if you’re a vegetarian – Green Way on Ul. Mikołajska is a nice option. Cutlets from soy, pierogi and gołumbki with veggie stuffing and curries add a twist to traditional Polish cuisine.
For a quick snack, try food from a street vendor. Zapienkanki are a commonly offered choice – a halved load of French bread with mushrooms and cheese, toasted on the spot, and topped with sauce. Oscypek, smoked cheese that originates regionally in the mountain towns of the Tatras, also makes for a good snack. Small chunks can be purchased in stores throughout the Old Town, or from cart vendors in the underpass by the train station.
Though I was well aware of stereotypes regarding Polish culture and vodka, I’ve found that beer tends to be the Polish drink of choice. Zywiec, Tyskie and Okocim are the most well-known lagers. Ordering a tatanka is an easy introduction to Polish vodka. Made with the commonly exported Zubrówka vodka – bottled with a blade of grass – and a shot of apple juice with cinnamon, this cocktail tastes like apple pie. Walking down Ul. Jozefa in the Kazimierz district will lead to more bar and café options than is possible to try in a week. I recommend Moment, with its menu of creative and hip drink concoctions.
Special thanks for this article to: Jenna Makowski
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