Food & Drinks
Food & Drinks in Poland
Where to eat, drink and linger.
Polish cooking runs from pierogi, zurek and bigos to milk bars, Baltic fish bars and a serious fine-dining scene in Warsaw and Krakow. These are the places we recommend across the country, chosen on merit and grouped by city.
All Food & Drinks in Poland
Wrocław
Etno Cafe
A local roaster with cafés across the city pouring dependable speciality coffee.
Warsaw
STOR
A speciality-coffee bar with several outposts, a favourite of the city's coffee crowd.
Warsaw
Backroom
A polished cocktail bar hidden off the tourist track, mixing to a high standard.
Kraków
Pod Aniolami
A long-standing traditional Polish restaurant in a Gothic cellar on Grodzka, known for grilled meats and old-country cooking.
Kraków
ZaKladka Food & Wine
A relaxed French-leaning bistro across the river in Podgorze, a local favourite for a long lunch.
Kraków
Bar Mleczny Pod Temida
A classic milk bar on Grodzka: pierogi, soups and cutlets at prices that have barely moved in decades.
Kraków
Glonojad
A bright, well-priced vegetarian kitchen by Plac Matejki with a menu spanning half the world.
Kraków
Vegab
The go-to for a fast vegan kebab or falafel wrap between sights.
Kraków
Café Camelot
A romantic, cluttered café on a quiet corner near St. John's, famous for its apple pie.
Kraków
Karma Coffee
A small speciality roaster pouring some of the Old Town's best flat whites.
Kraków
Alchemia
The candle-and-timber institution of Kazimierz's Plac Nowy, part bar, part live-music warren.
Kraków
Forum Przestrzenie
A riverside bar inside a rescued communist-era hotel, all deckchairs and sunset views.
Polish food is hearty, seasonal and built around soup, dumplings and slow-cooked meat, and it is some of the best value in Europe. You can eat a filling plate of pierogi at a milk bar for a handful of zloty, or book a tasting menu at one of the country's Michelin-starred restaurants. Both belong on a food-focused trip.
What to eat
Start with pierogi, the filled dumplings, then work through zurek (sour rye soup), bigos (hunter's stew), placki ziemniaczane (potato pancakes) and, in Krakow, the ring-shaped obwarzanek from street carts. Our Polish food guide runs through the dishes and drinks in full, and what food to try is the short version.
Where to eat it
Eat at least once in a bar mleczny, a plain milk-bar canteen serving traditional dishes at low prices, a tradition that survived from the communist era. At the other end, the MICHELIN Guide Poland lists starred kitchens led by Bottiglieria 1881 in Krakow, the country's only two-star restaurant. In between sit strong regional cooking, speciality coffee and Baltic fish bars on the coast.
By city and by region
The deepest restaurant scenes are in Krakow and Warsaw, with Wroclaw, Poznan and the Tri-City close behind. Cooking shifts by region: highland cheese and grilled meats around Zakopane, fresh fish on the coast, and hearty stews in the east. Browse by city to eat where you are staying.
Food & Drinks by city
Travel guides
Best Castles in Poland
From the Teutonic fortress at Malbork to the royal seats at Wawel and Warsaw, the Polish c...
3 Days in Krakow
A practical three-day plan for Krakow, pairing the Old Town and Wawel with Kazimierz and o...
Things to Do in Krakow
The sights, neighbourhoods and day trips that make Krakow worth several days, ranked by ho...
Poland in 10 Days: The Classic Route
A practical ten-day route across the country, pairing Krakow, Warsaw, Gdansk and Wroclaw w...