The best restaurants Poland

Set in a forest not far from the city center, this restaurant overlooking Zakopane is a place with a beautiful atmosphere not to be missed. First and foremost, its small room with a wooden staircase leading to a mezzanine conveys a rustic, charming and convivial atmosphere, while its delicious regional cuisine comforts the body and heart after a long walk, and all this for a small price.

You'll find warm, friendly service (in English). The restaurant also has a children's area on the mezzanine floor, ideal for families.

You won't find authentic Mleczny Bars on the city's main thoroughfares, for the simple reason that the proletariat and the workers who go there aren't present. The Mila is one of the rare exceptions, frequented as it is by local workers and students. You'll get the full immersion experience: the tiny room with its canteen-style tables is manned by impatient matrons who don't speak a word of English, amid the heavy fumes of potato pans. The menu, untranslated, is ridiculously low-priced.

A veritable fresh-fish market with the scent of local produce and the rich terroir of the surrounding area. Focused on quality and freshness, the menu offers oysters, fish and other seafood with intense flavors. A true culinary experience in a sublime setting, somewhere between a brasserie and a gourmet restaurant. Paprykarz Fish Market is a place where passion for cooking, combined with the high quality of the produce, makes every visit a new culinary experience. We absolutely recommend it.

This small café, whose name is translated in a very original way as "little café", is a nice and discreet surprise that it would be a shame to miss. Its colorful and welcoming interior creates a lively atmosphere that is well served by the very warm presence of its staff and regulars who are often found on site. The reason for their presence? Apart from the setting and this little oasis of happiness, they eat some of the best naleszniki in town! A smart plan for a sweet break after a visit to Sandomierz.

It is an excellent pierogi restaurant known as the white wolf by the locals who like to go there quite often and which has a large number of faithful customers. Its recipes are original and tasty and the menu has a wide offer where you will inevitably find your happiness. The restaurant's dining room is very small and is limited to about fifteen tables which can quickly become crowded, especially at peak times. We advise you to book in advance for more serenity. Finally, attentive and smiling reception and service.

The restaurant of the Japanese Art Museum has been the reference of Japanese cuisine in town since its opening. It's more about culinary fusion than gargantuan portions, with a consequent attention to detail and flavors that pay off on the plate. The place is very popular with locals, but not so much with tourists, who have not yet appropriated one of the best terraces on the Vistula, overlooking the Wawel hill. It is also a very good tea room with pleasant desserts.

A restaurant with a strong character, very popular with Krakow's wealthy youth. On the spot, with its bay windows, beige benches leaning against the wall, vertical metal and glass panel and lounge music mixing with lively discussions, you only have to close your eyes to imagine yourself in the bustling metropolis of New York, or in a modern Parisian neighborhood. The excellent cuisine specializes in butchery, with excellent tripe and other meat dishes. No surprises, it is Michelin listed.

In the heart of the old town, U fotografa is a microbrewery that is unanimously acclaimed in the city and should not be missed under any circumstances. Its charming interior, with old photos hanging on the walls, old photo cameras and movie cameras create an enchanting atmosphere reminiscent of the black and white movie era. The kitchens serve superb Polish food, while in the dining room there is live music, an excellent choice of craft beers and a young and smiling service that explains why the place is always full.

If you're looking for an authentic culinary experience, you've come to the right place. This small, family-run café (depending on the time of day, you can even set up on your own rather than waiting for someone to set you up) serves good home-cooked Polish dishes prepared in advance with fresh ingredients. Less crowded by tourists, it's still quite popular with Poles and students, so try to arrive before 2pm, otherwise the choice will be smaller. Recommended for a taste of the real Poland.

«Hamsa Hummus & happines Israeli retrobar» is located in a former Mikveh (Jewish ritual bath) alongside the Jewish bookshop, it is a orientalisant restaurant with copious cuisine. Rather Israeli dishes than "kazimierziens": …, labnah, hummus, babaganush… A place in the wind, with a kind of "globalized Jewish revivalisme" and quite amazing! Moreover, which Jew would it have believed 25 years ago?

Hidden in a kind of kitsch cellar in a rustic peasant style (and decorated with Polish bric-à-brac), this restaurant will satisfy the most starving. Soups, pierogi, placki (potato cakes) drowned in goulash… here you will find the best dishes a Polish mammoth could prepare for you. Of course, the portions are pantagruelic.

A well-placed restaurant at the foot of Wawel Hill, its atmospheric dining room with exposed brickwork and beams, and old family photos hanging on the walls, create a friendly atmosphere. Here you'll find excellent traditional Polish cuisine, a "country" variant particularly rich in meat and game dishes. The meal is preceded by a traditional starter of bread and lard (but without the pickles), offered by the house.

A classic restaurant in the "traditional thatched cottage" style, with pots and pans hanging everywhere and lots of wood for a real country feel. The place is nevertheless very friendly and simple, serving pierogi of all kinds, as well as the great classics of Polish cuisine. Unbeatable value for money. A restaurant whose concept is spreading throughout the city, and the recipe seems to be working. The service team's kitschy outfits seem to be working too! Guaranteed success!

On the Rynek, this traditional Polish restaurant is a lesser-known, and therefore less rogue, address than all the others with a street-side terrace. Its rustic white-and-red decor, with a traditional wedding theme, and generous, hearty cuisine at reasonable prices, make it a consistently pleasant address in the heart of the city. Another advantage is the beautiful view of the square from the dining room on the^{1st floor}. The restaurant's menu includes several vegetarian options.

For a meal on the thumb, bagels for all tastes: sandwich with tuna, salmon, salad, garlic, cheese cream, sweet bagels, tapas bagels… We also eat soups, salads and tortillas. 

Located in a ^14th-century building, this is perhaps the city's most elaborate rustic restaurant, which also serves a selection of European dishes (particularly Italian). The stylish interior design evokes a small village in the Polish countryside, and conveys an intimate, convivial atmosphere. The Polish cuisine served is of good quality and well presented, at fairly modest prices. This is a well-known address, well placed and popular with tourists, so it's best to book in advance during the summer months.

This small restaurant offers a beautiful panorama of traditional Polish cuisine. Choice: soups, pirogi or meat dishes. At dessert time, the cakes are homemade and are all delicious. You can also taste an excellent homemade beer, the Žiwe (in blond or brown version). Finally, in the restaurant, a small shop selling regional products (delicatessen, preserves and cheeses) allows you to prepare your picnic the next day. The welcome is very friendly.

This establishment is located in the heart of Warsaw's Old Town. Elegant and refined (with a slightly busy decor), this magnificent restaurant offers an intimate and romantic atmosphere. It will seduce you with its high-quality Polish cuisine, as well as a well-matched wine list. You'll also find a few non-Polish dishes, such as a selection of salads, including a delicious Caesar salad, or a selection of pastas, with spaghetti bolognaise and shrimp tagliatelle. A highly recommended address!

Not far from Collegium Maius, delicious Polish cuisine and menu in French.

Bohemia, located in the historic Bystrzycki building just off the main market square, has a beautiful room in a recently renovated brick cellar and offers traditional Polish cuisine, as well as some Italian and Spanish dishes. The restaurant's cuisine aims at the high end of the market and its pleasant presentation only adds to the pleasure of discovering its regional specialties (many of which are game). In the summer, a beautiful terrace is set up on the square and makes the restaurant the darling of the neighborhood.

Polakowski is an improved mleczny bar that serves workers and tourists typical Polish food at good prices in a simple and warm setting. As in all Polish canteens, the meal is ordered directly at the counter and it is better to know in advance what you are taking so as not to provoke the ire of the rest of the queue. The space, as often, is a bit limited, but the folkloristic decoration makes it warm. Very good address in terms of quality/price ratio.

If you like herring and want to feel like a real Pole, this is the place to come. It is probably the best herring bar in the city and for really affordable prices

Located not far from the Wawel, Golonkarnia specializes in golonka, an ancestral dish very popular in Poland, based on pork shank and vegetables. Apart from golonka, in this very Polish restaurant you can taste a whole range of traditional meat dishes from the peasant tradition. The cuisine is therefore merciless to your liver and cholesterol, "a bit heavy" to put it mildly, but you will enjoy it like at grandma's in the village and you are sure to leave satisfied.

A small restaurant serving Czech cuisine as well as classic Polish specialties which, apart from the most typical dishes such as pierogi, bigos and kotlet schabowy, offers goulash from the other side of the Oder and Hungarian pancakes (sweets particularly appreciated by Poles). Huge portions, dishes made with love, craft beer available at the counter and friendly service that makes you want to come back. In the dining room, brick walls and pleasant wooden furniture make for an incredibly economical restaurant.

A small, vaulted room not far from the Rynek, this milk bar is slightly more expensive than the others. Nonetheless, this is an excellent address, perfect for lunch. Simple, fast food.

Right in the middle of a tourist street, "sous les anges" is a charming establishment that sets itself apart from the competition. Its main level is a copy of a colorful antique palace, and its basement is a maze of authentic little rustic cellars dating back to the ^13th century, with superb country decor. The Polish cuisine is masterful and good, while the service, quick and jovial, is faultless. To compensate, prices on the menu are higher than elsewhere, but still reasonable.

An honest little restaurant/snack bar with a unique, well-designed and pleasant room where you can enjoy a range of Polish specialties. The menu includes, in addition to soups, pierogi, potato pancakes and classic grilled meats, a set of homemade pancakes, including one with oscypek cheese from Zakopane that we recommend. The dishes are unpretentious, copious and very good, for a price that is also appreciable. We recommend the pierogi, one of the most appreciated specialties of the regulars.

Very welcoming self-service restaurant, with wood interior decoration, and where you can enjoy dishes of Polish cuisine at affordable prices.

Located just behind the MOCAK museum and the Schindler factory, the Bal is the opposite of a typical Krakow restaurant. If the entrance is more like a warehouse, don't be fooled by appearances: inside you'll find a bright, creative restaurant-café with white walls, large wooden tables and a decor that has been stripped of all unnecessary details. A pleasant terrace is revealed in summer, while an alternative cultural program takes place there all year long. A very nice address that contributes to the charm of this arts district.

If you want to experience a meal on board a barge in Krakow, this is the place to come. This 1889 Dutch river barge moored on the Vistula River at the foot of the pedestrian bridge that connects Kazimierz to Podgórze has been beautifully modernized by Polish craftsmen to great effect. The long room has beautiful wooden floors and a fireplace. It is a particularly pleasant place to go on a nice summer day. The cuisine consists of Polish specialties and seafood.

Splendid address absolutely ignored by the tourists, this restaurant Georgian guarantees an unforgettable experience of ethnic cuisine. Primarily meat tasty dishes, even if the vegetarians find their happiness also there, hearty portions, Georgian wines at ridiculous prices, merry and friendly atmosphere. Khinkali, khachapuri, kharcho: it will be a real pleasure!

Several addresses in Warsaw for this chain, two in the center, close to each other. Covered with Egyptian motifs, Sphinx serves shawarmas or American dishes, all polonisé (lots of cabbage!). Very appreciated by the Poles, we find this teaching throughout the country. The service is very friendly and the standard dishes (from 20 zl) very correct.

"Long ago in Kazimierz..." is a restaurant with an atmosphere immersed in the Jewish past of Kazimierz. Good Jewish cuisine in an enchanting and exotic setting that aims to reproduce the atmosphere of the old stores and workshops of the early twentieth century. Its facade is still decorated with the signs of yesteryear and the windows, like the interior, display the products of an era lost during the war. The food is good (breakfast is served until 1am) and there are often Klezmer concerts for dinner. We highly recommend it.

A mleczny bar as we like them: a setting that hasn't changed since the Soviet era, and the same goes for its menu and its cold, expeditious service, which you'll find in all its counterparts. After all, milk bars are notorious for not cutting any corners. At least, you can eat good, authentic food at rock-bottom prices (that's what these government-funded restaurants are all about). A vintage address that's easy to appreciate, especially when you get the bill.

In a vaulted cellar with a rustic and friendly décor, this restaurant offers Polish dishes, but also Spanish and Italian cuisine. Rich and well-executed dishes. However, we still wonder whether this head printed on the wall was really necessary to complete this decor…

In Nowa Huta you can't find much except milk bars (which is slowly changing). Stylowa is an exception. This restaurant, once one of the most prestigious in the city, is a local legend. It has kept the same interior for thirty years, probably the same menu, and a rather unique socialist atmosphere. While it used to be in its prime, it has lost its charm since it was repainted and the restaurant's disco closed. Go there anyway, there is a powerful spirit of nostalgia.

Ariel is the Revivaliste establishment of Kazimierz par excellence! The establishment is designed to honour Polish Jewish culture and Gastronomy. In addition to the delicious traditional dishes meticulously worked, the main private art collection of the city, be it antique and modern. Visited by Steven Spielberg during the filming of Schindler's List, Ariel offers a friendly atmosphere, rocked most of the time by traditional Jewish music in the evening. Of course, the place is now very tourist and a very high price practice… Ariel Ariel is an ideal place to immerse itself in the tradition of Kazimierz.

By dessert, taste the strange Żubrowka cake, vodka to bison grass. Good choice of cocktails and spirits. Very in vogue.

Excellent carpaccio, delicious pizza.

Trattoria Mamma Mia is the great rival of Italian restaurant Nolio in Kazimierz. The two institutions share the prize for the most authentic Italian restaurant, with their respective "home-style" menus using imported methods and products. Mamma Mia has somewhat lost the battle and is less frequented by posh Krakowites. It remains constantly full, with a mix of families, students and tourists, and reservations are recommended. The wood-fired pizzas are very good, especially the pizzas bianca.

Located in the abbey complex on the banks of the Vistula River, this restaurant offers simple, traditional, home-cooked Polish cuisine. This is a monastery restaurant, so don't expect gargantuan proportions, luxury in the decor (or even superfluous comfort) or a menu that stretches to the floor. There are few things, the tastes in the kitchen are simple, but in the end you are well provided for and served. The speciality of the restaurant are the pierogi, with white cheese, meat, cabbage, mushrooms or spinach.

In the heart of downtown, this refined restaurant with a superb interior with a ceiling in the shape of an upturned ship's hull, tasteful furnishings and a fashionable industrial decor combining wood, steel and leather, offers modern and refined Polish cuisine based on fresh products from local farms. The menu has a special emphasis on grilled meats, which we recommend. Moreover, the restaurant is famous (and proud) for its wine cellar, so don't hesitate to use it but not abuse it.

The restaurant Poziom 511 is up to the standard of its hotel. It is very design, pleasant, and its menu emphasizes a majority of regional dishes full of flavors and aromas, a bit gastronomic. However, international and vegetarian dishes can also be found there if you feel like it. The restaurant's approach is to use as much as possible products from the city's market for its local specialties. The wine list is one of the best in the region and is carefully selected.

Located in an old attic dating back to the 1870s, this restaurant tries to recreate an "old Poland" atmosphere with rustic, country-style interiors. The cuisine is of course traditional, featuring old recipes straight from the Soviet era, and regional specialties. It's a very pleasant summer garden on the banks of the Brda River: ideal for fine weather. Last but not least, the Karczma Młyńska operates on two levels, each of which can accommodate 60 people, guaranteeing a degree of privacy.

In the hotel of the same name, this restaurant offers delicious Polish cuisine and excellent value for money.