My subjective guide on restaurants in Cracow - part 3 - My zone around Bagatela theatre.

The cross of the streets Szewska, Karmelicka, Krupnicza, Podwale was my middle part of Cracow.



I love this point where one can meet tourists and real Cracow live. My favourite places were situated around Bagatela theatre. There are theatre bakery, bookshops , photography and clothe shops, library, churches, colleges, touristic office, tram stops and of course restaurants, pubs and coffee shops. This area has many places where I can eat something and enjoy and meet with my friends.

On Karmelicka street close to the theatre there are three bars where sometimes I had lunch. There are “Polska kuchnia”, “Bar rybny” and “ Lunchowisko” in the neighborhood. “Polska Kuchnia” serves traditional polish food. There is a menu in English. I liked to order pierogi and meals with herring. Decor inside is still in communism style, but it is clean and nice.

Opposite to Kuchnia Polska is “Bar rybny” (fish bar) where only fish is served. Maybe they don't have wide selection but they always have fresh fish. All are served with frying or cooking potato and salads. I remember this bar from my childhood when my granddad took me there for dinner. My granddad loved fish. When I was five years old I tasted salmon and cod first time in my live. They were delicious and very expensive because that time sea fish was a luxury stock.

There is also a sweet bar “Czarodziej” on the same street. They serve a wide selection of sweetness and polish cakes, desserts and beverages. It is good place for evening coffee and talking with friends. The “Sweet bars” offer delicacies so popular in Poland like kremówka, ekler, chocolate cake, cheese cake, doughnuts. I loved to eat there a cream dessert with raisins which is called “deser słutański”, it is so tasty.

The best place for me for meeting and eating is “Dynia” on Krupnicza street. It is austere place with beautiful garden. All there is simple: decor, garden, and also food but everything is tasty. The front of this restaurant suggests small interior but inside it is huge and there is lots of intimate tables. I love so much a green garden which looks like a wonderland. During spring and summer this place is a piece of forest in heart of the city.“Dynia” is very good place for breakfast, lunch, diner and meeting over coffee or wine. Menu is typical Mediterranean with polish influence. Chefs serve healthy and light food. When I had a bad day I used to go to “Dynia” and I order coffee, sit in the garden or near the window in winter and contemplate silence. It was good therapy for me.
I recommend you this place when you visit Cracow. This coffee bar is open all day.


Next to Bagatela Theatre we find “CK- browar”.This is a pub where I often went with my friends and guests.
It is situated in deep cellar and it makes impression of the gate of hell. Underground this place is dark, noisy, stuffy but enjoyable. It is typical beer pub but there is also a restaurant and night club area. There is a good selection of old polish food, I recommend you especially schabowy with cabbage. There is small brewery as well and you can try beer which is served in special way. The waiter brings a pipe with beer to use it by yourself. This is good idea for budget party of any kind: birthdays, graduate party, stag party, hen night or other. The parties are often sponaneous and don't require advance booking. This pub houses about 500 people in the some time. History of this place is short. It was open in 1996, but owners furnished pub in nineteen century style when Cracow belonged to Austria- Hungarian empire. CK means Imperial King it was knighthood of Austrian emperor. We can find the marks and traces of Habsburg's empire in the whole pub. There are portraits of last Austrian king and decor is like art nouveau style. I love the atmosphere of this deep cellar.


It is my Cracow: modern and vintage, old and young, fast and slow, magic and realistic.

I invite you to visit my city and see this miraculous place. See you.

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Similar Posts:

My subjective guide on restaurants in Cracow - part 1

My subjective guide on restaurants in Cracow - part 2

Influence on Polish cuisine - part 1 - Japanese herring - śledź po japońsku

My Belgian friends were suprised when they saw the following names in the restaurant's menu: Greek fish, Ukraine borsch, Japanese herring. So it may be a surprise for foreigner in Poland, but they are still Polish meals. Polish cuisine was open to influences of other cultures and it took over a lot of ingredients, recipes and the techniques of cooking. Some meals were directly taken from other countries, but some of them are only foreign named, and the rest is typical Polish. It is Polish phenomena and we can compose long Polish menu with dishes of only foreign influence, so today let's start a new series about it.

Chapter 1

Japanese herring

The first I want to say – Japanese herring has nothing to do with Japanese cuisine. This dish is relatively new on Polish table. Nobody knows who thought it up and called this meal. Probably it was a coincidence.
This dish was born during communism time when ingredients were scarce and people tried to vary their menu by giving fancy names to ordinary meals. The names of new meals had nothing to do with ingredients and influence of other cultures but it sounded good and people felt better when ate for example ordinary pickled herring in mayonaise and it was called “Japanese herring”. That was weird time.
Japanese herring probably was called this way because it is simple, contains fish and nobody knew what is a Japanese cuisine like. I heard a lot of stories about Japanese tourists and they are surprised when Polish host serve Japanese herring. Currently Japanese influence on Polish cuisine is very small. Polish chefs make sushi, use a few Japanese ingredients and thought up “Kashi “ (this is a type of sushi with groats. I wrote about it in one of my previous posts “Adventures with sushi” ).

Japanese herring is a simple dish and it is very good for a party especially when you plan to serve vodka or as a starter.


for two portions

4 pickled filets of herrings
1 onion
4 large gherkin
½ can of green beans
2 hard boiled eggs
olive
mayonaise
salt and fresh ground pepper

Cut fillets of herring on half and sprinkle few spoons of olive. Cover it with aluminum foil and leave about half a hour. Cut onion and gherkin on small pieces and mix with green beans add mayonaise, salt and pepper.
Put this salad on middle part of plate. Cut egg in four and put on salad, sprinkle salt and pepper and one spoon on each piece of egg. Put herring pieces on salad and serve. This is one of the ways of serving Japanese herring. In Poland you can meet other ways but it still the same dish. Enjoy!



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Influence on Polish cuisnie - part 2 - Knuckle of pork in Bavaria - Golonka po Bawarsku

Influence on Polish cuisnie - part 3 - Beef Strogonow

From doughnuts to herrings - Polish Shrovetide

I like the time in Poland when carnival ends. Winter is still cold but people make hot atmosphere around. This special time starts on Tłusty Czwartek (eng. Fat Thursday ;)) and finishes on Ash Wednesday. This culmination of carnival in Poland called “Ostatki” (eng. Shrovetide). “Ostatki” in Poland has long tradition. Carnival had a lot of traditions in the old Poland but “ Ostatki” had more because in that time rich and poor people needed to enjoy. All social classes had their own traditional plays and meals but everybody wanted to forget about coming Lent. Polish aristocracy organized balls, fancy-dress balls, sleigh rides, feasts. During “Ostatki” all the events piled up in one big event. Everything began on Tłusty Czwartek when people ate a lot fatty meals during feast and ball. The mark of this day was and is doughnut (pol. pączki). On Friday night after the balls all participants kept move sleigh rides to another house and start new plays repeatedly until Ash Wednesday when at midnight a host changed fat meals on Lenten fare, spilt ash and ended carnival.There was always a dish with herring. Of all of these herring and ash are marks of Ash Wednesday. Fatty meals didn't mean only fat food. the old Polish cuisine had wide selection of dishes and pastry, and every host wanted to serve special nad fancy dishes, so that way Polish cuisine became more diverse. At present the feasts aren't so rich but everybody wants to enjoy on party or fancy-dress balls with friends and eat good, a lot and fatty. And on Fat Thursday rich and poor people eat doughnuts, a lot of doughnuts.

This year I made traditional Polish doughnut for my Irish friends , below the recipe.

500 g. flour
30 g. yeast
6 fresh yolk
100 g sugar
100g butter
100 ml. warm milk
1 tbs. vodka
1/3 tsp. Salt
1 tbs grated peel of lemon
lard or cooking oil to fry
jar of rose petal jam or other jam

1.Yeast and 2 tbsp. Sugar dissolve in half portion milk and keep this liquid in warm place for half hour to grow.
2.Yolks and rest of sugar to mix for white mass,add melted butter and rest of milk and mix well.
3.Flauor and salt sift to bowl and add yolks milk mass and mix well.
4.The next add milk with yeast and peel of lemon and vodka and mix very well. Dough must be smooth and shine.
5.Keep it in warm place about half an hour for grow.
6.When dough grew, make on your hand circle and on middle part put small portion rose petal jam and make ball. Put this ball on dishcloth and make next doughnuts. When you made last cover they next dishcloth for 15 minutes after this time turn on doughnuts and keep next 15 minutes for grow.
7.When doughnuts grew, heat up lard or oil in wide pot. When it is hot put few doughnuts and fry for gold colour one side and turn on and fry second side. Ready doughnuts put on plate and sprinkle they with icing sugar and fry next doughnuts.
Serve cold down. Enjoy!!!

PS. Below the movie with famous Polish song about sleigh ride (pol. Kulig), and true Polish winter.

Cookiemonster is me

Oh yes, and I'm soo good in it! Some time ago I was watching a fitness tv (yes, it was me and I am clear) where a beautiful coach was presenting her recipe for ginger cookies, one of my many favourites. And I am still meditating, stimulated by her advice, whether is it really necessary to eat one cookie at a time?! NO WAY!

No way. With the Griffin's ginger cookies? Impossible. Check out the company. My favourite from NZ:-). I am still developing my own recipe for ginger cookies (as I am too stubborn to use the others). Hopefully chocolate cookie was conquered recently and irrefutably. Anyone interested in the recipe?

100 g butter
60 g icing sugar
2 Tbsp milk
130 g flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp candied orange peel
1 Tbsp cocoa powder

1. Cream butter and sugar until soft.
2. Add milk and orange peel.
3. Sieve flour, baking powder and cocoa powder.
4. Combine all the ingredients with mixer until smooth.
5. Place seperate spoons of the dough on the baking sheet keeping much distance. Spread in a round shape but do not make too thin layer.
6. Bake in 180 degrees for not more than 20 minutes (until it starts getting dark).
7. Despite the smell allow to cool down!

Chrunch and chew:-).

My subjective guide on restaurants in Cracow - part 2

Part 2:My fast food on Grodzka street.

In Kracow Grodzka street is very important place for everybody. This street connects Market square and Wawel castle. When I lived in Cracow I was on this street every day because it was my way to my job. Grodzka street is beautiful and has long and rich history. But today I'm not going to write about it.

Today I'm writing about one place on this street. This place is a milk bar “Temida” (eng. Themis). I like this bar and it was important for me. “Temida” isn't sophisticated but it always has fresh food and staff serves quickly. I know “Temida”since my childhood. My parents took me sometimes for diner after city walk. During communism time this place was open for everybody and was cheap and good and it was in the city center. When I was a student often I had a fast lunch and also ate there in the breaks in my city guide job.


What does Milk bar mean? “Bar mleczny” (direct translation – milky bar) was a government owned place to sell as many fast meals as possible. Something like a Communistic Fast Food – a McDonalds for working class, always hungry people, students who wouldn't`t have much money or homeless people. After that time places like that became famous for cheep and good meals, so the same class of people would eat there. In this particular one you can still see an university lecturer along with students, or people straight from work. Food remained good and really cheap, maybe not the most sophisticated but really tasty.

Why this common place has name of an ancient Greek goddess? I'm not sure but I guess why communist governors called that place in this way. They usually called milk bars with ordinary names like “Daisy”, “Miner”, “Central” etc. It was different in Crakow, where council had and still have high opinion of oneself so all milk bars in Crakow had fancy names like "Barcelona", "University", "Europe", etc. Probably the Themis (pol. Temida)milk bar owe its name to location. There is a university faculty of law in the same street so maybe the name of Greek goodness of law was the best name for this place.

What can we find in Milk bar menu? We find Polish food, simple and tasty cuisine. In “Temida” I recommend “pierogi”. There are a few kinds of pierogi. Pierogi with meat, cabbage and mushrooms, with cottage cheese, and “ruskie”. “Pierogi Ruskie” are my favourite, there are stuffing with potatoes and cottage cheese and this dish is served with fried onion and malted butter. I loved them.
There are many kinds of soups. Soups in Polish tradition are very important and we can find all soups which are traditonal meals served during important Polish holidays. There are mushroom soup, beet root soup, żurek, and of course rosół, tomato soup and borsch.
Sometimes I took my visitors for fast lunch and we ate typical Polish dinner composed of soup, main course with meat and salad and kompot. Kompot means a drink with cooked fruits served sometimes hot, sometimes cold - as you like. Typical meats in main course are kotlet schabowy (meat with pork breaded), kotlet mielony (like hamburger), zrazy (beef roulade), and others.
But I also like vegetarian food there. There are many kind of salads, I recommended salad with beet root, spring salad, or salad with lentils. My favourite dishes are: placki ziemniaczane, they look like pancakes made of potatos, dumpling and pancakes with cottage cheese and strawberry.In the second branch of “Temida” on Poselska street they serve variety of pancakes, but this is only kind of meal that you can order in that branch.
There is also a wide selection of breakfasts in “Temida” milk bar. We find there eggs served of many kinds, sandwiches, sausages and other meals.

“Temida”has still the same style of decoration typical for the communism. Even though it is busy place it's always clean and tidy inside. There are four rooms: the first room is serving area. Milk bars are always self-service. You'll take a tray and line up. Queues are sometimes long but don't worry, staff works very quickly and you have a meal in a few minutes. Once you paid and got your meal, you need to find a free seat. Sometimes it may be a problem because people don't like strangers at the table but when you are alone you'll find a place quickly. When you are with companionship it's a good idea to split a task. One person is looking for a place and the rest is waiting for a meal in queue.
Currently in “Temida” we can meet students, professors, workers, clerks, homeless and turists but all are kind and polite to each other. I met a lot of interesting people there and I heard amazing stories.
I recommended you “Temida”if you need to eat during a tour. Maybe we meet there? Enjoy.



P.S.
Ilona thanks for your help. Your photos are really great.

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Similar Posts:

My subjective guide on restaurants in Cracow - part 1

My subjective guide on restaurants in Cracow - part 3 - My zone around Bagatela theatre.

My experience with Canarian food

In November I spent two weeks sailing around Canary Islands. For me it was the first meeting with Canary Islands and living on boat. During the holidays I concentrated on practising sailing and panorama viewing. soo my culinary discovery wasn't very intense.

Before a trip my friend told me about Canarian food. She was excited about Canarian potatos and I was curious of their taste. First day of my trip when we were in small town Villaflor on Tenerife, I ordered Canarian potatos with mojo sauces. The potatos were very small with skin and boiled in sea water. The faint smile appeared on my face when I recalled that my uncle throws out potatos of thas size. But those potatos were very tasty and they were yellow inside. I loved them. I bought a couple kilos of potatos to eat them on the boat. Either we boiled them in sea water and served with mojo soauces and fish or we made them as tortilla. Both dishes are very easy to prepare especially on boat during sailing. Spanish tortilla is kind of omelette made of eggs, boiled potatos, roast onion and sometimes smoked meat. Canarians make tortilla for breakfast and it is served inside sandwich or as tapas or as a part of main dish during dinner.

Tortilla and Canarian potatos we can serve with mojo sauces. Mojo sauces originated on Canary Islands. The basic recipe consists of olive oil, large amount of garlic, paprika, and cumin. Flavorings such as vinegar, lemon, orange or lime juice may be added. Mojo sauce can be of three kinds: red, green and orange. On Tenerife I met only red and green. They are also commonly served with fresh bread rolls at the beginning of a meal and we can buy these sauces as ready to use or instant powder in all grocery shops on Canary Islands.


Canary Islands are famous by bananas although it is not country of their origin. Anyway they grow up very well there. Canarian banana is a special kind. They are smaller than South American bananas and taste more sweet but I was suprised by the price. Canarian bananas on Canary Islands are more expensive than others. Why? I don't know. These bananas are tasty especially as an addition to ice cream. Canarians make a lot of sweet dishes and beverages of bananas, my favorite is banana liqueur. It is very sweet and pleasant. I recommend having it very cold.


During my trip I tried two new fruits. One of them was Guava bought in Masca. Masca is a small village lost in mountains. We didn't understand street saler and we were suprised by price – 10 euro. I wondered – what is so special in those small fruits that makes them so expensive. Street saler saw our embarrassment and she repeated price and she showed two fingers. It was true price – 2 euro per 1 kilo guava. Gauava tasted nice, it was fresh and a little sour. Good for a hot day.

Second fruit was opuntia. Opuntia grows everywhere on Canry Islands. They are weed. I picked one wild fruit after my arrival but I couldn't open it. I had small spines in my fingers. After this experience I was searching for those fruits in shops, but opuntia isn't popular among Canarians and I bought it only on La Palma Island. I discovered new taste of opuntia, becouse I tried opuntia juice in Europe and it was too sweet. Opuntia isn't sweet, it is only a little sweet and sour, but nothing intresting. I made fruit salad with opuntia, banana, papaya, orange – it was a good mix.


Big suprise and new taste for me was goat's meat. I like milk or cheese of goat but I newer eat meat. So when I saw a dish with goat in menu I ordered. It was a steak from goat. The taste was different than I know from other kinds of meat, it is a little like a game. Steak was soft, a little fat, it was pleasant and peculiar. This taste remainded in my memory.

My first dish on Tenerife was really original. After arrival I was hungry and after my experience with opuntia I was very angry. I found the first open restaurant and ordered dish which was ready. It was starter “ Escaldon”. I gave plate with brawn pap with pieces of bacon and potatos. It didn't look attractive but I was so hungry. When I took chance and ate first bite I was surprised by the taste. It was very good. Escaldon taste a little like salty porridge made on the stock from a stew. Yes, this is my taste. Why my mother didn't give me Eskaldon instead of porridge when I was a child? Yes, Escaldon is made of the stock from a stew, bacon and gofio. Gofio is the Canarian name for flour made of roasted grains or other starchy plants. Gofio is thought to be the base of the diet of the Canaries. It is a highly versatile product which can be added to soups, stews, desserts, ice cream, sauces, and more. It is very rich in vitamins, proteins, fibre, and minerals.Gofio in Canary Islands is currently produced from cereals of several types , if you add a small amount to milk you prepare balance breakfast. It was favoured by Canarian mariners as it can be stored for long periods while retaining its goodness.


So when next time I 'll sail across the Atlantic, Gofio and Canarians potatos and mojo will be my basic ingredients in my galley.
Ahoy!!! See you on the sea.

Bread with the secret agent

Good day! Did I tell you that I love watching where do you come from on our live traffic map? Yes, I really do! I also enjoy tha fact that Gosia's mother yeast cake is our absolute most popular recipe!

This time I just want to keep you updated on what is going on. So, 2009 new years' commitments' results will be counted soon. Or not. I am still considering what I should focus this year on. I have so many ideas that it looks quite unfeasible to fulfil all of them. For sure I need to lose weight and limit the sweets. It is sad but necessary before the situation goes to far. There is also no more excuses for exercises. Today I did my first workout and I feel something strange in my knee on completing three hundred skips. But I guess this is a good way to release the daily stress. Of course changing the diet is necessary. Uh, tough question for a cookie monster and a meat lover. For now I am drinking up all the milk and cleaning my cupboards of the remains of different products. I have no idea what to do with a gift vodka since I don't drink. With all the jellies it will be the same situation as with miso - we'll be eating jellies and jelly cakes every week... Than this year's spring should arrive and everything will be much more easier than now!

Well, as to strictly culinary development I seriously consider two projects: BREAD A WEEK or challenging my Australian and New Zealand Complete Book of Cookery. I haven't decide yet. Well, I could say that I am going to write a book but then again I get an absorbing job and won't be able to manage it. Or maybe... For now I polish up the paper on the Tuvaluan cuisine which was presented only in broad outline due to lack of time during the latest conference of ANZORA. Cannot complain on the lack of goals.

Finally, small news from the kitchen: I have developed an interesting recipe for a yeast cake.

PINK BREAD

Starter:
400 ml warm water
100 g wheat flour
20 g baker's yeast
80 g red secret ingredient (guess what!!!)

Mix well all the ingredients, rubbing them if needed to a smooth liquid, cover with a wet cloth, set aside in a warm place, wait till it doubles the size. Very important: must be frothy.

Add one by one:
1 slightly beaten egg
30 g vegetable oil (around 6 Tbsps)
2 Tbsps sugar
1 flat tsp salt
540 g wheat flour added gradually, partially used while kneading

1. Form a flat cake with your palms and place in the baking form (of whatever shape, minimum 20 cm in diameter for a round one or 20x30 cm for a rectangle).
2. Cover with a wet cloth and place in a warm place until it doubles the size and become light and delicate under touch.
3. Bake in preaheated oven in 180 Celsius degrees for 35-40 minutes.

It gets the darker coluour due to the secret agent, rises beautifully, great with butter even on the third day. Nice smell because of the secret agent. One bread was eaten immediately, second was offered. No photos this time except the previous straciatella cake, we will talk about that one later. Ci vediamo!