KARMNIK (KRAKÓW) – FEELS LIKE HOME

Where do you usually buy food? As I mentioned in the post about Krakowskim Targiem Festival, I love traditional markets, especially Plac na Stawach in Kraków (near Cracovia Stadium). There are my favourite, friendly greengrocers, a butcher's shop with always fresh meat, a stall selling home-made cottage cheeses and butter, and much more. What's more, everyone, both vendors and buyers, are much friendlier than in your usual supermarket.

Famished after the shopping spree, we usually go for lunch to nearby Karmnik restaurant (karmnik means 'bird feeder' in Polish), where the atmosphere is even more welcoming than at Plac na Stawach. The restaurant is run by one family who oversee all the details: from serving the guests, to preparing the dishes, to changing decorations according to the season.

The interior is small but neat and cosy. In the photos you can see the winter look dominated by silvers and whites with splashes of red and green. I especially like the quaint, yellowed pages from an old cookery book hung on the walls. I can't wait to see what this artistically gifted family will prepare for the spring season. :)

Menu changes daily but you can always order some nutritious soups (PLN 6-8), meat with potatoes and salad (PLN 15-20) and crunchy pancakes (PLN 9-11 for 2 pancakes). Sometimes there are also delicious savoury tarts (about PLN 11 a piece), which are a particular favourite of mine. Pasta, such as penne with chicken and spinach (PLN 16), is also very good.

Portions, especially of the meat dishes, are really large: the cutlet is as big as the plate, there's a heap of potatoes and four different salads served on a separate plate. That's why D. and I often share one portion for two. Our favourite dishes are pork breaded cutlet (kotlet schabowy, PLN 15 zł) and grilled chicken breast with mozzarella and spinach (PLN 16). The latter is usually quite salty but as each portion is prepared individually for every client, so you can always ask for less salt on your meat.

All the dishes are really fresh and tasty, almost like home-made. Not all of them were to my liking, for example onion soup, which didn't taste at all like onion, but I think it's a matter of taste because D. really liked it. Drinks include delicious fruit juice called kompot in Polish (PLN 3), coffee and tea, but the only thing lacking in Karmnik is desserts. I think home-made cake would be a perfect complement to the lovely lunch.  

Karmnik is probably the restaurant I visit most often in Kraków – mainly because of the delicious food, friendly ambiance and very reasonable prices. You can have here both breakfast and lunch or you can just drop by to drink some warming tea with raspberry juice. I recommend this restaurant to everyone who likes Polish home-made food and warm, informal atmosphere. You can also come here with your kids or dog – everyone will be welcome. :)


Pros: tasty food, big portions, nice interior
Cons: wait time (dishes are prepared only after an order has been placed), some dishes are too salty, no desserts

More photos

Wersja polska

Address: Senatorska 13, Kraków (Zwierzyniec)

Website: restauracjakarmnik.pl 

Daily menu on facebook (in Polish): 

pl-pl.facebook.com/RestauracjaKarmnik

KOLANKO No 6 – PANCAKES WITH AN AMBIENCE

Kolanko No 6 is one of my favourite pubs and restaurants in Kraków. At first, I was intrigued by Kolanko's name, which means in Polish either “a small knee” or “a plumbing elbow.” As I later found out, the name alludes not to human anatomy (which could be a bit macabre...) but to the fact that this place used to house a plumbing shop.

Out of curiosity, I went to the Jewish quarter of Kazimierz to check Kolanko out and I was pleasantly surprised. It is a cosy restaurant in which time passes at a leisurely pace. Also for the waiters and waitresses, who take their good time to serve customers. Therefore, you should come here only when you feel like spending a lazy afternoon or evening, without fretting about the passage of time.

In winter, it's nice to lounge about by candlelight on the covered verandah with mood music in the background. In summer, you will be tempted to sit on a patio, where you can chill out and forget about hot weather and the hubbub of the street outside.

Besides warm ambience, Kolanko offers delicious pancakes with unusual fillings, such as fried livers or blood sausage (kaszanka), but there are also more conventional flavours, e.g. vegetables or spinach. I particularly like pancakes with Russian filling (cottage cheese, mashed potatoes and onion) and sweet pancakes with vanilla custard (budyń) and fruit. You can order any number of pancakes and each can have a different filling. One pancake costs around PLN 6-8.

Kolanko offers also a wide range of leaf teas, drinks and desserts, including hot apple pie with ice cream. As a Jane Austen's fan, I had to try a Sense and Sensibility (Rozważna and Romantyczna) drink, which turned out to be very tasty but not excessively large (PLN 6,5 for approx. 170 ml).

Kolanko is a great venue for various occasions: a romantic date (intimate atmosphere created by candlelight), a get-together with friends (in summer, smoking is permitted on the patio) or a family dinner (high chairs are available for children). It is a perfect restaurant for those who like quaint décor and unusual dishes.

Address: ul. Józefa 17, Kraków
Website: www.kolanko.net

Wersja polska