I usually prefer light
dishes, especially in the summer, but sometimes I feel an urge to eat
potato pancakes ('placki ziemniaczane' in Polish). If the urge
becomes irresistible, I most often go to W Starej Kuchni restaurant
(which means 'In an Old Kitchen' ), which serves traditional Polish
dishes tasting almost like homemade.
The interior resembles an old cottage: the walls are hung with cast-iron pans, rings of sausages and garlic wreaths. Wooden cupboards are full of preserves in round-bellied jars, some of which you can even buy, while a wood-fired oven exudes cosy warmth in the winter. The only incongruous element seems to be a wall painting of a huge library. Is it really possible that a 19th-century cottage had such a luxury as a book collection filling one of the rooms? ;)
Potato pancakes served here are crunchy and fresh. We usually order them in one of the two forms: several smaller pancakes in forest mushroom sauce (PLN 32) or a huge 'mill-wheel' pancake with oscypek (sheep cheese from the Tatra mountains), bacon and cranberries (PLN 37). The latter dish is so big that if you're stomach has a limited capacity, you'd better share it with your companion. Sometimes when we feel like eating something more meaty we order grilled ribs, which are also nice but very, very filling.
The restaurant gives a
free snack before the meal (it's usually bread with lard or garlic
butter) and a shot of wiśniówka (cherry vodka) as digestif. The
vodka not only is tasty, but it also helps digest the heavy,
traditional dishes. And even though I'm always totally full up as I
leave W Starej Kuchni , I don't regret a single, tasty calorie...
