We spent 6 days in Krakow which meant that we tried out a fair few places when it came to eating and drinking - and I like to share the bad *and* the good so without further ado, let's dive into where we ate in Krakow on our recent trip... and whether you should follow in our footsteps!
Pierogarnia Krakowiacy
I absolutely love pierogi and my girlfriend, Kate, had never tried it before so I knew it was a must on day one of the trip. I'd looked online for a few places and found the one I wanted to go to - but when we got there, we genuinely could not find a door or way in whatsoever. Very odd!
But just a few doors down we found Pierogarnia Krakowiacy, which seems to be a small chain with a few locations across the city. There were plenty of different options to choose from, including some vegan pierogi - we opted for 8 each of the tomato/mozzarella/onion and the pork/onion. I have to say they weren't the best pireogi I've ever had, but I still enjoyed them. Kate wasn't a fan! For both portions with a side of garlic sauce, a Pepsi and a homemade lemonade it came to around £16. I think this is fairly pricey, but it's a very central location.
Hard Rock Cafe
Any time I'm on a city break and there's a Hard Rock Cafe, you can guarantee I'm going there. We visited after our long day trip to Zakopane, and I was so excited for their twisted mac n cheese which comes with chicken and garlic bread. It was just as good as it always is, and Kate's burger looked amazing too. You simply cannot go wrong, and it's a really affordable place to eat especially given its central location and the fact it's a chain. They had some great memorabilia here too, from Oasis to KISS and loads more in between.
Pod Wawelem
One of our best friends told us we *had* to go to Pod Wawelem which is right by the castle. I'd heard of it before and given its location I thought it would be brilliant - they serve steins of beer and a variety of traditional Polish/Galician dishes. When we sat down they immediately presented us with a giant pickle and some sauerkraut, and we both ordered cokes as we don't actually like beer that much. Kate went for a kebab, which she'd been promised was huge and amazing, and I went for one of the more traditional dishes which ended up being a breaded chicken breast, some peas and some mash although it sounded a lot more appetising on the menu.
Kate's kebab looked impressive hanging on a board with a flame at one end, but it was pretty standard and a lot of the accompaniments (rice, potatoes etc) were cold which was a shame. All in all we felt pretty let down by our meal, though it wasn't too expensive either... It's a great setting and I've heard some great reviews previously, but we weren't fussed at all. I think it came to around £20 which would be a fantastic price point for somewhere so central, if the food had been better...
Nova
Where to start with Nova! Located in the Jewish quarter, just a few minutes on the tram from our hotel, we'd spotted this bar/restaurant a few nights earlier - lit up with fairy lights, it was so dreamy. We decided to go there on the Friday night for a proper date night, and it didn't disappoint. We had Long Island iced teas bigger than our heads, and Kate had a fancy steak dish while I opted for a creamy garlic pasta. Everything from the setting, the decor, the staff, the drinks, the food... it was all absolutely perfect. 10/10 couldn't recommend more. Cooked to perfection, the food was just delicious. Our only regret was that we didn't find it earlier so we could go more than once! It was about 230 zloty or £44 for the two cocktails and two mains, so definitely one of the most expensive meals we had but SO worth it.
They also have a club which opens a lot later on, and we did try to get in but there is a strict dress code - it sounded pretty good though!
Lajkonik
This is a bakery/cafe chain all over Krakow, like an upmarket Greggs maybe - we popped in here mid-morning before heading to the Salt Mines and got a sandwich, as well as another sandwich each to take with us and eat later on as we didn't know how long we'd be out for on our day trip. I can't remember or find the prices, but there was a huge variety of sandwiches, paninis, bagels and so on; you can see the menu here if you want! I popped back another day to get a donut for Kate, and they had loads of options for sweet treats too. For somewhere quick and easy especially if you're on a budget, you can't go wrong.
Well Done
This was where we ate in Krakow on our first night; it wasn't too far from our hotel, and it did cocktails and milkshakes alongside a variety of American-style food. I opted for chicken strips and fries which were tasty, although I found the chicken to be quite dry. Kate got a huge Jack Daniels burger and she said it was amazing - it definitely looked it! I got a sex on the beach and Kate got a vanilla milkshake, and we both absolutely loved our drinks. Again, not an expensive place at all - with an added Pepsi, our whole bill only came to around £21GBP. You get free popcorn on the table, too!
We actually came back here for dessert one night, where Kate got pancakes which she said were fab; I ordered the brownie which sadly they were out of, but it is what it is.
Primo
One day when I was *very* hungover we went for a walk around the Podgorze area, which is where our boutique hotel was, and we decided to stop at Primo for lunch - a little Italian, they had all your typical pizza and pasta dishes available. I ordered a cheese pizza off the lunch menu; they brought out a pizza with very thin parma ham on it, but I ate it anyway (I think I pointed to the wrong pizza on the menu so I wasn't about to kick up a fuss, especially in my fragile state). It was still really nice, a very thin and flavoursome pizza. Kate opted for lasagne which I had a bite of too, and I can confirm it was lovely. This was yet another affordable option for food, especially being further out from the city centre. I think we spent just over 60 zloty here, so just over £12 for two mains and two soft drinks.
So that's everywhere we ate in Krakow! As I say, Nova was a definite highlight and if you're going there as a couple, or with friends/family, I'd highly recommend going for dinner one evening. Top notch!
No comments:
Post a Comment