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Eating the
Krakow Way
Polish daily diet of choice has been
traditionally rich in proteins and even richer in
starch. On the Krakow tables the former usually
materializes in red meat, eggs, cheese, and
sausages, whereas the latter as bread, potatoes,
and various noodles, pies and dumplings.
There are three main
meals in Poland: the morning sniadanie (breakfast),
the afternoon obiad (dinner), and the
evening kolacja (supper). In between they
may be supplemented with a lighter drugie
sniadanie (second breakfast) and a podwieczorek
(tea).
Sniadanie
In Polish homes the first meal of the day
usually proves fairly substantial. Bread topped
with slices of any kind of sausage or cheese or
ham, or spread with jam, is most popular. But it
can be as well scrambled or soft-boiled eggs,
oatmeal or hot frankfurters. Omelets, toasts and
corn flakes are also common.
Obiad
Since most Poles work till 3 p.m. or 4
p.m. they usually have their dinner next thing
afterwards. On weekends it customarily comes
earlier, i.e. anywhere between noon and 2 p.m.
Typical obiad is a two-course exercise,
where a soup precedes a meat dish with potatoes.
Nowadays beef and–even more readily–poultry
tend to replace traditional pork for the main
course. Other vegetables besides potatoes often
accompany the meat–fresh lettuce, cucumber,
carrots or tomatoes, boiled cauliflower or
carrots or cabbage, as well as all kinds of
pickles and sauerkraut. Dessert comes habitually
in the form of compote, often followed by a slice
of cake or ice-creams.
Kolacja
Polish everyday evening meal usually
resembles the morning one. When formal, it is
simply a dinner party.
Krakow
cuisine
Traditional Polish cuisine flows from the
melting pot of diverse influences as befits
country at the world crossroads, inhabited by
traveled and novelty-happy entrepreneurs,
merchants, soldiers and worldly gentry. In the
metropolitan Krakow considerable contingents of
immigrant Germans, Italians, Jews, Hungarians,
Scotsmen, Czechs, Austrians, etc. also left their
mark on the city’s menu over ages. Yet, in
fact, sophisticated chefs at the royal court and
the courts of Poland’s fabulously rich and many
magnates seemed the true trendsetters, while
Polish lesser nobility, famed in Europe for their
love of lavish parties with plenty of best food
and drink, followed suit. Anyway, medieval German
influences, 16th-century Italian imports,
17th-century Oriental fads, 18th-century French
vogues–all are traceable in contemporary Krakow
cuisine. In the 19th c Krakow belonged to the
Austrian Empire, thus heavy Vienna sways. And the
last half-century’s massive influx from the
countryside popularized folk cooking.
Traditional
Polish cuisine at its best features abundance of
domestic herbs and exotic spices. As hunting was
the Polish favorite pastime, game dishes proved
overly popular. The same wild mushrooms.
Freshwater fish and crayfish used to supersede
seafood in landlocked Krakow.
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Good
Krakow Restaurants
Krakow is Poland’s mecca of
gourmets thanks to its many excellent
restaurants.
Krakow
Fast Foods
The best of both worlds.
Popular
Krakow Dishes /Recipes/
Krupnik Barley Soup, Christmas
Borsch, Krakow Duck, Zrazy Beef Rashers,
Krakow
Beverages
Everybody’s thirst to be satisfied.
Krakow
Cafes
Krakow
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Basic
Krakow info for visitors
Hotels
in Krakow
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