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Poland
Cafe Mlkynek is a gallery, bar and 100% vegetarian cafe nestled in the Kazimierz (Jewish) quarter of Krakow.
Whilst it doesn't have as an extensive menu as some of the other vegetarian places, the food there is superb - totally vegetarian (with some vegan) and really good quality. The onion soup is exceptional!
Unlike the other vegetarian cafes in Krakow the emphasis at Mlkynek is on superb food, good service and relaxing surroundings rather than simply 'healthy' food. This means you can actually get a beer or a bottle of wine with your meal (an essential part of the equation, in my book!).
What is more, like many places in Krakow, the food is unbelievably cheap (though the wine isn't that cheap).
Cafe Młynek
Plac Wolnica 7
31-060 Kraków
tel. 012 43 06 202
kom. 0 502 302 803
mail. mlynek@cafemlynek.pl
www.cafemlynek.pl/
Best beer pub in Krakov - CK Browar (6-7 Ulica Podwale). Best sport bar with good beer and friendly people - Non Iron.(Marka 27). Best cellar bar/restaurant - Piwiica Pod Ztolta Pipa (Florianska 30). We stayed at the excellent Polera Hotel (Szpitalana 30).
All these are in the centre near the main square and everything in walking distance.
We visited the site of the Jewish Ghetto (in Podgorze) on the other side of the river in the morning and spent the afternoon/evening wandering our way through the bars of Kazimierz. It was the best day I've spent in Krakow.
Everybody talks about Kazimierz with its young and funky atmosphere, but I hadn't heard so much about Podgorze. The river is about 20 mins walk from the main square and as soon as you cross it you're in the Ghetto Heroes Square with it's atmospheric memorial of empty chairs. Visit the Pharmacy under the Eagle which has been turned into a small museum (it's on the opposite corner of the square - keep going, it's not obvious until you're literally outside it!) to get a handle on what it used to be like. The displays are pretty meaningless without the audio tour, so spend your zlotys and get informed. When you've done that, cross the road using the underpass, follow your map, go through the foot-tunnel under the railway and find yourself at the Schindler Enamel factory. It wasn't very well signposted, or that easy to find on foot, but it's about 8-10 mins walk from the Ghetto Heroes Square. It was being renovated when we were there - looks like they're finally going to turn it into something, rather than the basic display there at the moment.
After a subdued morning we hit Kazimierz, and I can't recommend the bars and restaurants of this area highly enough. Stick to soft drinks/halves of the lethal beer/one drink per establishment, and you should be able to manage at least 10 of the fantastic bars - every one has something unique about it, and they're all within stumbling distance of each other - just keep going round and round!
I used the Cracow-Life website a lot beforehand, and you can also pick up free copies of the paper version in most bars - lots of info, especially on going out.
Get yourself to Krakow and enjoy a fabulous, accessible city with a great atmosphere and friendly locals.
Krawat club is a bar just off Rynek Glowny. The pub is very popular with locals and tourists alike and has darts and pool. Don't expect anything special but you will get a lively evening.
The decor is nothing special but the people are friendly. Don't be put off by the location as it is down a dark alley just off Rynek Glowny, which does look rather offputting.
Rynek Glowny 29
A fairly new bar in Kazimierz. We were there during their 1st anniversary celebrations. Genuinely friendly, great atmosphere and well-stocked bar. Recommended, to say the least!
ul. estery 5, just off Plac Nowy
Kazimierz, Krakow.
You can't beat Sukiennice (Cloth Hall) when it comes to looking for souvenirs from Krakow: Amber, silver jewellery, linen table cloths, stained glass, wooden chess sets and decorative glass are among the most popular buys.
On the first floor, there's a gallery of 19th century Polish Art, housing paintings by Jan Matejko, Henryk Siemiradzki, Józef Chełmoński, Julian Fałat, and the Kossak family.
After shopping and sightseening have a rest in the Noworolski cafe, a favourite of a certain Vladimir Lenin during his stay in Krakow.
In the middle of the Market Square (Rynek Glowny).
Wonderful cellar bar which serves a happily mind-numbing array of extraordinary vodkas (Bison, anyone?) and fried garlic which comes sizzling to your table as a whole head.
Florianska
A restaurant with a brewery, an excellent selection of real ales and a carafe of beer brought to the table so you can serve yourself.
6-7 Ulica Podwale;
tel: 429 25 05;
ckbrowar.krakow.pl/index_en.html
Forget the nature, forget Wieliczka, this is for the tourists and YOU are not one of those are you? There is only one place where you can feel what is it like to be bohemian in the Jewish quarter of a central European town. Right in the middle of it all. It’s Kazimierz, the medieval Jewish town which now is part of the centre of the city, a 10 minute walk from the main square (Rynek Glowny).
Once you are in Kazimierz proceed as follows: 0- Wait for the night to fall (it’s essential you get to see the place at night - once you do it you will know what I mean). 1- Locate an alcohol shop (sklep monopolowy). 2- In the shop locate the bottles with Wodka Zoladkowa (herbal vodka-light brown colour). 3- Proceed to buy the bottle and head to a quiet location nearby to get acquainted with your new Polish friend. 4- After the brief yet pleasant (one hopes) encounter feel free to start the tour in any direction of Kazimierz. Don’t forget to keep the dialogue with the bottle going. Soon you will feel as if in Bulgakov's Master and Margarita. 5- Once you get that feeling don’t wait a second and immediately head for one of these two pubs: Alchemia or Singer. Once you are inside things will keep happening on their own if you have fulfilled the first 4 points. Enjoy!
Alchemia: ul. Estery, Pl. Nowy, Kazimierz;
tel: 12 428 47 80;
www.alchemia.com.pl
Singer: ul. Estery 22;
tel: 12 292 0622;
www.cracow-life.com/krakow/where_to_drink/pubs_cafes_details/25-Singer
It's a bar. It's dark, lit only by candles in a huge iron candelabra, and it’s unusually decorated. You can get uproariously drunk in very friendly and entertaining company. Age/sex/nationality irrelevant. Be careful of the mulled vodka.
ul. Estery 5, Pl.Nowy, Kazimierz
This bar is for those who enjoy sitting on soft cushioned seats, surrounded by soft tealight candles which are delicately placed amongst the greenery of the garden. True, it doesn't feel typically Polish, but the atmosphere in this bar makes it a very special place to enjoy Krakow in.
ul. Rynek Główny 6;
tel: 12 421 65 22;
krakow.zaprasza.net/puby/budda/
This square in the centre of the Kazimierz district of Krakow has some excellent and friendly bars which are enjoyed by the large student population of the city. You will be welcomed with open arms and you will meet loads of people.
Trams 4 and 9 both go from Krakow city centre to Plac Novy.
Very dark cafe/bar. The tables are old sewing tables with sewing machines (hence the name). Lots of candles and old mirrors set the mood. The back room is almost pitch black - very cosy for a romantic drink. Great soundtrack too.
ul. Estery 22;
tel: 012 292 06 22
Open daily :09:00-03:00
Arty bar/cafe with old-style decor. Lots of old family photos in the middle room, then go through what seems like a wardrobe to an 'art space' - complete with projections on the walls, then into another room - a darkened kitchen. They make a mean cappuccino!
Plac Nowy, Kazimierz, Krakow;
tel: 012 428 47 80;
email: alchemia@alchemia.com.pl;
www.alchemia.com.pl
Good vibe, great atmosphere. The candlelit interior of this bar is a perfect place to chill out in Krakow. You’ll find it in a little courtyard just behind Rynek Glowny. The decor is burgundy and red punctuated by Indian and Asian artefacts. Find yourself a seat, order a beer or vodka from the friendly staff, take a sip and relax. Perfect!
Rynek Glowny 6;
tel: 12 421 6522;
krakow.zaprasza.net/puby/budda/
There are actually two parts to this outfit. The first, on ul. sw Anny 13, is the more formal, and serves Polish food in a cosy cellar. The second is a salad bar, and is located nearby, off a passage and also in a cellar. And in summer the courtyard at the back is a salad bar too, serving great veggie food at very reasonable prices. The smoothies are good too.
ul. sw. Anny 3, Old Town (Stare Miasto)
In Polish 'zakatek' means 'little corner’; its easy to see where this cosy establishment takes its name from. At the end of a passage leading off the Rynek, it oozes peace, quiet and gemutlichkeit, and seems miles away from the action on the square nearby. Filling breakfasts, friendly staff and evocative Polish jazz playing on the ancient record player are just some of its draws.
Grodzka 2, Old Town (Stare Miasto)
As the name of this cafe bar suggests it specialises in vodka. Or, as the proprietors put it on their business card – “We just like vodka”.
It’s a small bar with whitewashed walls, decorated by a few black and white pictures. There are a couple of tables downstairs and a few more upstairs, where you’ll also find the space-capsule like toilet. The staff are young, friendly and helpful. Ask them to recommend a vodka and they’ll be happy to do so.
You can sample various makes, flavours and types. So much so that I would try and ensure that your hotel is not too far away as you may find walking in a straight line is rather more difficult after you leave than when you went in.
If vodka is not your thing – or it’s a bit early in the afternoon – the bar also serves tea, coffee and soft drinks.
Mikolajska 5
About a 3 minute walk from the market square
Book early to get an outside table in one of the many Jewish restaurants lining Szeroka, the main square of Kazimierz, the Jewish quarter of Krakow. Time your meal to finish before dusk, and then just sit back and experience the gradual lighting up of the square by the thousands of restaurant table candles (there is virtually no electric lighting). Sip your coffee and vodka and take in the magical atmosphere where the only noise is the gentle, almost reverential hum of conversations and clinking glasses. Nobody seems to leave their tables until late into the evening. The most breathtakingly peaceful experience I've ever had in the centre of a city!
Ulica Szeroka, Kazimierz, about a mile walk, south from the Wawel; A taxi from the centre will cost about 10-12 Zloty, (£2).
I was lucky enough to sing there with a cantor during a Jewish festival. The dignity of its quietly crumbling deterioration has to be seen to be believed.
Also, the young folk there are charming. There are a selection of old, brick cellars that are now bars where university students play their light, almost naive, drinking games.
ul. Szeroka 24;
012-422-0962
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