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Restaurants in Krakow near The Old Town

Hello,
I will be staying a few days in Krakow and looking for a great restaurant with great atmosphere and Polish food in Krakow near the The old Town.
Thank you for your time.
Mary

Posted by
11294 posts

It's not quite what you asked about, but my best meals in Krakow were at two places that I found in the 2012 edition of Rick's Krakow, Warsaw & Gdansk book, but that have been removed from later editions. However, places that I did not like nearly as much (they were OK but not great) have been retained. I have no idea why these two places have been removed. One serves Polish food, the second is fancy but Italian (so, not the fancier Polish food experience you seem to be seeking).

The first was Polskie Smaki, a very nice milk bar serving basic Polish dishes. It's more basic than you seem to want, but it gets a diverse group of locals, and had a very homey atmosphere. While it's not a place that encourages lingering, it was much warmer and more inviting than Rick made other milk bars sound (there was nothing depressing or stark about it). The staff spoke enough English to explain the dishes, and it was so cheap that if you didn't like something, you could afford to get something else in its place. It was so delicious I went twice! Be sure to try the zurek (translated as "sour soup" but actually meaning made from sourdough - wonderful). http://www.polskie-smaki.pl/en/

The other was an Italian restaurant, Aqua e Vino. This was fancy, and while expensive by Krakow standards, it was definitely cheaper than you would pay in Italy (or the US) for food of this quality. https://aquaevino.pl/en/

Posted by
8377 posts

mary, I don't usually remember names of restaurants, but I kept business cards from two in Krakow: " Babcia Malina (grandma raspberry) and Kogel Mogel. Neither were what I'd call fancy, but had great food and were nice. But the whole old town / old market (rynek) area is jammed with restaurants. Where are you staying? That might make a difference. The Kazimierz area also has a cluster of trendier restaurants I remember one called "Trezo" that was more upscale.

If you look at the website "InYourPocket: krakow" you can see maps and descriptions of shops, attractions, and restaurants and download a pretty good guide.

Posted by
208 posts

I second the recommendation of milk bars in general, and Granny Raspberry's in particular. Good Polish food at low prices in a cafeteria like setting which facilitates meeting others, if you are interested in that.

There are also multiple interesting/high quality restaurants and bars in the Casamierz district.

Posted by
7180 posts

Rick mentions several restaurants in his two Eastern Europe books. In the old town, we ate at a white-tablecloth (not literally!) place (you didn't give a budget) called Miod Malina, which was excellent. The fancier Pod Aniolami is quite close, but we didn't eat there. It's much closer to the Wavel Castle, but we thought Pod Baranem was a local gem (also medium level, not tourist-bargain level.) It was nouvelle Israeli, but our best food was at Hamsa, in Kasimierz.

Posted by
3777 posts

Another vote for Miod Malina on the Royal Way. Lovely restaurant with white glove service.

Posted by
13 posts

Just got back from Krakow... At the suggestion of Andrew Durman (RS recommended driver) we had a great meal at Morskie Oko. Portions were huge and prices very reasonable. In addition to great polish food, there is entertainment. The night we went, there was traditional polish singing and dancing. Make sure to make reservations.

Posted by
1 posts

Hi Mary,
Apologies if my reply is too late. I've been to Krakow MANY times, but not in the last 6 or 7 years. I echo Aqua e Vino, not only very good food but a cozy atmosphere as the restaurant is underground in a sort of "cave". For traditional Polish Pod Aniolamy (Under the Angels) is excellent, but will be a bit pricey. Another option is Pimiento, an Argentine steak house very near the US Embassy. For a quick and delicious lunch, there is a place on the corner of Grodzka and Dominkanska that serves fantastic kabobs (I like poulet/chicken). Trzy Papryczki is a more casual place that serves very good thin-crust pizza. There are so many good restaurants, you almost can't go wrong with any of them. Enjoy your visit.