Poland for a month 9/17/25 general questions

Many think that Polish food is boring, but the new Polish cuisine is not! In fact, I love eating at new Polish restaurants, as both taste and service are top notch. Here are some suggestions:

Warsaw:
Soul Kitchen -- somewhat touristy, but great food and ambience
Uki Uki -- great Japanese udon, if you need a break from Polish food
Cafe Wedel -- specializes in chocolate
Wiesz co Zjesz -- great food with cute decor
Kieliszki na Próżnej -- Michelin guide rec

Zakopane:
I stayed at Pensjonat i Domki Javorina, which is housed in a cute mountain log building. Excellent service and great rooms! I ate dinner once at Karczma Przy Młynie and loved every single aspect of it.

For a wonderful thermal bath experience, definitely go to Chochołowskie Termy (can rent a car or take a minibus). This bath is nicer than Aqua Dome in Austria. It's spacious and very clean. I have been to many thermal spas in Austria, Swizerland, and Germany...this one is the very best!

Wrocław:
STÓŁ na Szwedzkiej - studio kulinarne -- ultimate foodie experience
Restauracja Patio -- inside old town
Wrocławska -- very traditional and local restaurant next to tram line in old town. Stunning forest mushroom soup (seasonal)
Szynkarnia -- beer bar. great selection. not really a restaurant
POCHLEBNA -- great bread and food in general

We had the most creative excellent dinner in Torun at a restaurant called Monka that was recommended by our tour guide. Reasonable prices too.

In Gdansk Restaurant Motlava was delicious too!

In Gdansk Restaurant Motlava was delicious too!

I agree. My favourite restaurant in Gdansk which I ate in several times during my visit and conveniently close to the excellent WW2 museum.

Warsaw has a fantastic food scene (and beer, consider PiwPaw if you're into beer) where you'll find a number of restaurants serving authentic and good Polish food alongside those who have taken a modern approach to Polish cuisine. I'd avoid the restaurants in the Old Town as they're little more than expensive tourist traps however there are so many excellent restaurants in Warsaw that it's difficult to single out any particular ones.

I visited Wieliczka Salt Mine a few days ago on a weekday. Didn't have advance reservation. Just walked in around 2:15 pm and got the ticket for 3 pm English tour.

That said, I wasn't impressed with it. Sure, the salt sculptures are nice, but the tour experience leaves a lot to be desired. The tour is overcrowded and tour groups are too big. I'd have preferred a self guided tour, but that isn't an option. Would I go knowing what I know now? Nope.

I am not a foodie: in Gdansk, I loved the Pyra Bar near Brama Wyzynna for potato pancakes. In Torun, I liked the Georgian bakery, Gruzinska, near Rynek Nowomiejski.

Thank you for so many wonderful suggestions. I've added all of them to my Poland Word Document. My husbands great grandparents lived in Poland. We are excited to experience their homeland.