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Numerous sidewalk cafes line Rynek
Glowny (Grand Square)
as well as other streets and squares
of Krakow's central Old Town historical district.
Krakow's coffee houses
Cafes – or coffee shops if you like, kawiarnia in Polish
– are to the residents of
Krakow what pubs are to Londoners and
diners to New Yorkers. In Krakow
a meeting over a cup of coffee is the most popular social
occasion. It usually entails at least an hour-long chat,
argument, or negotiations, be it between fresh acquaintances,
old friends, lovers, enemies or business partners.
Coffee shops – Krakow's tradition and reality
First coffee houses opened in Krakow in the mid-18th
century.
Besides coffee today's Krakow cafes usually serve their
customers all sorts of beverages, from tea to soft drinks to
liquors and wine. Desserts such as cakes and ice creams always
feature prominently in the menu of every coffee shop in Krakow.
Usually they also may feed you on a light meal – be it toasts,
crepes or scrambled eggs. And some cafes provide choice of
dishes that may be the envy of a demanding restaurant chef.
Sipping coffee
in Krakow
Most Poles seem hooked on strong coffee and they cannot
carry on without a cup a day, or two or more. Many still
brew it the Polish way by putting a spoonful or two of
ground coffee into a glass and filling the vessel up with
boiling water. Some do so even in Krakow though it is held
rather barbarian in the city enamored of espresso. In its
penchant for good coffee Krakow resembles Vienna, close both
geographically and historically, and it may well rival the
Austrian capital in the saturation with cafés, some
century-old and museum-like, some brand-new and trendy.
Espresso – with a drop of milk or without – remains the favorite
potion of Krakow coffee drinkers, yet cappuccino has also
numerous devotees. Latte and the rest aren't very popular
with the city residents but few coffee shops may shun them
and many cafes in Krakow take pride in elaborate coffee
concoctions on their menus.
Coffee-shop chains, the
multinationals like Starbucks and Costa as well as the
Polish counterparts, try to plant their outlets in the most
frequented places of Krakow. At the same time, small
independent cafes for the aficionados of the brew, some of
them roasting coffee beans on their own, have become
recently all the rage in the city.
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Krakow Beverages
Everybody’s thirst to be satisfied.
Krakow Restaurants
Krakow is Poland’s mecca of gourmets thanks to its
many excellent restaurants.
How to find
good restaurants in Krakow
Krakow Clubs
There is no shortage of places to drink, eat, and stay
merry late into the night in Krakow.
Eating the Krakow Way
It is hearty indeed.
Hotels in Krakow
Shopping in Krakow
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