I have recently returned from Krakow (Poland) where we were celebrating my good friend Joe’s Stag Do. 17 of us went and I was already friends with half the group so It was looking at being a bit of a party.
I was blown away by how beautiful Krakow was. Not sure why I was so surprised or if I expected less. The feeling was similar to when I previously went to Lisbon (Portugal) for another Stag Do and was enjoyed the buildings, where they reminded me of a Mediterranean style Brighton. I digress. Europe seems to have a strong ethos of maintaining the buildings they have rather than smashing them down and replacing them with some “stylish” / garish monstrosity. I like Europe’s style.
We stayed in one of these preserved old style buildings that had been converted into a hostel. It had wide staircases and double doorways a decor theme from a previous century. It probably used to be a very grand house for a well off family. Even before we got to the main square I had fallen in love with the place.
Our hostel was a short 10-minute walk from the main square, which greatly reminded me of a larger version of Bruges Main Square. It had lots in common; gothic style buildings alternating between more modern bars and restaurants, the cobbled street and a variety numerous statues.
The first bar we came across in our walk from the hostel to the main square was a British themed bar called ‘’The Bulldog” where they served full English breakfasts and showed Premier League football. Each morning we spent breakfast / lunchtime here. Food and drink was very reasonably priced compared to the prices here in the UK but was a bit more than the average price in Krakow (an average pint of beer costs about £2). But I suppose it supplied a bit of comfort on those sensitive mornings.
The Stag Do was part of a package run by the event planning company Chillisause Ltd (great name for a company that runs Stag Dos). We had a local rep called Camilla who was excellent. She new the city very well, made great recommendations and had the patience of a saint. They had arranged a variety of activities for us, such as; Go-Karting, Zorb-Football, club entry and booked us a table at an absolutely amazing restaurant called Szara.
Camilla recommended Szara as being a good but reasonably priced restaurant. It surpassed both those points. For starter I had goose liver pate with amaretto cherries and toast. Sounds simple, but I could never have imagined pate to be so creamy, savoury and at the same time taste so fresh. The cherries worked really well with it.
For my main I had the “Plankstek”, which "was sirloin on an oak plank, served with pommes duchesse, yellow beans wrapped with bacon, baked tomato and sauce béarnaise". Sounded like an elaborate way to say steak and mash but it deserved the high caliber introduction. The potato was as perfect as they could be imagined to be. The steak was the most perfect piece of meat I have ever eaten. There was not a single piece of gristle or unwanted fat. It was the tenderest, juicy and flavorsome steak I have ever had. And the Béarnaise Sauce. That sauce! It complemented everything so perfectly and may well be the greatest taste I have ever had. All this beautiful food and a beer came to the equivalent of just £20. I did suggest we should come back for all our meals whilst in Krakow but alas, it was not to be.
So that is all I think I can get away with writing. What happens in Krakow, stays in Krakow, etc. Beautiful city, wonderful people, excellent food and really, really cheap beer! Five out of five! Twoje zdrowie.