Restaurants

By Katrina Kollegaeva

‘This is like my mum’s cooking!’ my Polish friend cheerfully exclaimed after reading the menu of this small café. And the nourishing and motherly cooking doesn’t disappoint: a traditional zurek soup of fermented rye flour and pork sausage with potatoes and eggs was tangy and comforting; a clear ruby-coloured beetroot soup was satisfyingly sharp and intense, if slightly more vinegary and sweet than her Polish mum serves it. The main course of chicken kiev look-a-like with a ham filling was a bit dry, but with a lovely crisp breadcrumb coating and a fresh raw cabbage salad. The staple bigos – stewed cabbage with sausage and pork – and a dish of potato pancakes with goulash of tender pork and gherkins were both full of flavour. Drinks include Polish beers, and cold own-made drinking compote – plum and blackcurrant on our visit. With its cheap prices, huge portions and warm welcome, this new café mainly targets local Polish folk, but it is an ideal place for anyone to come and be fed after a hard day at work – a local in its fullest sense.

Time Out London Issue 2027: June 25-July 1 2009