More than Pierogies and Kielbasas

I must admit I did not expect much from Polish cooking.  It seems pretty bland compared to other European cuisine, but I found the food in Poland pretty tasty.  Not once was I tempted to go to McDonald's or KFC.

In addition to the usual bread, meats, and soft cheeses, breakfast had some unusual items like zurek, a savory soup made with potatoes, kielbasa, and eggs.  Although I'm not usually a breakfast person, since it was included in the price of the room, I made sure to stock up.

Krakow is known for soft pretzels and Zakopane for oscypek, a smoked cheese made from salted sheep milk, so I had to try both.  Not what I'm used to, but not bad.  
 
Whether pierogies, roast chicken with onion, garlic and smoked bacon, or roast duck with apples, I found the meat fresh and subtly seasoned.  Most meals came with boiled potatoes with parsley or dill.

When I needed a change from Polish food, there were usually plenty of Italian restaurants with excellent pasta, pizza, and gelato.  It took me awhile to get used to pizza bianca with garlic sauce rather than tomato, but I grew to like it.

My most unusual dinner was at Hotel Perla in Jaslo.  They offered roast pork with potatoes and gravy served on a wooden platter.  The interesting part is that they weigh the whole platter before they serve it to you.  You can eat as much as you want because they weigh it after you're done and you only pay for what you ate.  I've been to steak restaurants where they bring half the steer to you to select your cut and to restaurants where they grill the food in front of you, but this was the first time I experienced anything like that.


Given the heat in August, I generally stuck to ice cream for dessert.  The locals say to look for the longest lines to see who has the best ice cream.  While I tried to sample as many Polish pastries and tarts as I could, purely for the purpose of research, of course, I especially enjoyed their apple cake with fresh cream.

The best thing about Polish restaurants was the the cost.  You can have a full meal with a drink for around $10.  You won't go hungry in Poland.