Tartare and Pierogies: The Ultimate Foodie’s Guide To Poznan

I did not come to Poland with any notion of eating my way across this country. In fact, I had skipped over Poland on previous Europe trips because there was anything worthwhile about this country. I was proven emphatically wrong.

Over 3 months, I traveled and ate my way across the country. Poznan was my second destination after Wroclaw, and it continued to delight with places like the Dark Restaurant, where I had no idea what I was eating in total darkness. Below is a comprehensive list of some of my favorite restaurants and strong recommendations broken down in different categories.

I’ll quote the prices in PLN, but for reference I’m using an exchange rate of 1 USD = 4 PLN as of May 2024.

Best Lunch and Tasting Menus In Poznan

Lunch menus are a great way to experience the restaurant scene in Poznan and around Poland. Even upscale restaurants that normally cost over 300 PLN per person can have weekday lunch menus for under 50 PLN. I tried to find as many of these places while I was in Poznan. Below are a few of those lunch menu finds:

Cucina 88

Cucina 88 was definitely worth the 15-minute bike ride from our place in the city center. The upscale restaurant offers European and Italian dishes, as well as five and seven-course tasting menus for 188 PLN and 288 PLN, respectively. At lunch, you’ll also find a set menu deal for only 44 PLN, where you can choose from soup + main or main + dessert.

Together, we tried their creamy potato soup, a shrimp noodle dish, a beef roulade, pate with rhubarb, and a tempura ice cream. Put this place on your list for a weekday lunch between 12 to 4 pm.

Concordia Taste

Concordia Taste is a modern restaurant with an open kitchen that also offers a daily lunch menu. The two-course set lunch menu goes for 39 PLN, and you can choose from a selection of starters or a soup and one of their mains. The chef and his team are known for their innovative spin on traditional dishes, like the much-beloved national dish of beef tartare. The food is great, and you’ll love the space.

Republika Roz

Republika Roz reminds me of a quaint little tea shop or someone’s summer home in the English countryside. The mismatched chairs and tables give this cafe a character that will have you charmed before you even order.

The decor brought us in, but the food made us fans.  We were recommended the beef tartare, which I can never turn down and also their award-winning pulled duck with potato kugel, cabbage, dried plum, black currant, beetroot, and baked apple sauce. The menu is farm-to-table and reasonably priced.

After lunch, the lovely waitress surprised us with a deconstructed cheesecake topped with raspberries in a cute French yogurt pot. Highly recommended.

Dark Restaurant

The aptly named Dark Restaurant is one of those places where you eat in total darkness –  but this one has a twist. You won’t know what you’ve eaten until meal is over. To up the ante, there’s the option of a Bizarre foods menu where no ingredient is off-limits, so be properly prepared.

For 140 PLN, the chef prepares a three-course meal, cutlery optional. Silverware is provided, but I’d argue it’s more fun to add a tactile component to the experience. After the meal, you are returned to the light for a debriefing. I actually loved every dish and shortly learned that I had just eaten horse heart, bull penis, and freeze-dried crickets.

This is one my most recommended activity for Poznan.

Zindo

If you’re craving all-you-can-eat sushi, which I do every once in a while, Zindo is the place in Poznan. For 120 PLN, you have two hours to order form their menu or let the dishes on the conveyor belt come to you. As far as AYCE sushi quality goes, this one is above average. Most importantly, you can order sashimi if you don’t want to load up on rice.

Umami

I have a soft spot for Asian cuisine. I took a chance on Umami and ended up returning twice. They offer a lunch menu with different bowls and baos ranging between 32 and 28 PLN.

Meet Meat

If you’re craving a burger, Fat Bob (below) is pretty good, but I have a soft spot for Meet Meat. This tiny spot compensates for its size with massive juicy beef patties with fun combinations of toppings and sauces . They’ve got a outdoor space in the back for you.. This was my favorite burger spot in Poznan because the menu is not overwhelming and the prices are good. All their burgers and Philly cheesesteaks are between 29 PLN and 35 PLN.

Fat Bob Burger

This is a close contender for the best burger restaurant in Poznan. Between Fat Bob Burger and Meet Meat, Fat Bob is more of a restaurant with a larger menu, especially when it comes to sides and drinks. Their burgers are a bit more expensive than Meet Meat, and I didn’t like that you had to pay extra for sauces, but at least it’s an option.

We had the Ostry (Sharp) and the Pork, which were both really nice.

Best Breakfast/Brunch Restaurants In Poznan

Ptasie Radio

Ptasie Radio is my favorite breakfast spot in Poznan. And the space is as quaint and homey as any cafe can get. Their breakfast offerings are always good regardless of what we ended up ordering each time. It feels so much like being at home that I just want to start my mornings slowly with a coffee and a book.

Wise Cafe

Poznań is known for their St. Martin’s Croissant (there’s a museum where you can learn to make one yourself). And one of the best places for it is at the Wise Cafe in the Mercure Hotel. Apparently, they make one of the best versions, but it was hard for me to tell because the pastry is a bit too sweet for me. Still, if you’re going to try one while in Poznan, might as well get the best.

Jaglana

Jaglana is another breakfast spot that I go for the food. The prices are fair and the portions are large. Most dishes are between 20 PLN and 35 PLN, and drinks are between 10 PLN to 15 PLN.

Antresola Cafe

Antresola Cafe is a good spot if you want a nice quiet place to place to do a bit of work while having a coffee and a meal. Very standard menu, but I like the tucked away location.

Inna Pierkarnia

Inna Pierkarnia is a bakery chain, which can be a good or bad thing. Their pastries are great and there are multiple locations to choose from. After all the St. Martin’s croissants, it was nice to have a normal buttery one.

Best Polish Food Restaurants In Poznan

Na Winklu

Na Winklu is my favorite dumpling spot. They do massive baked pierogies that I think about all the time. Crispy on the outside, steamy and soft on the inside. These little pockets of goodness aren’t what come to mind when you think pierogies, but I don’t care. They are so good. An order of the baked ones comes with five medium-sized pieces. It’s more than enough for one person if you’re really hungry, but enough to share between two. Their regular pierogies were also some of the best that we tasted. Get the beetroot carpaccio too.

I like to bike here and then take the baked pierogies down to the river  to enjoy.

Wiejskie Jadlo

If you’re going to get some traditional Polish food in a traditional-looking setting and you want to do it in the old town center, then come to Wiejskie Jadlo. It’s just off the main square, so it’s not as touristy and the prices are pretty reasonable for the portion sizes. I found the dishes on par with other traditional Polish restaurants, but the atmosphere is nice.

Brovaria

Brovaria is an upscale-ish place to get traditional Polish cuisine. The prices are pretty reasonable for being in the center of town. The restaurant itself is elegant. The food is prepared well, but like Wiejskie Jadlo, it wasn’t anything worth raving about. I did enjoy the honey beer here. It’s something they love doing in Poland, and I’m all for it.

MO.BAR

For some reason or another, it took me multiple tries to finally eat at MO.Bar. When we finally made it, I was glad it was worth the effort. The pulled pork was great, as was the beef tartare and duck ragu tagliatelle. I really liked this place.

Best Restaurants For Dinner In Poznan

Chmeli Suneli

I didn’t realize I’d become a fan of Georgian food in Poland, but Chmeli Suneli can take credit for that. This rhyming restaurant named after a popular blend of spices used in Georgian cuisine is a great spot to try classic Georgian dishes, like Khinkali dumplings. Just remember that you’re not really supposed to top part of the dumpling.

Try the Baklazany (eggplants) and Czizi-Pizi (eggs in tomatoes and spices with lavash bread) for starters. For the main, we had the Czakapuli (stewed lamb), the Ryz Z Jag (rice with lamb), and the beef Chinkali (dumplings). I can recommend them all.

Orzo

Orzo is a hip and green (literally) spot for some delicious, healthy food. The decor vibe is tropical, and it’s always lively. They serve an eclectic mix of international cuisine. They also offer vegetarian, vegan, organic, and Beyond Meat products. This is a good place for groups. Nothing particularly outstanding about any of the dishes that we tried, but the atmosphere makes up for it.

Restaurant Muga

Muga is an upscale Michelin star restaurant recommended to us by a Polish chef. They currently offer four different tasting menus, two of which are vegetarian, ranging between 390 PLN to 540 PLN.  This is different from the five-course tasting menu we had before they changed the menu. You can see their current offerings here.

Restaurant 62

Restaurant 62 was recommended to us by Chef Grzegorz of Stol Na Szwedzkiej in Wroclaw. At first, the menu didn’t look like anything special, but their creative execution of classic dishes really impressed me.

We had the duck fillet and sturgeon for our mains and the short loin tartare and blood soup as starters. Every dish was impeccably plated and looked like a work of art.

The blood soup was a surprise. It’s not for everyone, but the addition of gold differentiated it from similar variations I’ve had in the past. The tartare tasted so fresh and melted in your mouth like tuna.

Ratuszova Restauracja

If you want to eat in the main square, head to Ratuszova Restauracja. Like Restaurant 62, it’s about the execution of classic cuisine.

We tried the goose pate, the Polish rye soup, the beef cheeks with dumplings, and the roasted duck. Very good service and a memorable meal since everything was cooked to perfection. The beef cheeks were tender as expected, but the duck was the surprise of the evening.

Nifty 20

The Puro Hotel changed my mind about hotel restaurants. Nifty 20 was one of those. At lunch, they do a set menu with a starter and a main for 49 PLN. This is a great deal if you wine to dine here on a budget.

We returned Sunday for their Sunday Roast, available from 1 to 5 pm. For 65 PLN, you get a four-course classic roast menu. It was very Polish and I particularly enjoyed the fried cheese.

If you want to experience the restaurant at its best, go for dinner with the full menu. I highly recommend trying the octopus and the beef tartare. For mains, the roasted prime of duck and the gnocchi were really nice.

Bazar 1838

Bazar 1838 was recommended by a local friend. I’m glad we didn’t skip it. Every dish we ordered was plated beautifully.

The duck legs looked pretty basic, but tasted so good. The celery root steak was a pleasant surprise. If you don’t get it as a main, get it as a starter to share. The tartare was simple and tasty, but not the best that I had.

Best Cheap Eats In Poznan

Piccolo

Piccolo is a fast food pasta chain, but don’t write it off. For those on a budget, or just want a quick Italian fix on the go, Piccolo is your place. It’s hard to find a better pasta in this price range.

Pijalnia Wodki i Piwa

Pijalnia Wodki I Piwa caught my attention with the price for their beef tartare – 16 PLN. You don’t have to tell me that the words cheap and raw meat shouldn’t go together. I still had to try. We ordered a beer to wash it done and would I do it again? Absolutely.

This cheap drinking bar is a chain around Poland, and it’s one of the go-to spot for pre-gaming before locals go out. You don’t really come here for the food, but the food is there and it is cheap.

4 Alternatywy

This is another good spot for Italian with better quality than Piccolo. Most of their main dishes are between 24 and 26 PLN. 4 Alternatywy was a great find that we saved for a day when we didn’t want to cook and wanted a quick, simple meal.

Pierozak Pierogarnia

Pierozak Pierogarnia is a Polish chain for cheap dumplings. There’s a large selection, and you can even order one of each to try out. If you don’t want to make a full meal out of dumplings, I would stop by here for a snack. Honestly, all the different dumpling fillings tasted the same unless it was a dessert dumpling. I couldn’t taste much of a difference between the beef and lamb or duck dumplings.

Happy eating! If you’re traveling in Poland, check out my food guides for all the other cities. Looking for more travel inspirations? Scroll through some of the 450+ experiences on my bucket list. Maybe you’ll find your next adventure on there.

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Updated on June 10, 2024