KATOWICE - In Your Pocket

38 RESTAURANTS
U Babuni E-1, ul. Kilińskiego 16, tel. (+48) 32 250 01
03, www.restauracjaubabuni.pl. Old farming implements
on the walls, a huge spiderweb made from rope and a few
charming folk-art paintings create a very non-Katowice atmosphere
in one of the few traditional restaurants in town. The
waiters have eschewed the ethnic look in favour of something
altogether more penguinesque, and the food features the
usual Polish dishes as well as a few vegetarian options. As one
would expect in a traditional Polish country-style restaurant,
the music comes courtesy of Bob Marley. QOpen 11:00 -
22:00, Sat, Sun 12:00 - 22:00. (11-35zł). TAUIVXS
Wiejska Chatka (The Rustic Hut) A-3, Pl. Grunwaldzki
4, tel. (+48) 32 350 30 10, www.wiejskachatka.com.pl.
A cavalcade of over the top, country-style
adornments such as old farming tools and painted flowers
on the walls inside a fairytale interior make Katowice’s only
truly classic traditional Polish restaurant the place to head to
if you’ve not experienced such nonsense before. In true Polish
style the music policy was devised by a steering committee
of five-year-olds, but the overall kitsch effect and the decent
local dishes on offer make Wiejska Chatka an experience not
to be missed when in town. QOpen 11:00 - 23:00. (15-50zł).
PTA6GBSW
Russian
Fanaberia D-3, ul. Dyrekcyjna 1, tel. (+48) 32 609 87
84. A beautifully decorated, sumptuous cellar restaurant
with an extraordinary glass-fronted, white teracotta stove as
its centrepiece, featuring immaculately turned-out waiters on
hand to ferry dishes including potato pancakes with caviar
and sour cream, delicious casseroles in earthenware pots
and the prerequisite blini offerings to your table. QOpen
12:00 - 24:00. (22-67zł). PTAGBS
Thai
Sekrety Tajlandii (Secrets of Thailand) D-3,
ul. Wojewódzka 21, tel. (+48) 32 254 66 42, www.
sekretytajlandii.pl. Frogs’ legs in garlic sauce, a
galaxy of phat phet, rice, noodles and french fries
amidst vaguely Oriental splashes such as a dragon
on the wall, served by young Poles to the strains of
a soundtrack featuring everything from Thai hits to
Michael Jackson. The menu is in something not unlike
English, and despite the heavy Polish influences the
food isn’t bad at all. QOpen 12:00 - 22:00. (20-36zł).
PTAVGS
Vegetarian
Dobra Karma D-4, ul. Św. Jacka 1, tel. (+48) 784
90 36 62, www.dobrakarma.com. Combining healthy
food with hospitality, Good Karma’s vegetarian kitchen
follows the principles of the Five Transformations - an
age-old Chinese eating philosophy that endows their
food with good energy. Fear not, there’s nothing selfrighteous
or spiritual about the atmosphere, which
has found favour with families, students and hipsters
alike. Set over two levels, the brick interior full of folk
touches and worn timber feels more like a home than
a restaurant and makes for a great place to work or
relax. The menu is mostly veggie reinterpretations
of Polski classics (lentil-stuffed pierogi, the popular
veggie cutlets), pastas and some surprisingly stellar
pizzas, while to drink there’s delicious coffee, organic
sodas, and some primo beers from the Czech Primator
brewery. Well-hidden, but certainly worth seeking out.Q
Open 12:00 - 22:00. From October open 09:00 - 22:00.
(7-24zł). T6GBSW
Katowice In Your Pocket katowice.inyourpocket.com
Złoty Osioł (The Golden Ass) D-3, ul. Mariacka
1, tel. (+48) 501 46 56 90, www.wegebar.com. We
often judge a city’s merits on whether or not it has a proper
vegetarian restaurant, and in this regard Katowice scores
some much-needed points. The cheekily named ‘Golden
Ass’ features laidback music, bright psychedlic wall patterns
and tablecloths, and fertile murals wherein zodiac
characters, Buddha and Grecian urns are able to coexist
as peacably as the aging hippies, young activists, punk
rockers, and school teachers that make up the clientele.
The budget food shows a lot more creative flair than the
rest of the local cuisine, and here you can pick up flyers on
everything from yoga classes to alternative rock concerts.
Also at ul. Grota Roweckiego 20, Sosnowiec (Open 10:00-
20:00. Closed Sun) and ul. Kłodnicka 2, Gliwice (Open
11:00 - 22:00. Closed Sun). QOpen 10:00 - 22:00, Sun
12:00 - 22:00. (12zł). TA6GSW
Vietnamese
Little Hanoi...and more! D-3, ul. Staromiejska 4,
tel. (+48) 886 62 33 88, www.littlehanoi.pl. Set on a
pedestrianised street in the heart of Katowice within walking
distance of the train station and Katowice’s ‘Market
Square’ Little Hanoi is one of the best new places of recent
times. Granted, the minimal décor containing the obligatory
lanterns, decent Vietnamese dishes and friendly staff are
not unique in Poland, but as far as eating options in central
Katowice go, this is a definite step in the right direction. The
spicy soup was, the ribs were delicious and the beef Bo Luc
Lac was excellent. Wash it down with a Lime Nuoc Chanh and
like us you’ll be fortified for the evening ahead with hardly a
dent made in your wallet. QOpen 11:30 - 22:00. (20-60zł).
PAUGBSW
katowice.inyourpocket.com
RESTAURANTS
Władysław Szpilman
Born in Sosnowiec, Upper Silesia, in 1911, Wladyslaw
Szpilman studied the piano in Berlin before embarking on
a successful career as a composer and concert pianist for
Polish National Radio. By the time German bombs fell on
Warsaw, he had achieved the status of a musical celebrity.
Imprisoned inside what was to become the largest ghetto
in Europe when the Nazis occupied Warsaw, Szpilman
continued to scrape out a living as a musician in ghetto
cafés before he and his family were rounded up during a
‘selection’ in August 1942. Szpilman managed to escape
the transportations to Treblinka death camp when he was
hauled out of a cattle truck by a policeman who recognized
him as the famous pianist; the rest of his family was not so
lucky. Szpilman slaved away in a labour camp before escaping
and hiding in various locations around Warsaw. The
dying days of the war saw him living in increasing despair,
weakened by starvation and ill health, and he was only
saved from certain death when a Nazi officer discovered him
scavenging in the ruins and fed and watered him. In a surreal
twist of irony, Szpilman resumed his career as a successful
composer after the war - even founding the Sopot Song
Festival in 1961, while his German guardian angel died in the
captivity of a Soviet labour camp. Szpilman’s book, originally
titled ‘Death of a City,’ was published shortly after the war
but censored by the communists and was soon forgotten.
It was only when his son, Andrzej, discovered his father’s
dusty manuscripts that the book was re-published in 1998.
In 2002, Roman Polański brought it to the screen as The
Pianist, which won three Oscars and was nominated for
four others, including Best Picture. Szpilman passed away
in Warsaw on July 6th, 2000.
July - October 2012
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