Our Favorite Parts of Poland
When we had a chance to work with Google for Startups in Poland, we knew we had to jump on the opportunity. Poland is one of those places just oozing in history and culture, and we just happened to be craving summer in Europe again.
We spent our first week in Warsaw. It was June and the mosquitos were out in full force, but we didn’t let that get in the way of some good ol’ city exploration. We stayed in a super central area of town at the newly renovated Hotel Warszawa. Wow. This was definitely one of our favorite hotels to date. It had the best breakfast buffet with things like made-to-order eggs, heirloom tomatoes, and bakery-fresh pastries. There was an amazing indoor pool and spa area. And the posh design made us feel like we were attending a high-fashion runway show. Can’t you tell? ;P
We worked at Google the majority of our time in Warsaw, but we managed to find a vegan sushi spot AND a vegan ramen spot. Heaven! We also asked a local friend what his favorite hipster coffee was, and we were not disappointed by his recommendation, Coffeedesk (get the Ice Tonka!). We also managed a day trip to the artsy town of Kazimierz where we ate delicious Lebanese food and visited art galleries along the river. Of course, no trip to Warsaw would be complete without a visit to late-night club, Smolna.
Next up, we hit Krakow. We didn’t have enough time to visit more of the smaller cities in Poland this trip, so we decided to take a few days here to get a feel for the two main cities that people visit. We stayed at Hotel Rod Roza, right on the main strip of the historical old town. It was here in our own unassuming hotel we had one of the best meals of our entire trip. They customized a tasting menu for us, and it was seriously mind-blowing. We’re drooling right now just thinking about it…
Aside from a day trip to Auschwitz and Birkenau, we mostly just walked around the city and tried a bunch of food (typically our M.O.). If you’re looking for pierogis, head to Przypiecek, where you order at the counter and your little dumplings come out hot and fresh in minutes. Don’t miss the shakshuka and hummus in the Jewish Quarter — our favorite brunch spot was Ranny Ptaszek.
We ended our time in Krakow with an urban hike to Kościuszko Mound where we had a beautiful view over the city. It confirmed that, as always, we need more time to explore on our next visit.
