Gdańsk is a very good city for eating and drinking. It sits on the Baltic, so fish is on every menu; it has been a trading port for centuries, so spices, sweets and strong drinks have long been part of its culture; and it has a young, creative food scene that mixes tradition with new ideas. You can eat well here at any budget, as long as you know where to look. This guide covers what to try, where to find it and how to avoid the tourist traps.
Start with the Polish classics
Żurek is a sour soup made from fermented rye flour, usually served with sausage and a boiled egg, and sometimes in a bread bowl. It is the soup to try if you only try one. Pierogi, the filled dumplings, come with potato and cheese, meat, mushrooms and cabbage, or sweet fillings such as berries, and are usually served with onions or sour cream. Other dishes worth ordering are bigos, the hunter's stew of cabbage and meat, golonka, the roast pork knuckle, and the hearty potato pancakes. Many restaurants offer a daily soup and main course at a reasonable price at lunchtime.
Eat the fish
The Baltic coast has a strong fish tradition, and Gdańsk menus feature herring in several forms, including marinated with onions, in cream or with apple, as well as fried cod, pike-perch, salmon and flounder. Smoked fish is a speciality, and if you go to the Hel Peninsula or the Sopot waterfront you will find stalls selling it straight from the smoker. Fish soup is a good winter option. Ask the waiter what is freshest on the day, and try the local preparations rather than defaulting to a schnitzel.
Milk bars for budget meals
The bar mleczny, or milk bar, is a Polish institution: a plain canteen-style restaurant with cheap, traditional food, often with a counter where you order and pick up your meal. Gdańsk has several, including one on Long Street, and they are a good way to eat żurek, pierogi and other classics without paying tourist prices. Expect simple surroundings, a short menu and queues at lunchtime. Bring cash in case a place does not take cards.
Sweets and coffee
Gdańsk has a lively cafe culture, with specialty coffee shops, bakeries and cake shops spread through the Old Town and the streets behind the riverside. Try the local pastries and the fluffy doughnuts known as pączki, which are especially popular around Fat Thursday in the pre-Lent season. Ice cream is excellent in summer, and a hot chocolate in a candlelit cafe is the right answer to a cold winter afternoon.
Goldwasser and local spirits
Gdańsk's best-known drink is Goldwasser, a herbal liqueur flavoured with caraway, aniseed and other botanicals and containing tiny flakes of gold leaf. It has a history stretching back to the sixteenth century and is sold in bottles all over the Main Town. It makes an unusual gift, and you can try a glass in a bar before you buy. Polish vodka is the other national spirit, and a guided tasting is a good way to learn the difference between rye, wheat and potato vodkas, flavoured versions such as żubrówka, the bison-grass vodka, and the food that goes with them. Our guided vodka tasting tour takes you through six vodkas with food pairings and a guide who explains the history.
Craft beer
Poland has a thriving craft-beer scene, and Gdańsk is one of its centres. There are brewpubs in the Main Town and around the riverside, including a brewery inside Hotel Gdańsk Boutique that claims the title of the oldest craft brewery in the city. Look for the local styles, which include smoked beers, Baltic porter, a dark, strong lager-fermented beer, and the usual range of IPAs and sours. The guided beer tasting tour is an easy introduction, taking you to a brewery and a craft beer pub with a guide who explains what you are drinking.
Avoiding tourist traps
The restaurants with terraces on the Long Market and Mariacka Street charge for the setting, and quality varies. Walk two or three streets back, look for menus with short lists of seasonal dishes, check that the menu shows prices and avoid places with a waiter outside inviting you in. Booking ahead for dinner is wise on weekends and in summer. The covered market hall near the old town is a good place for snacks, fruit and a taste of local life.
Tipping and manners
Tipping about ten percent in restaurants is normal, and you usually tell the waiter the total you want to pay when you hand over your card. The drinking age is 18, and you should bring ID to any tasting. Eat early or late to avoid queues, and try the set lunch menus, which are among the best value in the city.