From Lanckorona with love
I think of myself as a city girl. Drop me, alone, into Warsawa, San Francisco, Paris and I feel curious, happy and alive. So what was it about Lanckorona, a country hamlet with angels high on a hill near Krakow in Poland, that instantly grabbed me?
Romancing the exotic, erotic truffle
At lunchtime on a recent Sunday in the demo kitchen-cum-dining room at historic Beringer Winery in California’s Napa Valley, a bunch of us are gathered to indulge in the world’s most expensive — and some would say exotic, erotic, mysterious and carnal — culinary offering. Namely, the European “black diamond” Périgord truffle.
Life’s a FroBlog for Warsaw Foodie blogger Joanna Mroz
Warsaw is rich in culinary luminaries. One of them is Joanna Mróz, prolific founder-author of Poland’s popular food blog, FroBlog, ‘FRO’ being the acronym for Fine Restaurants Only. She is also co-founder of Warsaw Foodie. We meet her at Warsaw wine kitchen, Kieliszki na Próżnej.
Discovering Polish Culinary Paths
Warsaw culinary luminary, Magdalena Tomaszewska-Bolałek is a Japanologist, a journalist, a food anthropologist and author of four books including the award-winning Polish Culinary Paths. ‘My main goal is introducing foreign cuisine to Poles and Polish cuisine to the rest of the world,’ she says. ‘It’s very important to me to promote Polish cuisine and to build bridges between the cultures.’
Relishing Polish heritage cuisine at Opasły Tom
‘We forgot, for a while in Poland, how to grow things,’ says Warsaw restaurateur, author and Opasły Tom co-owner, Agnieszka Kręglicka. ‘But this is turning around now. We’re starting to see a return to traditions and a focus on real food. In Warsaw we’re seeing about 100 restaurants a year opening.’
KukBuk: a Polish culinary success story
KukBuk grew out of a ‘a pure love of cooking, eating and communicating round food.’ The intention was to merge cultural, culinary and lifestyle elements. We meet editor Agata Michalak and publisher Daria Pawlewska at the Warsaw offices of the award-winning magazine who share the story of KukBuk’s unexpected, unprecedented success.
Elixir Dom Wodki pairs vodka and Polish nouvelle cuisine
Vodka is the most popular drink in Poland. During and immediately after the Soviet era, people were drinking shots: to get drunk. Now they’re back to vodka for flavor, appreciation and enjoyment. Dom Wódki in Warsaw is the first restaurant in the world to do menu pairings with vodka.
Poland: a six-day culinary-cultural study tour
Would you like to join a study tour of Poland in the event of their being one? “Is the Pope a Catholic?” pops to mind. The formal invite comes via a heavily accented voice on my cellphone. The duration will be six days. In October, “Poland’s golden autumn.”
Karl Marx City at DIFF 2017: Petra Epperlein’s personal journey
Petra Epperlein grew up in a city and during a time that are no more. Namely, the East German city of Chemnitz, which during Stasi and DDR times was called Karl Marx City. Her film, which has notched up 90%-plus ratings on Rotten Tomatoes, is a personal journey with a global message. We spoke to her before the screening of Karl Marx City at the 2017 Durban International Film Festival.
Petra Epperlein talks about her film Karl Marx City at DIFF2017
Documentary filmmaker Petra Epperlein’s Karl Marx City is a personal journey that takes her back to the East Germany of her childhood.