There are places that you hear about even if you live a few hundred kilometres from them, in a different city and different reality. There’s plenty of such places in Poznań, but one that seems the most well-known is surely Yeżyce Kuchnia. It’s been on our minds for a while and we’ve been planning to drop by on our next trip to Poznań.
Jeżyce is one of this districts that are becoming more and more popular nowadays. More things going on, new intriguing restaurants, cafes and shops being established. They have burger joints like the reportedly worthwhile Świeta Krowa (Holy Cow), great traditional ice cream in a few spots on the road to Sołacki Park and finally Yeżyce Kuchnia. For me, Jeżyce means youth and books by Małgorzata Musierowicz! I used to love them!
As we’re driving towards Yeżyce Kuchnia we learn that it’s one of the most hipster places in town which makes me a bit worried – will Łukasz like it? Will the food be tasty? We enter the place – looks spacious, with big tables, a blackboard with lots of chalk on it and a counter at which you order the food. Wooden chairs that look like at school along with pots with plants make the place look like scenery from an 80s movie. I like it. It’s different. The meals ‘hang’ on the wall – no, not on a blackboard but on little pieces of paper attached to a perforated white board. Why not?
simple interior with little chairs that remind me of school years
tradition and original ideas meet here
let’s do it!
The menu is short. For starters, we have to try gzik made from organic cottage cheese with linseed oil and potatoes (PLN 15) – we’re in Poznań, aren’t we? Potatoes with gzik are a must here (BTW did you know that in some parts of Wielkopolska it’s called ‘pyry z gziką’ instead of ‘pyry z gzikiem’??). Łukasz goes for parsnip and bacon cream soup (PLN 12) while our friend and guide orders a beef and poultry essence with leeks, walnuts, prunes and oxtail(PLN 15) which reportedly is very distinct in flavour.
pyry z gzikiem (15 zł) – a must!
parsnip and bacon cream soup which turned out to be a bit dull (12 zł)
beef and poultry essence with oxtail (PLN 15)
I have to admit it’s my first time with pyry z gzikiem! When I visited Poznań before, I was mainly passing through and never had time to give it a try. If it always tastes like in Yeżyce then I’m in! Potatoes are soft and tasty, cheese is delicate and combined with chopped red onion and linseed oil it tastes great. The portion is solid, I leave some of the gzik worrying that I won’t have any room for mains! Parsnip cream soup is far from spectacular – a bit dull with bacon being crisp and meaty as usual. Beef and poultry essence with oxtail is a much better choice – intense but not too intense with soft meat that completes the meal.
When it comes to main courses, Łukasz goes for a beef steak with baked marrow, potato puree, bay bolete powder and red wine sauce (PLN 41). A steak served with marrow is something that surely draws attention – an original and unusual combination and Łukasz has been a fan of marrow ever since we visited Nolita. Our guide orders a glazed boar with onions, capsicum and parsley (PLN 37). Feeling a bit of pressure I order smoked pork loin with Silesian dumplings, burned carrots and caramelised prunes mousse (PLN 28) – the pressure comes from the fact that initially, the lady who took our orders told us there’s no child meals available and pork loin with Silesian dumplings is the closest to Maks’ preferences. I place an order and give Yeżyce a yellow card. I don’t get it. Why can’t they prepare something for the kid in a restaurant that’s full of potatoes (we’re in Poznań, remember) and meat??? Fortunately, the mistake is a short-lived one. The lady returns to our table and says that the chef can prepare chicken fillets with potatoes and carrots. We’re saved! I stick to the pork loin though, even though I was thinking about having Silesian dumplings with pork belly and kale (PLN 20). We’re already a bit full after the starters and the main courses do not make our lives any easier. Madness! The portions are so big that I’m already starting to regret ordering the starter! Is it always like this in Poznań???
boar with onions, capsicum and parsley – with groats or potatoes (PLN 37)
beef steak with marrow – best shot according to Łukasz!
pork loin and burned carrot – remaining sides hid themselves beneath the pork loin 😉
Eating the pork loin seems close to impossible – it covers like 7/8 of the plate! It’s tasty, fragrant, served with fried Silesian dumplings and delicious prunes mousse (it’s a pity you can’t see it!). I enjoy it, but it’s Łukasz who is absolutely stunned – the meal he gets in Yeżyce is the best thing he has eaten for the last weeks or even months! He’s been boasting about it for the last few days, especially about the combination of salty marrow flavour with rare steak. I guess I’ll hear about for some time and I know that Yeżyce will be the first place we go to on our next visit to Poznań! Boar’s meat is also great – melt-in-your-mouth, perfect. Looks like the kitchen is equally good at pork loin and at game.
Maks likes his meal as well: fried pieces of chicken – moist and soft, no hard batter, with boiled potatoes and burned carrot. Seems like a dish that will work both for kids and for parents who want it to be tasty, healthy and nutritious. Works A+ in our case! Just skip the ‘kitchen doesn’t do kids’ meals’ in the future since it may sound discouraging 😉 There’s plenty of attractions for kids too – blackboard which can be smeared with chalk, scrabble, Angry Birds and other games.
for kids
Yeżyce Kuchnia sets the bar high for other places on our culinary path in Poznań. It’s unusual, intriguing, imaginative without being too complicated or messy (both flavourwise and compositionwise) on the plate, without too much fireworks. Agata Wojda, chef at Opasły Tom once told us that she likes food that makes sense. That’s precisely the kind of food you will find in Yeżyce Kuchnia. And be sure to try beef steak with marrow! Otherwise Łukasz won’t forgive you!!! 🙂
PRACTICAL INFORMATION:
ul. Szamarzewskiego 17
tel. 61 663 05 06
* Miasto Poznań.invited us to see and taste Poznań p>
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