WanderBellies

Poznan is located about 480km from Krakow and takes approximately 5 hours by the intercity train. Even though I previously drew up an itinerary for this trip, recommendations from colleagues in my team slowly trickled in on accommodation, dining spots and sights, so much so that my initially relatively relaxed trip wound up as a pretty fun filled adventure!

Day 1:

Breakfast at Minister Cafe

I took the first train out from Krakow to Poznan and managed to arrive in Poznan by 10am. Food is really important to me, hence whenever I travel, I will be sure to do up a foodie list. This list would often include, what is best locally, healthy food joints, cafes / bakeries and one or two slightly more "fine" restaurants. That said, Minister Cafe is highly rated in Poznan for its freshly made toasties. I ordered the avocado, fried egg and arugula sandwich, served with a homemade aoili sauce. A great, healthy combination for breakfast, with all my favourite ingredients! I recall D and I chatting once about our favourite foods - D loves chicken rice whilst I can eat eggs and toast pretty much all day err day.

Minister Cafe - Fried Egg, Arugula and Avocado Sandwich served with Homemade Aioli

Poznan Old Town Walking Tour

After brunch and a quick check-in at the hotel, I headed straight for the Old Town Walking Tour. The tour started with a big crowd of us gathered at the Market Square. At 12 noon, it is a tradition for two billy goats to make their entrance above the clock tower and perform a "headbutt" to each other. There is a folktale from back in the day that the town was celebrating a fight victory when the chef realised that too many people had turned up for the celebratory meal. He was flustered due to the potential lack of food and went in search for a billy goat. Instead of finding one, he found two! And both started to fight for its own survival. How true is this story? Well, I heard it from the local guide on our tour.

At 12 noon, the two billy goats will greet the market square crowd with a head-butt routine.

Poznan's beautiful market square from a distance.

St Martin's Croissant Museum (Rogalowe Muzeum) Baking Class

I my next pitstop in held high anticipation, as there was going to be a hands-on experience of baking croissants. They are by no means like French Croissants, instead these are St Martin's Croissants and there is a story behind them. In 1891, Martin was a priest who wanted to help the poor with food. After the loss of one of his horseshoes, he had the inspiration to create these croissants. It is filled with different ingredients and is a pretty dense croissant compared to the French Croissants. St Martin's croissants are only allowed to be baked in Poznan and must weigh between 150g to 250g. On 11 November every year, the city celebrates St Martin's Day by eating these croissants by the lake to commemorate him.

St Martin's Croissant must weigh between 150g to 250g.

Try my hand at making the St Martin's Croissant.

It is important to have fun in the kitchen!

Castles

After the St Martin's croissant museum tour, I decided to make a detour to the Imperial Castle and another castle for a view of the market square from atop. A pretty good decision given the pleasant weather that weekend, where I had a bird's eye view of the entire town from a distance away. I enjoyed this serene view, away from the hustle and bustle of the city's crowds.

Mid day sweet treat.

St Stanislaus Church

Even though we covered this sightseeing spot during the walking tour, it was brief and difficult to capture nice photos worthy of this beautiful church with a crowd of people. Hence, I made a second visit in the afternoon, where it was quieter, to take some photos of this beautiful structure and its magnificent looking organ.

Grand looking organ in Basilica of St Stanislaus.

Before heading for dinner at this restaurant recommended by a colleague, I went back to the hotel for a quick recharge of my phone. Yes, I still refuse to buy a replacement portable phone charger. D & I had a short chat before I headed out. What he does not know was that I only left the hotel 10 minutes after we both hung up because I was writing him a postcard, which he received just two days ago!

Dinner at Papierowka

Dinner was romantic in ambience as the restaurant was set in the midst of greenery and a playground. There were fairy lights in the outdoor section which made this place feel incredibly dreamy. What I liked about this place beyond the setting, was that their menu only had ONE bestseller / recommended item. This helps brilliantly with decision making! I ordered that ONE recommended dish - a duck fillet, which was done beautifully. Post dinner, I felt a need for a sweet treat and went along with the waitress' recommendation of a coconut cheesecake. Rich and creamy but not overpowering, it was a good recommendation! Overall, I had an amazing dining experience here, both in terms of food and service. Highly recommend a visit here for those of you who live or are planning a visit to Poznan.

An amazing duck fillet from Papierowka.

Ending dinner on a sweet note - coconut cheesecake.

The Old Brewery 50-50

Set in an Old Brewery, no, this is no longer a brewery. Instead, it experienced a makeover and is now a popular shopping mall. I reckon it is still relatively new / young, given quite a few shopfronts are either still under renovations or un-tenanted.

Brovaria

Last stop of the day was one of initial hesitation. I had a super filling dinner, but was keen to try out this beer house, recommended by a colleague once again. Decided to kick the doubts away, and just headed in to try out the beers offered in the house. I found out later that the beers were made behind the restaurant and you cannot get a "fresher" beer elsewhere. I went for the tasting platter which came in a mix of three different beer types - Pilsner, Honey Beer and IPA. I enjoyed the Pilsner the best, which often is the safest beer choice in my opinion!