Poland

This is part two of a visit to Poznan.  If you missed the first part you can find it here.

We continued to patronize the wonderful breakfast buffet at the hotel in the mornings and had lunches brought in so the evenings were the food highlights for the last two evenings.

Wednesday night we went back the Stary Browar and to the Piano Bar restaurant.  We had the entire compliment of people working on the project so we had a large round table that accommodated all 14 of us but still allowed conversation with everyone.  In spite of the presence of the eponymous Piano no one played while we were there and none at the table admitted to being a pianist.  So we just had socialize and eat.

My first choice of meal was a grilled ostrich steak but they were out of ostrich so I settled for lamb chops.  As settling went it was a nice back up.

The lamb came with a few little potatoes and a pureed carrot sauce that made a good combo.  The lamb was tender and very mildly seasoned so the taste of the potatoes and carrots were very much in play.  I don’t say this often but the side salad was actually more interesting from a flavor standpoint.  It had some baby greens, sun dried tomatoes, marinated pears and Gorgonzola cheese.  The slight bitterness of the greens contrasted with the sweetness of the pears and the texture of the tomatoes made them standout and of course Gorgonzola.  A glass of Lech Premium beer washed it all down.

On the final night, since we had to be up at an unbelievably early hour to go to the airport, a couple of us decided to eat at the hotel bar again. Before I get to the food I have to go off on a quick tangent.

The waiter we had was a tall, thin fellow with very close cropped hair.  He was a very model of a cordiality and precision as he took care of us but it was bugging me because he reminded me of someone and I couldn’t figure out who until after I got back home.  This guy was a dead ringer for Christopher Eccleston during his Doctor Who run. It’s probably just as well I didn’t figure it out then as I’d likely have made some sort of time lord joke he’d not have understood.

Ok now back to the food.  I decided the to just go with the next thing on the menu after the duck I’d had the first night which turned out to be veal loin.

Let’s do a trip around the plate because it’s not easily apparent what each item is.  Starting at the 6 o’clock position we have and egg yolk confit, at 9 we have buckwheat groats wrapped in cabbage and topped with a couple cloves of roasted garlic.  At 12 is a hunk of wholemeal bread toast topped with more garlic and at 3 o’clock is the veal loin. All served with a thyme sauce.

That hunk of veal doesn’t look very big but somehow it seemed bigger when I cut into it (see what I did there Whovians?)  The veal was tasty and tender but again the sides held my interest more.  The egg yolk confit had the consistency of a thick custard and unsurprisingly tasted just like egg.  The buckwheat groats were an interesting change of pace on the grain front and I enjoyed them.  The cabbage wrap was tender and not fall apart soggy like I was afraid it might be.  The toast and roasted garlic was good but since I’d be trapped in planes for 11 hours the next day I didn’t want to subject people to the aftermath of a 3 clove meal so just had one.  I have to say as hotel restaurants go I’ve had great experiences both times I’ve been to Poznan.

From a culinary standpoint this trip was a winner on every front.  The food was great, the people were friendly, the atmosphere was welcoming and the company was outstanding at every meal.