Romans call Rome the Eternal City, as the day life subsides so the nightlife individuals are ready to take its place and Krakow, which incidentally is twinned with La Bella Roma is no different. Here in beautiful Krakow the bars, pubs and clubs are also eternal, flexible closing times mean you can party until breakfast and in some venues even order breakfast. This vibrant city will cater for all your whims and desires and ‘last orders’ is a phrase you will never hear. Krakow has two buzzing night time areas, the Old Town which is the city centre with the main square Rynek and Kazimierz, known as the Jewish Quarter a 5min. walk from Rynek. Also, some venues pride themselves on a trend that is called Ruin Bar, the venue has rickety, mismatched furnishings and unfinished décor, reflecting the ultimate fashion trend of wearing jeans with holes or torn, this style of bar is popping up all over Europe and Krakow is no exception. Krakow has its own gems for you to discover, the sheer pleasure of sipping a cocktail or downing an ice cold freshly brewed beer in one of Krakow’s Ruin Pub & Beer Gardens is a most satisfying and feel good experience. The city’s historical origins has many buildings that are perfect candidates for the increasing trend of Ruin Bars. Some of them offer good quality food choices and some are set in surprisingly tranquil and secluded courtyards. So whether you are on a romantic visit or a Krakow Stag Do tour or just a weekend break here are some of the best and eclectic locations, cellars and blue open air skies of Krakow (btw- if you’re feeling lazy you can also have your Krakow pub crawl organised by professionals like e.g https://partykrakow.co.uk/ ). To begin with some ace places in the Old Town, Mr. Vavelsky Chillout Garden Bar & Cellar Pub, this surprisingly quiet & comfortably furnished garden cocktail bar just off the main square offers an enviable choice of drinks from mojitos to dragon themed vodka mixes. Downstairs is the Dragon’s Den if you prefer something a little more lively such as singing your heart out with the Karaoke show and they offer a spectacular Magic Dragon Vodka Tasting extravaganza!.
If you are looking for plush and elegant surroundings while sipping on a cocktail then Baroque is definitely on your list. Situated just close to the main square this upmarket bar offers a wide range of well-known cocktail drinks plus a few surprises. The Mercy Brown Bar is a riddle to solve in the Old Town area as this bar does not display its name in the sense that there are no signs for it. You find this 1920s Parisian themed bar above a restaurant just off Planty the pedestrian ring road. The bartenders love showing off their skills and good luck in finding this ‘hidden’ bar, it’s worth it. Garden Re this popular secluded, tree filled garden retreat is next to Maly Rynek or the smaller square of the 2 Ryneks in the centre. A great place to grab a cool beer in the evening. Dolnych Mlynow Is a huge open air complex that used to be a tobacco factory in the old days, full of different pubs with indoor & outdoor seating. The various pubs offer mainstream & local brewery beers along with live music, open air cinema & theatre shows. It is situated just outside of ‘Planty’ the circular walkway around the city centre and very popular with people living in Krakow as well as tourists. Look out for these top rated venues Hala Glowny, one of the largest bars there and excels in the Ruin Bar style with a mix of modern and dive bar furnishings and décor, on the entertainment side DJ Parties, movie night and a pizzeria if you feel peckish. Scena 54, attracts a slightly older person rather than students, it has that seemingly affluent spin whilst set in an industrial backdrop. The Mash Room serves your cocktail mix in pitchers and jugs, the only venue that does this. They often bring in celebrity barmen & women to mix your drinks, the venue loves unusual art especially psychedelic forms. Zet Pe Te is known for its live music concerts but also its two garden bars. Well known circuit DJs are billed on occasion and the venue is a perfect example of a Ruin Bar.
Kazimierz has its own charm and the area highlights the Jewish way of life with its synagogues, museums, restaurants and historical monuments. Like the Old Town an evening spent there in the streets, squares and alley ways visiting the area’s best and most unusual public houses or pubs for short will be an enjoyable experience to say the least. Kazimierz has concentrated areas of popularity, the streets of Szeroka, Miodowa and the main square Plac Nowy with all its roads leading off it are host to a great many fine drinking venues and not only. A great starting point would be Plac Nowy, on this square there are several venues happy to accommodate groups and Alchemia Pub is one of them. This spacious drinking house has 2 floors with live music and DJ downstairs with the ground floor offering food and comfy table sitting areas, as the name suggest it displays old photographs and curious mystical objects in the suffused candle-lit bars. Close by is Pijalnia Wodki i Piwa basically, Pub Vodka & Beer when translated. Cheap vodka shots with fancy names and beer on offer in this retro style locale. For that old communist feel and Polish punk and ska music try Propoganda on Miodowa street.
At some point you might feel peckish and Kazimierz has a great reputation for quality street food from burgers to local delicacies such as the Zapiekanka a sort of large cheese on toast with extra toppings and so tasty too. On weekends in Judah Square the food trucks arrive with all kinds of international cuisine on offer even fish ‘n chips, kebabs and Polish delicacies such as the Maczanka sandwich with pulled pork and the famous Blue Nyska Van grilled sausage. To finish then the smooth operator style dive dance bar The Opium Club is for you as it is a perfect place for the last surge of the night. There is a chill out fresco bar should you require a breather.
If you start the pub crawl around 4pm you might be able to visit all of these places by breakfast time the next day as there are no closing times for bars, pubs and clubs, so you can pace yourselves better throughout the night knowing you will never hear those immortal words, last orders followed by a ding or a dong or both and neither do the food trucks. Good Luck.
