Opasły Tom
This is what you want from a dining room: sneaked off a lively street, guests duck down into a chain of two narrow-ish chambers that, whilst not exactly casual, feel comfortable and familiar. Its limited size helps this, but other factors do as well: having shown us to our seats the waitress reengages in banter with the chef, Agata Wojda. Immediately you suspect that, actually, people like working here, and in a place this intimate, good energy has a habit of spreading. Even before you order, you realize you’re in for something memorable, and so the evening continues like some self-fulfilling prophecy. On our research jaunt, starters are a smoked trout mousse with a cauliflower, glasswort and tarragon salad. The flavor is spritely and specific and unexpectedly vivid. A goose confit is next, the gentle meat rested on pumpkin puree and prune sauce. It’d be easy to write this off as just simple stuff done well, but you know that’s not the case: if it really were that straightforward, everyone would be pulling it off. In all, a totally enthralling experience, and our other jurors agree.