Sharing the same entrance portal as Nowa Jerozolima, enter Blok via the enigmatic door to the right and then proceed up umpteen million stairs that, you suspect, might not hold out for longer than a decade. Featuring mirrored disco balls, same-sex couples and adverts for Mr. Leather Poland, Blok is stained and sweaty, but the atmosphere is upbeat and inclusive. Whilst not a live music venue per se, it’s pretty much as alternative as Warsaw gets, and the dance floor can get seriously euphoric when the DJs hit their game. And hat’s off to the smoking room, a dark, narrow cell that’s all but bare but for silhouettes and shadows: through the distortion of the grimy glass, snatch an almost spectral view of the Palace of Culture.

Blok
Al. Jerozolimskie 57