“I want people to learn,” says Arkadiusz Wilamowski, “what authentic French cuisine is all about.” As the only Pole to have ever worked under Alain Ducasse, he’s better placed than most to act as the guide.

Though only opened last summer, his restaurant has sent an electric current through the city’s fine dining scene with its faithful replication of the classic tastes of France.

Set within luxurious charcoal-colored interiors, the sense of being somewhere a little special increases with the amuse bouche – or in this case, a trio of amuse bouche.

Foregoing starters, we head straight to mains, a sautéed wild deer served with a slick of rich Grand Veneur sauce. Such is the flavor, it is a dish that moves you to silence. Wow, just wow.

And for dessert, a delicious concoction of different pear-flavored elements assembled to resemble a… you guess the rest.

An exceptional experience in every respect, it’s a restaurant to admire and revere in equal measure.

At a time when fine dining in Warsaw appears to be flat-lining a little, the continued excellence of Chłodna 15 serves as a reminder of the raging talent found in some of Warsaw’s kitchens.

Chłodna 15 by Wilamowski
ul. Chłodna 15, chlodna15.pl

(Words & Photos: AW)