Monday, September 23, 2013

Warsaw continues to surprise us!

On Saturday, we went to another open-air market I found while looking up to see whether Targ Śniadaniowy (Breakfast Market) in Zoliborz was open or not. Koszyki (Baskets) is conveniently located in downtown Warsaw in the former space of a demolished market called Hala Koszyki, hence the name. The old market started out producing farm baskets in the early 1900s, turned into a market space at some point, fell into disrepair and unfortunately was demolished in 2008. (You can see old photos of Hala Koszyki here.)

But now under tents in an open parking lot, Koszyki is home to a wonderfully quaint (and totally hipster) farmer’s market cum food truck scene. One minute we were watching a DJ spin tunes and the next minute I was speaking broken Spanish with a Mexican lady and her Polish husband, owners of Hola Lola, a Mexican food stand. My Spanish is definitely better than my Polish!
Hey, Mr. DJ, can you put a record on?
Would you like some fresh fruit and veggies or a pulled pork sandwich?
We perused the 30 or so stalls selling seasonal fruits, veggies, flowers, imported Italian wines and cheeses and prepared foods such as local cheeses, cured meats, jams and salsas. Koszyki even has a stand selling mojitos and proseco and a permanent on-site espresso bar that doubles as a bar at night, offering drinks until the wee hours.  
We bought 200 grams of a Truffled Pecorino Cheese from this stall. Delicious!
I never would have expected to find a market like this in Poland! And I can’t imagine ever seeing a scene like this at my Turkish pazar in Istanbul. Can you imagine what the teyzes would think?

Apparently, Warsovians are wholeheartedly embracing the food truck scene as well as farm-to-table markets and restaurants. And I for one have no problem eating my tacos paired with a freshly-made juice at one of these markets.

Smacznego!
Chicken tacos from Jakie Taco?! and a sinfully-decadent cookie from So Sweet Project.
I bought a good handful of these Polish mushrooms. Now what should I make?
Little hipsters in the making!
Handmade children's toys and stuffed creatures.
Would you like some popcorn or homemade bread with "bacon butter" on it?
Location:
Koszyki
ul. Koszykowa 63, located in the Śródmieście neighborhood
Hours: Open Tuesday-Friday 10:00-20:00; Sat. 9:00-20:00; Sun. 9:00-17:00 Closed Mondays. (Please double check the hours on the Koszyki Facebook page. There’s a permanent coffeeshop on site and I can’t tell if the opening hours are for it or for the market itself. I doubt the market section is open until 20:00.)

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11 comments:

Julia said...

Well this just looks like market heaven to me - shopping to music. Would love to try some of that street food now! :)

BacktoBodrum said...

Well I never! Surprises in Poland.

Joy said...

@Julia, I agree! A good mix of music and fresh food and produce. I was in foodie heaven! ;-)

@Annie, I know! Warsaw is starting to grow on me. There's certainly a young, modern vibe to the place.

jaz@octoberfarm said...

ahhhh...heaven!

Mary B said...

You had me at bacon butter. Seriously, what a treat! Warsaw seems to be quite hip. As for the mushrooms, it's soup weather and no one makes better mushroom-barley soup than the Poles.

Joy said...

@Joyce, pretty nice, huh? :-)

@Mary B., Yes, bacon butter is our nickname for Polish smalec. Mushroom and barley soup, now that's a great idea! I used some wild rice the other day, but barley would definitely be more traditional.

Unknown said...

Very good and interesting photos Joy. This market is classic!


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Cuisine de Provence said...

I can't believe how much Warsaw has changed since the last time I was there - this is one fun looking market!

Joy said...

@Gio, thank you! It's a great market!

@Barbara, Warsaw is such a mix of old and new. There's so much his right but modernity and growth happening as well.

joanna said...

Thank you for highlighting Poland so beautifully. I'm an American Expat living in Mallorca, Spain but of Polish descent and glad it's getting love it deserves. Going back to Warszawa next week. Hope the market is up and running still.

Joy said...

@Joanna, thanks so much for stopping by! I'm sure you'll see the many changes happening in Warsaw. There always seems to be new restaurants and bars opening every other day. Also, there's a trend for local fashion designers and you can find stalls set up in New Town called Made in Warsaw. Lots of fun stuff happening here! :-)