Poland's Milk Bars

01/05

Caption

These are “milk bars” (bar mleczny) no-frills cafes that date back to the era of communist food rationing when goods were scarce and disposable income even scarcer. Modern Warsaw may be caught up in a headlong race toward Westernization, but milk bars still manage to hold their own against flashy fast-food chains, drawing in everyone from the urban poor to the intellectual elite. Here, you can fork down home-made pierogis, tasty barszcz and other traditional Polish dishes for next to nothing, all while soaking up the sensation of having slipped several decades back in time.

02/05

Caption

These are “milk bars” (bar mleczny) no-frills cafes that date back to the era of communist food rationing when goods were scarce and disposable income even scarcer. Modern Warsaw may be caught up in a headlong race toward Westernization, but milk bars still manage to hold their own against flashy fast-food chains, drawing in everyone from the urban poor to the intellectual elite. Here, you can fork down home-made pierogis, tasty barszcz and other traditional Polish dishes for next to nothing, all while soaking up the sensation of having slipped several decades back in time.

03/05

Caption

These are “milk bars” (bar mleczny) no-frills cafes that date back to the era of communist food rationing when goods were scarce and disposable income even scarcer. Modern Warsaw may be caught up in a headlong race toward Westernization, but milk bars still manage to hold their own against flashy fast-food chains, drawing in everyone from the urban poor to the intellectual elite. Here, you can fork down home-made pierogis, tasty barszcz and other traditional Polish dishes for next to nothing, all while soaking up the sensation of having slipped several decades back in time.

04/05

Caption

These are “milk bars” (bar mleczny) no-frills cafes that date back to the era of communist food rationing when goods were scarce and disposable income even scarcer. Modern Warsaw may be caught up in a headlong race toward Westernization, but milk bars still manage to hold their own against flashy fast-food chains, drawing in everyone from the urban poor to the intellectual elite. Here, you can fork down home-made pierogis, tasty barszcz and other traditional Polish dishes for next to nothing, all while soaking up the sensation of having slipped several decades back in time.

05/05

Caption

These are “milk bars” (bar mleczny) no-frills cafes that date back to the era of communist food rationing when goods were scarce and disposable income even scarcer. Modern Warsaw may be caught up in a headlong race toward Westernization, but milk bars still manage to hold their own against flashy fast-food chains, drawing in everyone from the urban poor to the intellectual elite. Here, you can fork down home-made pierogis, tasty barszcz and other traditional Polish dishes for next to nothing, all while soaking up the sensation of having slipped several decades back in time.