Polish restaurants: menu guide

Babka: A yeast sponge cake containing raisins and lemon zest. A popular dish in many a Polish restaurant.

Bigos: A traditional soup found on the menu in most Polish restaurants. Made with sauerkraut, meat and sausages, it's very filling and is served in Polish restaurants as a main course.

Barszcz czerwony: This is a beetroot soup served with vegetables and sour cream, either mixed or served clear with dumplings, depending on the preference of the chef in the Polish restaurant.

Flaki: A soup found in most Polish restaurants. Its main ingredient is beef offal.

Golabki: Cabbage parcels filled with meat and rice—a Polish restaurant menu staple. Despite the parcels being filled with beef in Polish restaurants, the word golabki actually means "little pigeon".

Krupnik: Depending on which Polish restaurant you're in, this can be either honey vodka or a barley soup. So, be careful you check first when you're ordering it in a Polish restaurant...

Makowiec: Served as a pudding in Polish restaurants, this sweet cake is made of dough filled with poppy seeds and raisins. The poppy seed filling creates a swirl pattern through the middle, resembling a cross between a Swiss roll and a marble cake.

Pierogi: Delicious dumplings, similar to ravioli. These traditional treats are served in Polish restaurants stuffed with meat, cheese or cabbage. Some Polish restaurants serve them filled with cherries as a pudding.

Wódka (vodka): The must-order drink in any Polish restaurant and one of Poland's biggest exports. Artist Picasso once even said, "The three most astonishing things in the past half-century were the blues, cubism, and Polish vodka." Polish restaurants will often have a large range of different brands and flavours of vodka for you to try.

If you're particularly pleased with the service at a Polish restaurant (or you've just had a bit too much vodka!), why not raise a toast by saying "Nazdrowie!" (pronounced Nah zdrohv-yeh)!