Zbliżenia
Adress:
Plac Nowy 7½
Telephone:
+48 (12) 430 01 38
Informations supplémentaires:
Food,
TV
(EN)
Located right in the corner of Plac Nowy, which accounts for the half in the address, Zblizenia represents a pivotal moment in Kazimierz’s bar culture. Prior to its opening, Kazimierz specialised in dimly lit bars, frequented by artists, students and lovers of all things Kazimierz – the kind of people that wouldn’t have been seen dead in Cracow’s main market square.
Zblizenia changed all that; it was the first successful bar that differed from the rest – its success paving the way for the new wave of “modern” lounge bars in Kazimierz. With less of a focus on being dark and mysterious, or bar staff being “cool”; waitress service was also something of a first, Zblizenia went with comfy furniture, nice toilets and a good choice of food.
That’s not to imply criticism of the more traditional Kazimierz haunt, but what Zblizenia did was to give people a choice between the old and the new; if you want fruit smoothies you’ll need to come to Zblizenia rather than the more traditional Kazimierz bar.
In English, the word Zblizenia means closer, with warm lighting provided by low-hanging lights and those comfy sofas, the bar succeeds in being true to its name – it’s a place to cosy up over a coffee or a beer.
It’s not a bad option for something to eat, albeit in a more laid back setting than a restaurant. Prices are reasonable, the meal of the day option costs 12 zloty. There’s a range of soups, snacks, salads, pastas and deserts. A bit more intriguingly you can get a range of cheeses, from oscypek, the cheese found in the Tatra mountain area of Poland, to deep fried Camembert served on toast with cranberry sauce.
With a wonderful beer garden, Zblizenia remains a firm favourite with many, quite possibly due to the fact that despite being the first of the modern bars to spring up in Kazimierz, it hasn’t forgotten what Kazimierz used to be about. Without a dress code or bouncers, Zblizenia has retained a loose, laid back atmosphere; it’s still very much a place to have a drink or a coffee, and not just a place to be seen in.
