INTERNATIONAL FORUM
& COLLABORATIVE DINNER

Historically, Poland offers so many unique culinary touchpoints: The Renaissance and Baroque eras brought Italian and French influences whilst 18th-century partitions introduced strong Russian, German and Austro-Hungarian flavors. The great Ottoman Empire also shared a border with Poland for over 300 hundred years -the impacts of which can still be tasted today- and there are many dishes adapted from Ashkenazi cuisine's 1000 year-long Jewish-Polish relationship.

Terroir Warsaw explored all these incredible influences from with leading local & international chefs, trailblazers and culinary experts. 

A FUTURE FOR POLISH FOOD

Poland’s varied history offers a significant number of impressive culinary touchpoints. Let’s start with great Ottoman Empire which shared a border with the country for over 300 hundred years and sent subtle nuances of elaborate flavours rippling throughout the country. Then, consider the 1000-year-old Jewish-Polish relationship which has resulted in a plethora of national dishes adapted from delicious Ashkenazi cuisine.

On top of this formidable gastronomic backbone consider the fact that the Renaissance and Baroque eras brought Italian and French influences to the upper-classes, and then imagine how the 18th-century countrywide partitions introduced robust Russian, German and Austro-Hungarian flavors to the mix. Poland’s central location on the spice routes between Asia and Europe also added an extra pungent note to an already thriving local cuisine.

In these modern times, there’s much creativity and innovation at play in kitchens across Poland thanks to an emergent generation of gifted individuals who are articulating an exciting modern identity for Polish food. It’s a personality informed by local landscapes, wild and untouched ingredients, centuries of informed histories and traditions, and an appreciation of an international food culture. At Terroir Warsaw we’ll be kick starting the conversation about all the steps Poland has taken towards culinary greatness, as well as those still to come. Participants will leave with a greater appreciation for, and understanding of, what ‘Polish cuisine’ has meant in the past and what it will come to mean - perhaps even defining it through their own input.

Altogether it’s not hard to see why Poland’s food identity is amongst one of the most brilliantly diverse in Europe, defining it in these few short paragraphs is impossible. Instead, we spent two intensive days, meeting with the cities gastronomic leaders and digging deep into Poland’s dynamic food future.

WOJCIECH M. AMARO

 Chef & owner, Atelier Amaro
Warsaw, Poland

JUSTYNA ADAMCZYK

CEO & Editor-in-Chief, Gault & Millau Yellow Guide, Poland

MATYLDA GRZELAK

Restaurant manager and researcher, Pädaste Manor,
Estonia

Participants