Moving to Poland - Culinary Concerns and Food Markets Availability?

Hello!

I'm from Los Angeles, currently still in Los Angeles, but moving to Poland next week! I'll be in Warsaw, teaching English. I was wondering what the markets were like in Warsaw-- not the job market, the food market! I do a lot of cooking, and hopefully I'm not letting my imagination run away when I assume my apartment will have a kitchen (I've just come from China where that's not always the case, even in the nice apartments). I'm big on cooking because I have a pretty severe allergy to a food that's in more than you'd think: milk. This includes: cheese, cream, butter, margarine, most chocolate; anything with casein, lactic acid, whey. Very very sad, as I wasn't born with this allergy, so I know what pierogies and pizza taste like, but I can no longer have them :[

So, anyway, food markets? I'm from LA where we have farmers markets, fresh produce sold independently by the farmers, but there are also supermarkets, etc. I'm not a snob, I'll get my produce from anywhere I can, but I'm just wondering which is the best place to buy from, economically and otherwise.

Also: spices. As I'm still in LA I can still get spices I may not be able to purchase in Poland if there's not a big international market there. I like cooking Indian food, Italian food (I'm sure herbs for pasta won't be a problem to attain), and Mexican food.

Last one: Baking. China didn't have ovens (or did, but very small and for far too much money). I love to bake, but I need to know what common baking ingredients I can expect to find in Warsaw, and what dairy (milk, but not eggs, I'm fine with eggs) substitutes I may need to plan ahead for.

I don't have any other dietary restrictions.

bring your spices to Poland, otherwise you would have to look for some all over Warsaw - I just find that it is easier this way and since they don't weight that much you might as well bring a handy supply.


you should be OK in Warsaw when it comes to fruits, veggies, meat and so on. If you avoid processed products, you should be fine.


they are ovens in Polish kitchens, so you should be fine.


what are the milk substitutes in baking. I bake at times and I don't recall using milk products while baking. Perhaps you have a particular dish in mind?

we have soy milk and rice milk. I haven't seen almond milk yet.

you can get most spices here. there are a few like allspice and cream of tarter that are not here- maybe in a few select shops.

the grocery stores have pretty well stocked fruits and veg. venders will sell them in certain areas to- like everywhere that a lot of people are. Mexican food is not the best here. Particularly being from LA you will have amazing Mexican foods- you might want to bring the spices necessary but Italian and Indian you should be ok.

I also picked up allergies later in life. I even carry an epi pen. it is such a drag.

There's a minimum of 2-3 Mexican restaurants here per city block. It's a rule, lol. Seriously, LA has some of the best Mexican restaurants, without having to go south of the border.

While in Warsaw, I did notice the following ummm Mexican restaurant, located in old town.

• 
  Mexican Restaurant
  

"what are the milk substitutes in baking. I bake at times and I don't recall using milk products while baking. Perhaps you have a particular dish in mind?"

Well, when it comes to making cookies or the cake part of cake, oil suffices as a butter substitute, but for frosting, they require vegan butter that's easy enough to find in supermarkets in LA, but not in the further reaches of LA county even. I do have recipes out of a vegan cookbook for making vegan butter, so I'll have to see what I might need for that should I be making any dairy-free goodies.

The Mexican restaurants in Warsaw are not that good. Unfortunately because Mexican is one of my favs. Particularly for someone who comes from LA- it will be an insult to eat at one.

I found otherwise. We had a apartment, on Hoza, and near by was a fine Mexican place, good food, fair price, good service. On my next trip to Poland, I am sure, I will return and enjoy again.

Mike

First of all nice you chose Poland :)

For Italian food herbs would be no problem. For Indian or Mexican, you should bring as much of spices as you can from US. You could find spices in specialised stores (I don't live in Warsaw but many big cities would have such shops), I am not sure about their quality though.

For milk - in every middle supermarket you will find Soya Milk in "healthy food" alley. You can also try to search for Rice Milk. I saw it in Carrefour market once, but I am not sure if it is also available in other big markets (like Tesco or Real).

How about goat milk?

I've never tried goat milk, and haven't yet gotten the results back from my allergy tests. I'm hoping that the allergy was temporary and passed, but if it is still present, I'll be finding out soon if I can have goat milk without going into anaphylactic shock.

So in short: goat milk, no idea.

if you are anaphalactyc like I am- make sure you have enough epi pens. when I was going through testing here there were none to be found in Warsaw except for one that would expire in a month- and they are not cheap. I had to wait for the manufacture to produce one. they have an expire date on them- so make note of that too.

I carry an epipen on my person at all times and I have a spare. I am so careful about what I eat I am at a very low risk for using it, but it should be and is known by whoever is in my company where it is on my person and how to use it. Always. This is, in fact, a matter of life and death.

I know how it works- I have the same issue. My point is that epi pens are few and far between in this country. And they have an expire date so it is not like you can stock pile them for your duration here. If you are only here for a year than it is no big deal.

Merged: Has anyone bought Brazilian cut 'picanha' in Poland?

Hello.

Have anyone bought the Brazilian cut picanha in Poland from a local butcher or imported ?

I saw it only in restaurant - Delmonico Cut Steakhouse in Sopot. Maybe try to ask them where to get it ;)