House of Beer on Kraków's Świętego Tomasza pours 25 rotating Polish craft taps. Tasting flights, an English-speaking team, a cellar room with a quieter back bar.
Food program: Snacks
Tip: A four-glass flight at 25 zl is the way to taste through; the back-cellar room is quieter.
Address: ul. Świętego Tomasza 35, 31-027 Kraków
Viva la Pinta on Kraków's Floriańska is the dedicated taproom of Browar Pinta, the Polish craft brewery that started the country's IPA wave in 2011. 14 rotating taps.
Signature drink: Pinta brewery's seasonal releases
Food: Snacks
Tip: The seasonal Pinta cards rotate weekly; the IPA is the brewery's defining beer.
Barka in Kraków is the riverside-barge bar moored on the Vistula at the Kazimierz-Podgórze footbridge. Polish craft beer, summer DJs, the city's best sunset table.
Signature drink: Polish craft beer
Food: Burgers and grilled snacks
Tip: Open summer only, roughly May to September. Cash and card; queues form at sunset.
Movida on Kraków's Mikołajska in the Old Town runs a refined cocktail and plate room: Polish Mules with Wyborowa, Polish and Mediterranean food, regular live music.
Signature drink: Polish Mule with Wyborowa
Food: Polish, burgers, Italian and Mexican plates
Tip: Walk-in; open daily 16:00 to 03:00. Cocktails and plate menu through the night.
Absynt on Kraków's Miodowa in Kazimierz pours 20 absinthes the traditional drip-and-sugar-cube way in a Belle Epoque room. Live music on Thursdays.
Signature drink: Absinthe drip
Food: Bar snacks
Tip: The traditional absinthe drip with sugar cube is the order; open daily from 10:00 to past midnight.
Harris Piano Jazz Bar in Kraków's Rynek Główny cellar has run live jazz nightly since 1996. Whiskey-heavy bar, candle-lit cellar, free entry on weeknights.
Signature drink: Whiskey old fashioned
Food: Bar snacks
Tip: Live jazz nightly from 21:30; weekend slots fill by 22:00. Reservation by phone.
Piwnica pod Baranami on Kraków's Rynek Główny is the cabaret cellar that ran the city's literary-cabaret scene since 1956. Saturday cabaret, Polish vodka and the original room run weekly.
Signature drink: Polish vodka
Food: Bar snacks
Tip: Saturday cabaret nights need booking ahead. The cellar room is also open as a regular bar most weeknights.
