The Pierogi Boys Are Reinventing Polish Comfort Food in Ridgewood | Eater NY

"Inside a renovated funeral home in Ridgewood, Queens, this bright, stylish daytime cafe, nighttime restaurant, and in-house market reimagines Polish comfort food with a modern, lighter touch. The relatively spacious room is framed by windows and anchored by an enormous mural by illustrator Gosia Herba from Wrocław, a look that departs from the cavernous, wood-paneled Polish spots of Greenpoint. A bold, minimal menu draws inspiration from contemporary Polish chefs like Beata Śniechowska’s Młoda Polska and from Pittsburgh’s Apteka, which creates beautiful Polish flavors by smoking everything, yielding seasonal plates (heirloom tomatoes in summer, cold beet salads as fall turns to winter) and year-round bites like deviled eggs—bright yellow fountains crowned with trout caviar. A pork schnitzel arrives not with a plate of potatoes but with an endive-and-anchovy salad—“not gonna leave you in a food coma.” Afternoons bring a playful sandwich board from Matt Oliver, including a Polish banh mi that layers carrots and liver pâté with traditional Polish ham. Pierogis are a constant, shaped like miniature puffy hats of soft dough and filled with potato and cheese, mushroom, or a pork-and-beef blend. Drinks include the cocktail named szarlotka, after a traditional Polish apple pie, as well as a pickle martini made with a literal pickle, and the Pierogi Boys Market stocks favorite brands of mayonnaise, imported snacks, craft beer, and canned fish—part of a vision to represent Polish food and culture to non-Polish diners without the old-school trappings (like a flag) they say aren’t necessary." - Andrew Karpan