Restauracja U Babci Maliny

From Spain: Everything was wonderful. My brother and I went out for dinner and everything was great. The waiters Adrián and Dominika were very attentive and friendly at all times. We came back twice. Highly recommended — good portion sizes and good prices. Thank you for everything ❤️

We are three Argentine friends who had just landed in Krakow and decided to go out for dinner after a long trip. Not only was the food incredible—delicious and abundant—but the place itself and the service were excellent! We’re very happy and we highly recommend this restaurant. I would definitely come back.

There’s no way this restaurant is a 4.1! I came here in 2019 while on my stag do with friends. It was fantastic. Just bought my wife on a 5 day break and it was again wonderful. Came in here twice and had the sirloin steak. This was a really big tasty piece of beef that was basically like a fillet. The potato’s and the pickles and stuff all went with the beef really well. I do think some other customers (Americans) were overly critical of the waiters because they expect perfect English. It is Poland! Ignore the star rating, you will really enjoy it. They have a fantastic piano player playing too in the evenings. Bravo! Will be back when we come to Krakow again.

We are family of 3; child 8 years old, picky to food. Kotlet schabowy, bigos, pierogi with meat and pork steak with mushrooms ordered. While waiting for food enjoyed live piano music. Pianist girl bravissima 🫶 All the dishes were amazing - well prepared, rich of taste.great experience. Service in high standard 🔝 Even 15 min line to get a table were good as we could explore the wall of pictures. Really recommend this place 👌 The next day, waiter met us on a street and said “hello”! 🤩

The entrance to the restaurant was rather small compared to the dining halls in the basement. The renovation was unique with lavish furnishings of lights, paintings and even dolls exuding local culture and ambience. The food was tasty and required some waiting due to the crowd.

U Babci Maliny is the quintessential polish restaurant/self served bar. The food is good, although certain things, like beetroots, come from the soup itself, cooked for hours, so they're not nutritious at all and taste a bit strange. The portions of some foods are really massive (like cutlet for example taking the whole plate), which means some of it it's wasted unless you take a doggy bag which will cost you 1 zl. The prices are decent (although it used to be cheaper) but some dishes on the menu are overpriced. I understand that prices might be higher downstairs where the restaurant is but for the self serviced bar it's a bit much (for example those pesky cooked for many hours beets come at 15 zl which is a lot considering what it is and the size of the portion). The food was much better in the past. It's self service which is ok but sometimes orders which were placed later arrive sooner than others. Atmosphere is ok, trying to be a bit villagy. They also don't cater much for people with intolerances (I said no butter or cream but I suspect there was some as I felt the consequences later on). It is after all typically polish food, so.. Yet I feel they could try to bring the better taste from before. With their expansion the taste went downhill, which is a real pity as they were one of my favourite bars before. 69 zl for a pork semi burned cutlet with potatoes, portion of beetroots and a tea in a self serviced bar I consider a bit pricey for polish standards (somehow if I chosen similar cutlet with potatoes, butter and cabbage instead I'd paid 13 zl less. Not sure why they can't substitute cabbage for beetroots). Overall for tourist it still might be a nice stop, if they don't know polish cuisine. Just order wisely. For the bar reservation is not required nor possible (I went on a Saturday evening and found space) but for the restaurant recommended (although still possible to catch a table).

There was a time, back when Kraków’s culinary secrets lived in basements and not on influencer reels, when Babcia Malina meant something. The original location, tucked under PAN, was a local legend, no frescoes, no piano, just honest food and the quiet thrill of beating the system with a plate of pierogi. Now, it’s a different basement, and a different beast. The décor is undeniably charming, wallpapered walls, surprisingly elegant frescoes, and yes, a live piano that adds a touch of salon flair to your dumpling detour. But the food? It’s not great. It’s not even “fine.” It’s passable. The kind of meal that fills the stomach but leaves the soul untouched, like someone read about Polish cuisine in a textbook and decided to recreate it with a microwave and a Pinterest board. Service is polite, prices are inflated, and the ambiance is curated for tourists who want a taste of “authenticity” without the risk of encountering an actual babcia wielding a ladle and opinions. I miss the old Malina, the one that felt like a secret, not a set piece. This version is pretty, polished, and perfectly forgettable.

Food was amazing, tastes like real homemade food during my childhood. Environment was really enjoyable and warm. Also, the waiter recommended us a soap that was incredible.