Crazy Klezmer Fun Pub in Kazimeirz, Krakow!
- March 23, 2009
- Rated 4 of 5 by
dangaroo from Warsaw, Poland
Alchemia's location by the main square in Kazimierz was always bound to attract a fair amount of tourists even if that perhaps wasn't their main intention. A cosy cavern of a pub, Alchemia plays center stage to the Klezmer scene in Krakow and hosts numerous excellent Jazz and Klezmer concerts in the basement, when there are no live gigs it is still a popular place though. Prices have sneaked up and were never dirt cheap to start off with but the pleasant atmosphere of people getting ratted at busy candle lit tables and occasionally dancing around them adds to the enjoyment of the pub.
This pub brings in all sorts and you could as easily meet a dream girl as you could an elderly drunk Welsh choir talking about rugby. The last time I visited this pub, it had major issues with the toilets which were getting far too much use and backing up so that a visit to the toilet meant getting knee deep in a mixture of wee and water.
Smokey and Bohemian there is something more Czech about this place than Polish, despite being a mecca of culture as well as hedonism, it has a grittiness that is rarely found in such places which would usually inhabited by the glasses and book brigade. People let themselves go whilst here for the night and it's just as well as it would be no fun swimming in the urine drenched toilet listening to a Welsh choir if you were feeling serious!
A visit to the cosy Alchemia is well recommended, if it's raining it is definitely worth getting in early and being at the forefront of any of the night's events! In the summer, the pub has tables outside and this can come as a pleasant relief for any non smokers.
Alchemia
- December 21, 2006
- Rated 5 of 5 by
mucher from Krakow, North Dakota, Poland
Alchemia is where it all started. Fifteen years ago Kazimierz, the Jewish Quarter was a drab collection of dirty streets, little more than a slum. It did not look much different from its envisioning in "Schindler's list". But Alchemia was one of the first places, that made it renowned for it's bars and pubs - now second only to the Old Town. Located at the corner of Plac Nowy, the central point of the quarter (at least for locals, Szeroka Street might seem better known to the tourists) it's impossible to miss. The name - Alchemy - implies some magic was in use. Indeed it was - you can see that just from the setting. One of the rooms is an Alchemists workshop - complete with an ornate metal cage hanging from the ceiling. But there's also Hell, Purgatory, The Kitchen - that you enter through an old wardrobe it really gets packed in the evenings (and a bit stuffy too, especially that the whole place is candle lit). A barrel of wine sits on the counter and at the tables the patrons are engaged in conversations - over the best Pink Floyd album or the portraits that look from the walls. Over the years it has become quite an institution - there's partying to be had, of course - but you may just as well stumble upon an indie movie show or a concert. Sometimes you can come in and find yourself in the middle of a Orthodox New Year's Eve (mid-January), another time - it may be a Moulin Rouge-inspired party (given the bohemian atmosphere, it's fully justified). Regardless of what it will be, it's guraranteed you will return someday...
From journal Krakow Treasures