We open the story of our new menu with an appetizer – baked kohlrabi stuffed with mushrooms, onion, cream, herbs and beurre a la polonaise – inspired by Fania Lewando.

Inspired by Fania means that the dish is a creation of this pre-war chef, author of the cookbook “Dietojarska kuchnia żydowska” published in 1939. The book was considered lost, but it was eventually found. In 2015, an English translation was published, and in 2020, the book was reissued in Polish, translated directly from Yiddish.

It is also worth mentioning that Lewando ran a vegetarian Jewish restaurant in Vilnius that was a favorite spot for Marc Chagall. She was also the head chef on the Batory ship.

Fania is a very interesting character for us, and we will come back to her often. We want to revive her name, which disappeared from public consciousness for so many years due to the war.

The book was published by Znak publishing house [@znakwydawnictwopl] and, along with other inspiring books, will be added to our restaurant’s library, which will be accessible to our guests.

The photo of Agnieszka and Aleksander was taken in the Fania Lewando workshop room at the @Polinmuseum.