Taste of Polonia - Get Your Starch On

We, somewhat impulsively, wound up grabbing lunch at the Taste of Polonia today. I went with what I'm dubbing the "Polish Vegetarian Combo" - 1 potato pancake, 1 cheese pierogi, 1 sauerkraut-mushroom pierogi, 1 potato pierogi, and 1 blintz, all served with a healthy portion of applesauce and sour cream. Like garlic to vampires, this plate would really repel the Atkins followers! I thought my favorites would be the pierogis, but, man, that was one crispy-on-the-outside-soft-and-creamy-on-the-inside potato pancake! Nicely seasoned too. Husband enjoyed a Polish hot off the grill and a mound of sauerkraut. It was a tad hot (what with the event being held primarily in a blacktop parking lot!) but a couple of Okocim beers made it tolarable. Walked past the Euro disco in favor of the Polkaholics and found some shade. All in all, a pleasant way to pass an hour or two.

Taste of Polonia
When: August 31 : 12 p.m. - 11 p.m.
September 1 : 12 p.m. - 10 p.m.
Price: $6-$7; $3 for seniors; free for kids under 12 Event Phone Number: 773-777-8898
Copernicus Foundation Center Neighborhood: Jefferson Park 5216 W. Lawrence Ave.
Chicago, IL 60630 773-777-8898

I agree-- this is a great festival. Smaller and not as crowded as Pierogifest, but with very good Polish food and excellent beer. We sat in the shade provided by one of the Okocim umbrellas for most of the day Saturday, enjoying good, cold beer and some dandy music. There were great freebies for children (balloons, piggy banks) and adults (Okocim bottle openers). Very enjoyable and accessibly by public transportation. We enjoyed pierogies from Kasia's, and another place-- and did I mention the cold beer?

Thanks for your reports, we have always enjoyed this fest the few times we've been there over the years.

What I'd like to know is...what booths have the best food? There are 3-4 different booths all serving the same food.

I wonder if anyone has any thoughts on what is the best food item to get at each booth..ie: Kasia's for Pierogi's, etc...

We need some LTH pro's to chime in on this one. Thanks!

We're planning to pack on a pound or two again this year at Taste of Polonia. As it was a nap-inducing lunch last year, our tentative plan this time is to go for dinner on Sunday followed by a couple of beers while enjoying the music and people-watching. If anyone goes on Friday or Saturday, please post your thoughts on what was good (or not so good.) Thanks!

Taste of Polonia
September 4th-7th
Copernicus Foundation Center Neighborhood: Jefferson Park 5216 W. Lawrence Ave.
Chicago, IL 60630 773-777-8898

We did wind up grabbing dinner here last night. The fest was celebrating it's 30th year. As I expected, the crowd was bigger and the lines a lot longer at night. We decided to just pick one booth and place our entire food order there. Went with one we didn't try last year - Kasia's. Here's what we got:

1 order potato pancakes (2 large)
1 order pierogies (8, your choice)
1 grilled polish sausage plate

I was disappointed with the pancakes. Last year's (can't recall where we got them from,) were thicker and better seasoned. While these were very crispy and not greasy, I found them bland. Also, they only came with a stingy amount of sour cream, whereas last year's had generous sides of both sour cream and applesauce.

The pierogies were very good. Not Smak-Tak good, but better than those we tried the previous year. We had 4 cheese and 4 mushroom-sauerkraut. The tangy cheese were the stand-out. I tried, unsucessfully to trade Jonathan my last mushroom for his last cheese, but no dice.

I didn't try the sausage which looked and smelled good and was consumed quickly. It came on a good portion of tasty sauerkraut, along with mustard and a bland piece of rye bread which remained uneaten.

A couple of Polish brews, several cover bands covering the hits of the 70's and 80's, great people-watching, and a booth offering "buy 1 pair of sunglasses for $20, get 2 free," made for a very enjoyable good-bye to Summer evening.

I wouldn't travel far to attend this fest, but it's nice to have so close to my 'hood. We'll be back again next year!

Was there on Monday. Crowded but not so bad you could not move 6.00 to get in and I found the food to be on the expensive side. Zapiekanki was the least expensive thing for 5.00. From there it went up to 10.00 for a plate of food. When I think of what kind of meal that would buy me in a decent polish place I passed on the food drank some beer bought the wife sunglasses and went out to eat.

Taste of Polonia will be open from 5-10 p.m. on Friday, noon-10 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday and noon-9 p.m. on Monday. Tickets, which are $5 before 5 p.m. and $10 after 5 p.m., are available online. Children younger than 12 are granted free entry.

https://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/2017082 ... of-polonia