Warsaw and Krakow are knee-deep in a Soviet-style throwback.
As it grapples with rapid modernization and new disposable incomes, Poland’s younger generations are flocking to the establishments that once represented economic austerity and cultural suffocation under Communist rule. These Polish hipsters are reviving the once government-subsidized “milk bars”—canteens which served, and still serve, cheap and hearty meals meant for all the country’s comrades: Mercedes-driving businessmen and lowly professors alike—and trendy bars that have risen from the ashes of once-Soviet historical landmarks. That Poles today have a fondness for a turbulent period whose retro, kitschy aesthetic they are eager to celebrate is an irony not lost in these reinvented haunts. Here are 12 of the best spots across Warsaw and Krakow where you can relish in this blissfully irreverent Polish trend—while it lasts.