The Knaypa

I came here for a private party. The top floor was quite quiet. Downstairs is a good place for hosting a group dinner.
Loved the pickles and the jar of crackling fat. Lethal!
The sour soup starter which came in a bread bowl was amazing. It has kielbasa sausage and hard boiled egg and had such good flavors.
The pierogies were fried which was a disappointment (and shock to my Polish friends). They were supposed to be assorted, but for some reason I got all the meat ones on my plate.
They recommended a Maldovian wine which was undrinkable and the service was spotty at best.
Go for the soup and beyond that proceed at your own risk…

Terrible service but the food is nice and they don’t rip you off on drinks which makes a refreshing change! :)

Visiting the restaurant for my friends birthday last night. There were 15 of us. Food was nothing special, very overpriced for what it was. Service was slow and the waitress was extremely rude. Talking and insulting us in Polish!!! We tried to contact the manager by telephone who didnt speak English and then hung up.
We brought our own birthday cake and asked if we could have it at the end of the meal, they had the cheek to try and charge us £30 for this ‘privelige’. Unbelievable. Obviously we refused.
On the whole a very dissapointing birthday meal. Would never return or recommend this restaurant to anyone!!!

It was a mission getting to this restaurant in southwest after a longish day at work in the City but thankfully, it proved well worth it! I hadn’t read up about the more rustic setting provided downstairs so we sat ourselves down at the table in the modern, red-​and-​black themed section (which, to the paranoid passerby, might suggest a completely different sort of an establishment: P).
There were originally supposed to be 4 of us so we had a table for four booked but one had to drop out and another came an hour late (!). We must have been a very difficult table to manage for the poor lone waiter on our floor. I’m normally not fond of dining with fussy eaters but this evening I had two on my table, including someone allergic to egg (you’d be amazed at how many things have egg!) and another who’s a vegan, but the waiter was exceedingly patient and even went downstairs to the kitchen to get suggestions from the chef himself on what’s safe to consume. To top it all, my co-​diners had bizarre requests on splitting the soup between two bowls and separating the vegetarian and non-​veg peirogi (traditional dumplings) on different plates — yes, I’m not proud of these tendencies amongst some of my friends! But the waiter was exceedingly obliging and uncomplaining, to the point where I genuinely felt bad for the poor chap.
We needed to linger till our very late friend arrived but we found the drink and starter choices ample to fill our time. For drinks, I had the cocktail Grass Night — Zubrowka (Polish vodka), Apple juice, Fresh cucumber slices — refreshing! My friend had 50ml of the home-​made flavoured vodka, Wisniowa Sour Cherry, which tasted lovely. For starters, the two of us who’d sat ourselves first split a Krokiet soup (rolled crepes filled with sauerkraut and wild mushrooms lightly fried in breadcrumbs, served with borscht) — Borscht is an clear burgundy soup with an earthy beet flavour and winey tones, and an excellent way to whet your appetite, can’t recommend this enough!
For mains, by when our much-​delayed friend had arrived, we had Zbojnicki ~ potato pancakes served with a hearty beef goulash (my egg-​allergic friend had the pancakes replaced by mash) — a most hearty meal of tender beef and rich spices, I was most impressed! The potato pancakes were deep fried too, so all in all, already a heavy meal, before digging into the variety of peirogi (dumplings) in varieties of Pork, Sauerkraut & wild mushrooms and Farmer’s cheese, potato and onion — all brilliant but I do like the variety with mushrooms the most. My vegan friend had ample choice and she went for Vegetarian golabki ~ cabbage leaves stuffed with wild mushrooms & rice, mash potatoes, mushroom sauce, a decidedly less spicy rendition than the other mains but most flavourful nonetheless.
To accompany our substantial mains, we ordered a pitcher of Miodowa Honey, hot honeyed wine which is more potent than it sounds. It had a little tealight underneath to keep it warm throughout. Come dessert time, we were stuffed silly and most loathe to eating anymore for days to come, but I had been recommended the home-​made cheesecake at this place so we sat put for a while (the ever-​patient waiter was understanding) and recovered till we found room in our stomachs to split the giant slice of Sernik ~ home baked cheesecake — a crumbly, light, not overly creamy cake which provided the perfect finish to the perfect Polish meal.
We left the waiter (Bartek) a well-​earned generous tip and yet paid only 28quid/​person for the staggering amount of food and drink for the three of us. We resolved to come back to be patrons of their excellent food and service. Next time, I shall be asking for the seating downstairs in the rustic décor and all… I urge all Unilocalers to go check this place out :)

Visited this restaurant twice, the first with my Polish language class and the second with my wife. Both times I left satisfied and very full!
A friendly atmosphere with classic Polish dishes and of course a good selection of Vodkas!
My favourite is still the Zurek (sour) soup served in a bowl made of bread. Delicious!

Knaypa means ‘pub’ in Polish, but while this newcomer’s dark wood basement may look pubby, the ground floor is a much more polished affair of red leather chairs, smoky mirrors and black tables.
In keeping with the style of this lower section the food is served in time-​honoured fashion on hand carved lime wooden platters adding a touch of authenticity to the whole affair.
The food is predominantly polish but there are some under tones of other Eastern European cuisines. The dishes are served in that posh like manner that you can experience in fine dining, but they don’t cost an arm for a leg, on the contrary. For instance, the Kulebiak is spinach, tomato & cheese wrapped in French pastry served with tomato sauce (£4.50), only two per portion but they are lovely.
As a main I had the Confit Duck Leg on buttered cabbage served with roast potatoes in tomato sauce (£10.50) and I have no words, tender, warm and very yummy!
To be honest I can’t wait to come back! To give them the 5^th star!

Hammersmith is home to a few Polish restaurants and Knaypa is the new kid off the block. Upstairs the dining room is modern and sleek, downstairs apparently its more folksy. Went to dinner tonight with a group of girls — one of whom is Polish so she was able to direct us to the genuinely polish dishes. We tried the pancake and goulash and meat pierogi with a couple of side salads (white cabbage, beetroot and creamed spinach.). All were quite tasty though the goulash was a little salty. Extensive Vodka offerings, as one can imagine. Prices for food are reasonable with our main courses averaging £10 though the more complicated you go (like a pork leg or schnitzel or fish etc.) the more expensive it gets. With a main each, three salads to share between four of us, three vodka mixes, a juice and service it came to £18.