Gdansk – Browar PG4

I’m always pleased to see new brewery restaurants opening up, and this is located at Podwale Grodzkie 4 in the basement of a city hotel. It’s quite easy to miss the restaurant as it’s to the rear of the building, rather than accessed through the main frontage of the hotel.

The brewery equipment gives a positive first impression, with everything looking modern and clean.

The beer selection, at first sight, looked interesting, but unfortunately the majority of it wasn’t available. The staff member made an appropriate alternative recommendation, but I was a little disappointed at the lack of dark beer.

Unsurprisingly, the restaurant wasn’t packed at 14:00 on a Monday afternoon in rainy Gdansk.

The restaurant interior, like the whole theme, is modern and on-trend, so there’s a contemporary feel. The menus at the table are in Polish on one side and in English on the other, with the prices being surprisingly reasonable given the location.

The service was efficient, attentive and very polite throughout, so it did feel like a welcoming restaurant. The beer tasted of a high quality and seemed fresh, with the temperature also being appropriate.

I ordered the fish and chips, because I do that a lot. The meal was beautifully presented, but I don’t know what the red dollops of sauce were, so there was a slight element of style over substance.

The fish was battered in a panko type breadcrumb, which made it crispy and added texture. Unfortunately, the whole fish was over-cooked slightly, so although perfectly edible, there was a bit too much texture for my liking. The cod itself flaked away and seemed of a good quality, and it had a pleasant taste. The tartare sauce seemed home-made and the chips tasted excellent, firm on the exterior and fluffy on the interior.

Overall, I thought that this was a rather pleasant location and it had a calm and welcoming atmosphere. The staff members were pleasant and the food wasn’t unreasonably priced, with the 0.5 litre of beer and food coming in around £10, although that’s towards the higher end for Poland. Ideally, there would have been a wider beer selection though, especially when they’ve got so many of the beer menus around the restaurant area.