Restaurant meals have greatly improved in the past decade. It used to be nearly impossible to find decent food outside of a private home, but entrepreneurs have seized on the growing numbers of businessmen and tourists. In addition to standard restaurants (restauracja), look for places with the word karczma (literally "inn") in the name. These are often done up in traditional, peasant style, with simpler cooking and a warmer atmosphere. Here and there you'll still see the occasional bar mleczny, or milk bar; these self-service canteens traditionally cater to students and are great for simple Polish meals like pierogies, potato pancakes, soups, and some meat dishes. Milk bars often have shorter opening hours, are nonsmoking, and don't serve alcohol.
