Alchemia

Alchemia has become something of a flagship in the gritty club world of Kazimierz. Packed to the rafters almost every evening, this place is more than just a pub/club - it has become a genuine place of meeting and partying for the Kazimierz crowd. Overflowing into several rooms, Alchemia is strikingly decorated with old paintings and furniture, but utterly without pretence. Popular with artists, most gallery openings throughout the district culminate in splendid bohemian madness at Alchemia - where dancing on the tables in the early hours in a fog of smoke, surrounded by countless burning candles seems simply the most natural thing in the world. Unmissable.

it's a must...AN AMAZING PLACE THAT SHOULDN'T BE SKIPPED!

This is such a cool place! I loved it!

Fantastic bar/pub in the Kazimierz district. Wonderful atmosphere- kooky and a bit melancholic, but completely bewitching. Went there a few times and only managed to get a seat once- its very popular with the studenty/alternative locals. Not many tourists (other than us) but the staff and locals alike were welcoming. Drinks were well priced and service swift. Would highly recommend that you visit this bar, and indeed the Kazimierz districts, if your visiting Krakow.

wish we had one in ny :-)

Still my fave place in town and with the jazz festival on it's way , there will plenty of great gigs to attend there.

Legendary place, bad bar staff:( Still worth a visit though!

Alchemia :o)The place,where my jurney was begun...with looove :)

obsluga swiadczy o lokalu.
przy zakupie 1go piwa barman bezczelnie sie ociagal z wydaniem reszty, a jak juz wydał to powiedzial "co za ludzie nawet napiwku nie dadza". za co? za to ze mi piwa naleje do kufla? chyba za to juz dostaje pensje...
szkoda dla niego bo po 3cim piwie zawsze daje dyszke napiwku. cierpliwosc poplaca. alchemia zostala nam polecona jako jeden z lepszych klubów -juz wiecej nie wstapimy, a szkoda bo miejsce samo w sobie urocze.

Classic!!!

great spot,love this bar the most of all the bars in krakow,
great effect with the walkin wardrobe,never felt rushed and the service was excellent and friendly and loved the little cakes on offer and the whole building was great a real throw back from the 1920s.
forget about all your pubs in the old town this is the place to be

Best bar in Cracow, period. The bar has an old and authentic atmosphere, while the people are young and modern.

The Original and best, if you're in Kazimierz you just have to go. Best in the early hours of the morning!

A cool place to hang out and watch the wanderings on the square...

Like something out of the Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus. I dread to think how thick the layer of tobacco grime there is on the ceiling. Best to just drink your beer. Enjoy!

Visited last year (March 09)
Looking forward to returning Feb 2010.
A 'one off' place to visit.

Pozdrowienia i duzo szczesia zycze moim wszystkim znajomym z Alchemi

Nice bar, good atmosphere but ruined by the bar staff. I dont think I have ever encountered more ignorant people behind the bar. They seem to spend most of their time insulting foreigners and mocking them in Polish (I know because my Polish friend translated) Other than that I would recomend it for a drink, but be sure not to tip the assholes behind the bar...especially the small shit with black hair

Stumbled upon this fantastic place by accident as I strolled around Kazimierz. This was my first time to Krakow and this bar/cafe really made the break magical. I returned again this year and plan to go back next year. I first went there in day time and it takes on a different but still magical feeling at night. You must visit everyone was very friendly.

a right moody bar.at night with the candles burning it could be the most perfect bar in the world to spend time with your loved one.

Excelente lugar, estuve ahí hace unos meses,me pareció fantástico, Polonía es mágica y su gente me hizo sentir como en casa.Saludos a todos en Krakovia. wwww.poeticahomeostasis.blogspot.com

Very dungeons and dragons! Both loved it!

Super cool bar. Dangerous - you'll never leave!

Thanks for sharing the piano with me till morning:)
Really a lovely place!

Thanks for sharing the piano with me till morning:)
Really a lovely place!

Went to a crazy jazz klezmer session here during the festival and ended up spending most of the night/morning in the bar. Crazy place. Loved it!

I love Alchemia

Cracow is my favorite city and Alchemeria is the best place to be to soak up the atmosphere. It is the perfect place to meet strangers that fast become friends. It's eclectic choice of music means your'e never bored. And the staff - friendly and generous with their time towards non-polish speaking visitors. Can not wait till we are there again.

Quite a cafe this! Loved watching life go by on the square....

funky, bohemian and chill environment
definetly a must!!

Ci sono stato quasi due anni fà e devo dire che il ricordo di Alchemia è ancora vivido; perchè è il posto che meglio rappresenta Cracovia, romantico, buio, decadente, e sopratutto suggestivo. Vi consiglio di andarci il pomeriggio quando la luce che entra dalle finestre contrasta con il buio dell'interno...unico.

I liked it. It is dark and atmospheric with candlelit tables and a good mix of people. If you are a non smoker, the one big downside is that this is the smokiest bar I have ever been in. It seemed like the entire bar was smoking!

B-side

Upon entering any club there is a latency period of anything between half-a-second and 3 or 4 hours before the fun starts.

Estimates suggest that B-side falls off the scale, how could anyone ever enjoy voluntarily living part of their lives in such a stinking shit-hole?

Walking here I had to cross a bridge (partially fulfilling a dream of walking on water), swans plunged in an unceasing filtering of a murky subaqueous world unknown to me, but going to B-side shook off my illusions and crashed me bitterly down to earth.

The sound of breaking glass here is well-liked, as is a primeaval screaming plucked from the tortured souls of those losely trying to dance. Mates violently and destructively pogo-ing their misdirected energy into each-other. (I imagine they imagine they are living the gilded-lives of hotel-detroying rock and roll heroes themselves).

I bang the glass of beer against my own forehead in misgiving and misunderstanding. The urge to add to the carnage peaks then troughs.

Then I go back there : and there and back again; somehow despite this attempt at mockery, of cleansing myself of its stink which even now clings to my follicles -somehow I caught the bug.

That's B-side in a nutshell.

Fantastic, Bohemian place. Excellent for a group or for a romantic night. When you enter it, it feels like you're in a different world.

The bar has style...in its own way. I like hanging out in Kazimierz quite a bit and I would recommend having a pint in this place. Not the easiest place to meet people, though. It seems like everybody comes with a group and just sits at tables. Staff could be a lot more friendly, but maybe this is a Polish thing. I was standing by the bar and talking with people, and you would think that the staff would engage you a bit in chit chat, but nope! Nothing! Just sad looks on their faces like they were thinking..."only 1 more hour and I am out of here..." Other than that, check it out.

se la tirano da morire, però il locale è molto bello e ci si sta bene.

Simply the best!

Das Alchemia ist ein unbedingtes muss für alle midnightflyer. Die Mischung aus leicht staubig und angestossenem Interieur gepaart mit exquisiter Fotografie an den Wänden (Oktober 2007) und einem jungem Publikum, dass mit Musik gegen den Zeitgeist verwöhnt wird, hat in mir einen nachhaltigen Eindruck hinterlassen. Hätte ich nur einen Abend in Krakau, im Alchemia würde ich unbedingt mindestens ein Zywiec trinken!

Alchemia is a one thing and it's lovely but the owner is... the bar was cool, music good there is nothing bad; exept stuff but this is normal in Poland, so you should not complint...but the owner. ;) Any who it was worth it!

I liked it very much! Mysterious and exciting place. I'd like to visit again...

Assolutamente imperdibile! Vivace e frequentato tanto il pomeriggio quanto la sera. Ottima birra e buoni cocktails e il locale...davvero troppo carino. Andateci!
Tania & Mirko

Love this place dearly, but recognise Mark's frustration with the staff. They don't give a shit and are happy to hang out in the kitchen ignoring the line at the bar. (They also take a certain amount of pre-meditated glee in seeing your hot beer overflow when you try to drink it.) The too-cool attitude is annoying, but the popularity of this place, especially with foreigners, must be tiresome. Still, if I wanted Parisian snobbiness, I'd go live in Paris. I also understand their need to get a proper bouncer, but this guy is a royal asshole; if he doesn't want me inside, fine--there's a million other great places I can have a drink...

The staff here have got a serious attitude problem. I was recently refused service here on the grounds that i was too drunk already... which would have been fine, however this was merely a pretext towards very thinly disguised xenophobia by a moody bar wench. Shame it's a nice place but needs a fresh set of staff if it's going to remain one of the best places in Kazimierz. No one wants American style 'have a nice day' corporate service but I don't think a little respect towards the customers who pay their wages isn't too much to ask. Getting the high and mighty treatment from a lowly kitchen hand is not my idea of fun...

Don't miss it!!!

Beautiful place, beautiful atmosphere, to the evening illuminated only from the light of the candles...
Only a problem, for the little light, a group of 3 German girls, has stolen the pocketbook to me.
Unfortunately I m sure of that, because many times 6-7 are passages behind me where I held the jacket for to go to the bath. After I have only understood as the things had gone..

Alchemia Pub on Estery 5 is a real cultural institution and classic Kazimierz at its best. Each room has its own name and characteristic decoration. You can sit in Hell, Purgatory, Alchemy or in the Kitchen which is entered through a stylish wardrobe. The Hell’s floor is made of sandstone from the 600-year old flooring of the St.Catherine Church in Kazimierz, while one wall is covered with burnt boards from a local barracks.
There is also a cellar where there is a place for frequent and always very good live concerts and theatre plays, movies and other cultural events.

This bar lives up to all of the expectations listed on this page. It oozes atmosphere, the portraits seem to have eyes that watch your every move, and seeing the wardrobe door pop open when you didn't realize it was another room is akin to discovering an alcoholic Narnia. Go. Now.

Woah. Mystic polish atmosphere. Cracovian memories are made of this place. No pointing. Watch out for the puddle by lil ash's feet. I want to be back here now. Be here or be Jerr. Whoops, two fingers.

STUNNING! Nice and pretty (rare combination huh) girls and friendly & mystic atmosphere. One of my faves in Krakow!!!!!

Never see this in Holland. Stunning! Krakow rules, really!!

Everybody needs somebody to drink...

Wonder unusual bar. Relaxed and easy to be in for far too long!

this place is one of a kind, darkly atmospheric but welcoming. when i went in there were students working by candlelight and attractive females reading existentialist novels and drinking strong coffee. i'd highly recommend this place and i look forward to returning with a copy of a nietzsche or kierkegaard and a suitably intellectual opening line.

This is my favourate bar in Krakow. The atmosphere at night on a weekend is superb. It is lit entirely by candles and is more like being at a house party than a bar.

It's a good place to be romantic or a just to sit with friends and chat. I will definately go back.

I was here 1st w/e in March. Alchemia is atmospheric and low-lit on a Wednesday, seemed good even though fairly empty. We returned on the Saturday night and it was great, didn't want to leave. My fave bar in Krakow.

Absolutely awesome! The best pub in Cracow without a doubt! We had a wicked time here and will be back.

Alchemia es el lenitivo, el rincón cálido y plácido, lugar para conversar, reflexionar y ensimismarse. Refugio del viajero que arriba a Cracovia.

Alchemia is why i come to cracow!

Alchemia...elle me manque beaucoup!! Cet un lieu super extraordinaire!
Gros bisous à EWCIA, MICHAL et JUREK :)

totaly nice! in and outside at anytime. a great place to start or to end the the day!

More bohemian than a Dandy Warhol, this is the essential Krakowian venue for planning a proletarian revolution, discussing which is the best of the Pink Floyd albums, or simply enjoying an afternoon beer. Na zdrowie!

We visited in the day time and had a lovely time just chilling out watching people stumble through the wardrobe door into the 'hidden rooms'!

Happy New Year to my favourite club in Krakow!

Best of Kazimierz! Just keep coming back and back and back ... with old and new friends, all loving the place as much as me!

Amazing place. Beautiful to discover, wonderful music, black cats everywhere. For sure I´ll try to come back. There´s something hard to explain about its atmosphere and the suggestion it makes in the people. You´d better go and simply experience. It won´t dissapoint anybody.

Incredible place! The atmosphere is very magic and jewish. When you take your first step in your mouth will be wide open untill you make your last step out! I'm fully recomending this pub to everybody who want to leave reality outside the door :)

Fantastic! Alchemia is king of Kazimierz! Singer used to be the place to hang out, but it's all happening now at Alchemia - they seem to be expanding (theatre, music, everything is going on here) and all the Krakow artists hang out too, so its colourful. Check out the dripping wax candlesticks - it's like the Rocky Horror Picture Show. Where are you vamps?