Al dente

Al Dente is a pizzeria, spaghetteria, and Italian restaurant in Krakow's Kazimierz district, but it's not like one of the many "Italian" restaurants in Krakow. Their dishes are 100% original traditional recipes prepared by their Italian chef, and they specialize in cuisine from the region of Sardinia, importing several ingredients directly from the region. On the weekends, Al Dente serves fresh seafood and fish prepared in the traditional Sardinian way. Their pizzas are prepared using only the original Italian ingredients by their Italian pizza chef. In addition to the wide selection of dishes, the restaurant also offers a selection of the best Sardinian wines. The list includes few kinds of the full bodied "Cannonau" (red) and few kinds of "Vermentino". These wines are not easily found in other restaurants, and they may be a wonderful discovery for the wine-lovers that live in Krakow or just come here as tourists!

Siamo stati a Cracovia per una settimana e per ben 4 sere abbiamo mangiato nel ristorante 'Al dente' un angolo di Italia in una città bellissima. Locale molto accogliente e carino. I proprietari sono ragazzi italiani (sardi) quindi la cucina è rigorosamente italiana e con specialità tipiche della Sardegna. Lo consigliamo a tutti italiani e non e come dicono loro...
Da AL DENTE ti riempi la panza e ti rilassi la mente!

I have to respond to Tom Hedinger's review below. I have lived in Krakow for 6 years and I eat out at restaurants in Krakow almost every day, so I know the restaurant scene very well. My second home is in central London and I have travelled and lived and eaten all over the world. Al Dente is one of the best in Krakow especially if you order one of the day's specials. It is not a always perfect, like every good restaurant. The service in Krakow is almost universally poor and this is because they have yet to understand client culture. Al Dente is better than average in Krakow, and much better when the Italian owners are around. Tom's comment that he gave it a 1 "to get your attention" I find spectacularly ignorant, egotistical, selfish and were it not for his writing style I would think would come from a pre-teen.

Bel locale, ottimo cibo, siamo stati accolti benissimo. Lo consiglio a tutti i turisti che visitano il quartiere ebraico!!

Fantastic food and fantastic wine... a piece of Italy in Poland ...Thanks guys

Wspaniale jedzenie!!!! Chyba jedyna restauracja gdzie gotuja wlosi :) polecam

Bylam tam tydzien temu w weekend i bardzo mi sie podobalo. Swieze owoce morza PYCHA!!!! mile miejsce szkoda ze nasz kelner byl troche pijany :(

buona scelta di vini italiani, e ottimo cibo, siamo stati bene, proprietari e lavoratori sono tutti italiani, me sentivo a casa!!! grazie di tutto ciao ciccio

good food nice garden quite quarter...but a bit sad atmosphere!!!

I love Italian food and this seemed like a great opportunity both to do a spot of sight-seeing in Kazimierz and enjoy some well reviewed Italian cooking. Neither happened.

Al Dente is not in what I would consider the heart of Kazimierz. So what, one might say? And indeed if one is after the full ambiance of this district it might be unimportant if the food was spectacular. Unfortunately it wasn't.

I can't remember the first course, it was so uninvolving though to be fair my wife quite enjoyed the 'bruschette'.

We made two mistakes in ordering the second course. Firstly, having eaten magnificently at lunchtime we were not especially hungry and both ordered a second starter (i primi) as main course. This probably didn't do much for the restaurant's profitability nor the waitresse's anticipated tip. This much was reflected in the utter indifference to even a basic notion of service. We waited and we waited - in full sight of the bar, the waitress and the lethargic Lothario who was also on duty- for our starter, our glass of wine each, our second starter, my second glass of wine. We gave up on sweets and coffee.

When the Ravioli finally arrived one couldn't distinguish what the filling was (Spinach and Ricotta) but this was something of a moot point anyway since one could have paved the backyard with the pasta. Thick and tasteless. Oh dear!.

Let's gloss over the house wine (Red) indifferent and expensive because that tends to be the norm in Poland. However I always judge a restaurant, at least in part, on its house wine and quite frankly, one expected better, much better in a such a well considered establishment.

I have been coming to Poland for over twenty years and if this was not the worst meal I have eaten there it was certainly the most disappointing.

The restaurant itself is nothing special. Bland, featureless, could be in any city Europe or the States. No sense that you were in Krakow, let alone Kazimierz. Not bad, you understand, merely rather ordinary - just like the food.

It deserves more than the one star I have given it, perhaps four or five but I wanted to catch your attention. You can do so very much better in Krakow, especially if you go native.

Went there last night and my date as well as myself were very impressed.

The food was great, the service pretty good; on a nice date they never interrupted us, but when we wanted to be looked after they were very quick to do so.

I read reviews here and honestly laugh at people that try to be correct but misspell a name of a dish, or insult the wait staff. Perhaps there is a reason staff were not eager to help.

I would recommend this place if you are looking for a nice meal, a quiet date, but would dissuade you from visiting if you are looking for a stuffy, old fashioned, and boring Italian restaurant.

bella atmosfera, buon mangiare e buon vino, cosa si puo' volere di piu'....un buon limoncello offerto dal proprietario, grazie ragazzi a presto! gli amici di Roma

ottimo cibo e tipica atmosfera italiana, lo consigliero' a tutti gli amici che vogliono andare a krakow.

Real Italian food, made by Italians, better than many places in Italy. I was really happy i've found this place, would definately recomend it and will go back again.

si mangia e si beve bene, poi i sardi sono simpaticissimi, bravi alla prossima!

ragazzi si mangia veramente bene, e sono quasi tutti italiani.Consigliato

I strongly recommend this restaurant!!! the waitress was polite i think her name was asha.. we had a little conversation in polish we had a great dinner we ate good food and the staff was friendly and professional ,real italian people !!! mamma mia!!!

veramente un buon ristorante... da provare assolutamente...

Our compliments we had nice food and nice time in this restaurant. The waiters were nice and the owner help us a lot with informations and hints usefull for our trip! Great place! Consigliato a tutti i vacanzieri italiani a Cracovia

Superb food, superb service, superb wine, superb restaurant!

Great italian food! Un ristorante italiano di italiani, qualche piatto sardo, vino buono e non è caro si va sul sicuro!!

Super mengiata di pesce e frutti di mare, buonissimo, peccato che il vino non fosse abbastastanza freddo! Consigliato++++++++

ottima atmosfera e ottimo cibo, mi sembrava di essere in italia.....quando andate a cracovia andate a mangiare da al dente

A gem in a town of mediocrity, and I live here! One of a handful of restaurants where I go back to regularly and don't resent paying the bill. Bravo!

I had a great meal at Al Dente. The Bruschetta platter was super topped respectively with olive carpaccio, tomatoes and mozzzarella, Pastas were great as well. Other than pizzas at Mama Mia, best Italian food in town

..spaghetti con bottarga e vermentino ghiacciato graziiieee!!!

First class food with interesting Sardinian specialities, great selection of Italian wines at reasonable prices and friendly owners and staff who know how to provide great service. We've dined here many many times during our 15 months in Krakow and have never been disappointed. Well worth the visit.

Un ottimo ristorante italiano a Cracovia! Il nome al dente è più che azzeccato e si vede che è gestito con amore da italiani. Spettacolare la pasta alla bottarga e il branzino con patate accompagnati come ci hanno consigliato da un bel vermentino sardo ghiacciato! Abbiamo preso anche la pizza ed era meglio di quella che mangiamo a casa! Ottimo consigliatissimo fateci un salto che merita!

complimenti, si mangia davvero bene,se torneremo nuovamente a cracovia sappiamo dove andare a mangiare.Consiagliato+++

Excellent food, wine and service! This place can be compared to what we are used to in San Francisco. Definitely check it out!

Bella! Per la prima volta ho mangiato bene all'estero, non mi sembra vero! Eccezionale la pasta alla bottarga, ottimo il filetto e grandioso il vino sardo. Se andate li chiedete dei proprietari che sono italiani, il trattamento sara di tutto riguardo

One can eat really well there- i' ve tried fish, some sea food and delicious Sardinia's wine. The interior is very modern, service excellent. definitely worth visiting!

IL ristorante è difficile da trovare,ma ne è valsa la pena cercarlo,ho mangiato davvero bene,mi sembrava di essere in Italia.CONSIGLIATO+++

Food and service - great! Must say, i really loved the wine :)

Great food! Excellent service!

Tried food you served and enjoyed it really much! Hope to be able to come again at least a few times before going back home :)
You have the best choice of wines in Cracow !

Just love the atmosphere there- feels like being in Italy. Fish great and wines extraordinary! Well done guys!

The food is outstanding - best Italian dishes I have ever tried !

ambiente accogliente ottimo cibo e ottimo vino!!un ristorante da provare! un saluto a Sante e Mauro

Very very good food! After a few days I finally found this place in Krakow and I spent the rest of m holiday eating there. Thanks to the boss for the suggestion of the wine, the vermentino and cannonau was excellent! In bocca a lupo ragazzi!

Excellent cusine, especially the fish, nice and friendly service, lots of Italians there. The best of the restaurants that we tried in Krakow

Tutto ci aspettavamo, tranne che un ristorante sardo a Cracovia! Abbiamo mangiato spaghetti alle vongole, pesce fresco e gamberoni, bevuto vermentino ghiacciato e quasi sembrava di stare a Cagliari! Consigliato al 100%!

We have become regular visitors to Al Dente where the food is always first class, good selection of nice Sardinian wines and friendly attentive service. Definitely worth a visit to try for yourself!

Ottimo ristorante,lo consiglio a tutti

Abbiamo trascorso un weekend a cracovia e ci siamo ritrovati in sardegna, buon vino e dell'ottimo pesce fresco!! Lo consigliamo a tutti.

I was not expecting much from this restaurant, as I don't expect much from ANY Italian restaurant abroad, but I must admit that this time I was positively surprised. The quality of the pasta was high, the wine was excellent and the service very kind. I rate it 4 because I REALLY wanted to have a tiramisu but they had just finished them! I wish I could stay a couple of days longer just for that, since where I live there is no chance to get a decent one!

Il cibo e' ottimo, ed i proprietari sono simpaticissimi! Lo consiglio a tutti andate a trovarli.

Excellent food!!! BRAVY

When we arrived to Krakow, we expected everything but finding such a good italian restaurant. Sardinian food and fresh seafood reminded me and my wife our summer trips to the beautiful island and made us nostalgic! The service was nice and they also offered us an espresso and a drink at the end of the meal. We definetely recommed this place to everybody.

In questo ristorante si mangia meglio che in Italia!!!ottimo vino e prezzi davvero bassi!!! ci vediamo alla prossima vacanza.

Ho mangiato veramente bene,da "aldente" si sente il tocco del cuoco italiano...bravo mario sei forte!!!

Excellent meal and surroundings food reasonably priced but the wine was a tad expensive but would definitely recommend this place. As the streets are not well lit you do need to keep walking down the street or your could miss this place which would be a shame.

" Really fantastic choice of wines and very tasty Italian dishes make this place worth coming over and over again!"

I was suggested to visit this restaurant by one of my friends who said it was great. Indeed, he was true. The food is really delicious, the atmosphere is very nice and the owners of the place are always there, which is a truly exceptional thing compared to other restaurants in Cracow.

Probabilmente il miliore ristorante italiano di Krakow e sicuramente la miliore pizza di tutta Polonia! Tutti i piatti hanno sapore come a Italia!

Cucina italiana ai massimi livelli! Questo ristorante è stato x noi una vera sorpresa, andate a trovarli xchè se lo meritano. Bravi ragazzi!

I'm Italian and I work in Krakow, when a friend told me about this restaurant (it's spelled Al dente) I went to try and it was a great discovery! Finally a restaurant with the full taste of Italy, with the best pizza in Krakow or maybe in Poland and a selection special dishes from Sardinia region! The Italian owners are nice and friendly and I felt home again! It's my new favourite restaurant and I suggest everybody to try, I'm sure you won't be disappointed