The Fabryka Trzciny restaurant is located far from city noise but at the heart of culture. The restaurant, just over a year old, is in the grounds of its larger Fabryka Trzciny sibling, the huge cultural venue that is now celebrating its third anniversary.

Fabryka Trzciny is an art gallery, theater, concert hall, discussion spot and dance club all in one. Outstanding artists, including Cesaria Evora, Ive Mendes and Urszula Dudziak, have already made appearances here. Many other notables have also dined at the restaurant, located in a separate small building. "It complements what Fabryka has to offer," says PR manager Ola Kosik.

The facility on Warsaw's right bank and built in 1916, used to house factories that produced marmalade and tennis shoes. It was also once home to a meat processing plant.

The current decor includes whispers of the past, such as a meat grinding machine as part of the bar. "In this industrial setting, the restaurant is an additional place to sit down and talk in peace. It used to be a cafeteria. We wanted the place to be in touch with the old atmosphere, but also comfortable and fun," says manager Mariusz Cyzio. The small space includes three rooms: a lunch room, the Tr±bki room, named after the trumpets hanging on the walls, and the study. The floor includes some of the factory's original pavement and old floorboards. The chandeliers are from a few decades ago, and a fragment of a brick wall has also been preserved. There is a romantic table for two and sofas with soft cushions.

The menu has dishes that provide hints of old Warsaw and the Praga district: so-called "art-industrial" cuisine. Meals refer to Mediterranean, European and Polish tastes. Soups like the cream of horseradish with grilled parma ham (zl.12) are a hit. "Goł±bek (zl.18) is our flagship dish; it is served with a demi-glace sauce which the chef is particularly proud of," says Kosik. The marinated herring with onion, cream and Hungarian sauces (zl.16) is worth trying. Warsaw-style cod with potatoes, beets and horseradish sauce (zl.25) as well as the six-pierogi dumplings set (zl.12) are both interesting choices. Carrot cake with nuts, cinnamon and honey ice cream (zl.18) and "the chocolate soufflé with a hot heart" with nuts, ice cream with fresh mint and sauces (zl.18) are some of the best desserts. "The whole idea here is that we serve dishes that every Pole has eaten a hundred times, but here things are a little different. They come with a surprise and a twist," says Kosik.

Restauracja Fabryki Trzciny, 14 Otwocka St., tel. 0-22-612-1705; open Tuesday through Sunday, noon to 11 p.m.; guarded parking, air conditioning, internet (Wi-fi hot spot), facilities for the disabled.