Hotel Review: My Stay at Stara Kaflarnia, Biskupiec

I decided to make the town of Biskupiec my first big adventure for this new website and travel blog. I was excited at the prospect of it and dedicated a full weekend to enjoy the sights and sounds of Biskupiec. As it is a small town, and very untouristic, accommodation options are few and far between. For this reason, and because Biskupiec is small and no hassle for a backpacker, I decided to spend Friday night in Stara Kaflarnia and Saturday night in Hotel Atelier. You can read my Hotel Atelier review here. My journey took me on a train from Warsaw to Olsztyn and then on a bus from Olsztyn to Biskupiec.

Stopping off in Olsztyn on route to Biskupiec

Getting a bus to Biskupiec from Olsztyn

This place, Stara Kaflarnia has a unique bit of charm to it. This is uncommercial Polish hospitality at its best. If you choose to visit Biskupiec, this is the cheaper option for you, and the nearest this town has to a “backpacker’s hostel”. You want to know the facts here? I was the only backpacker in town, and probably this report and my other stories on the town make me the first foreign travel writer to properly cover a visit to Biskupiec. Which of course, is my trademark and was my pride and joy on my previous project, the now defunct (RIP), Don’t Stop Living blog.

Stara Kaflarnia, Biskupiec

1.Cosy rooms
My room was cosy, warm, clean – everything you would expect really. I have been shocked by the high standard of hotels in Polish towns like this – they are always pristine. The hotel reminded me of the Hotel Zawisza in Bydgoszcz, the Noclegi Rekord in Starogard Gdanski and the Hotel Nad Wierczya in holy Pelplin.

My cosy room!

The bathroom was also pristine, I had a TV, a desk and Wi-Fi. I also had a window out to the street, with light blinds so any locals looking in may have got a glimpse of nudity as I often forget to cover up before I shower.

My window to Biskupiec

2.Good location
Location wise, Stara Kaflarnia could be a good place for those with a car. There is a big car park here. I was backpacking on foot of course though, and the hotel is just a 5 minute walk from the Rynek. I arrived here by bus from Olsztyn, so I had a 15 minute walk. Most of the best sights in Biskupiec can be reached within a 40 minute walk.

Nice location here – Stara Kaflarnia

Officially, Stara Kaflarnia is situated on ulica Wojska Polskiego.

3.Full Bar and Restaurant
To enter the hotel part of Stara Kaflarnia, you need to go through the main doors, past the reception and up to the trendy bar and restaurant. It can only be described as a good looking, well designed interior.

The bar and restaurant at Stara Kaflarnia

The bar serves good drinks, including tea and coffee and grzane piwo (hot beer). Because of this I also included it in my Thirsty Fridays feature.

A hot beer – Grzane Piwo

The restaurant menu is vast – with all sorts of Polish cuisine to pizzas and kebabs. The choice is huge here. In the town I also loved the steak house – Steakownia Biskupiec.

There’s a good menu here.

The menu – some of it

4.In Room Wi-Fi
Because Biskupiec is a little mysterious and old-fashioned, I wasn’t sure if my stay here would have Wi-Fi or not. But I was wrong, and pleasantly surprised. Not only does the bar and restaurant have Wi-Fi, but my room had fast Wi-Fi so I could update my blog’s Facebook Page live.

I could blog in my room

5.Polish Charm
It’s the quirky décor of the main restaurant, the stylish carpet picture above my bed and the choices of Polish pierogi, good Zurek soup and some spicy winter Grzane Piwo (hot beer).

Polish Charm, Stara Kaflarnia, Biskupiec.

6.Extras
What I found amusing was that Stara Kaflarnia is many things all in one – it’s a bar, a restaurant, a disco, a party venue, a fitness club, a hotel and more. On my last day here, there were about 100 people inside the main room playing card games!