SWINDON can say ‘na zdrowie’ – good health – to a new restaurant stretching the horizons of residents’ vocabulary after Karczma Polska opened in Old Town.

Yesterday the eatery opened to crowds of people itching to try the delights on offer from traditional Polish pierogi, paczki and golabki, all washed down with the country’s famous beer.

The Wood Street venue, which is in the unit formally occupied by Los Gatos, which moved onto larger premises in Devizes road earlier this year,is expected to answer the demands of the town’s growing Polish population as well as offer non-Polish guests a taste of Eastern Europe.

The restaurant is co-owned by Craig Gavin and Andrzej Swietek, whose wife Marlena Swietek is a traditional chef and moved to Swindon from Poland two months ago.

Andrzej, who has lived and worked in Swindon for more than six years, said: “The Polish community is big in Swindon and it keeps growing, but there is nothing really to bring the community together.

“There are no bars or cafes of restaurants and there really needs to be something, which is why we’ve decided to open the business.

“There’s more than 15,000 Polish people in Swindon and we just wanted to create somewhere where they could come and enjoy Polish food out on the town.

“My wife is a professional chef and she moved to Swindon from Poland two months ago, so we thought we’d run the business and ask her to run the kitchen.”

Following the decision to form the business and take on the unit left empty by Los Gatos, Karczma Polska underwent a full refurbishment of the restaurant area and the kitchen, Andrzej said: “We completely redecorated. We took out the old bar and replaced it with our own one and refurbished the kitchen too. We’ve tried to foster a homely atmosphere so it’s inviting and just feels like a home from home.

“We knew we wanted to be on Wood Street because that’s where all the restaurants and bars are and where people go to eat out. It just adds to all the different international cuisines available in town.”

Among the dishes on offer will be the Polish speciality, golobki, a dish of cabbage leaves stuffed with spiced minced meat and rice served with tomato sauce.

They will also offer pierogi, a dish of dumplings usually filled with sauerkraut served with sour cream.