My final stop on this trip was back to Warsaw, somewhere I felt I really need to properly explore after spending too little time last year, so I made sure to spend a decent time walking around the city going to various museums. As far as rock pubs go there seems to be not much other than the Metal Cave, which I visited last year and was intending to return to. However I wanted to experience more of the Polish capital’s vibrant nightlife, so I made a point of looking at what microbreweries and craft beer places there are. This time round I discovered two impressive places. The first was Hopito, which served some great craft beer and also had a decent food menu too:

Next place I went was Beczka Chmielu, a microbrewery located a bit further out of town in the Wola district of the city, but conveniently on the way to the Metal Cave. This too had an impressive range of good beers and had a nice homely atmosphere to it, and the bar also featured decorative toilet rolls featured the hated (especially so in Poland) Russian President, Vladimir Putin. I would say this is a good place to chill before heading to the Metal Cave.

Finally I made it to the Metal Cave, to see what the atmosphere was like of a weekend. On Friday evening it was laid back but fun enough, especially when I ended up chatting with two Ukrainian women who had wondered in, looking for somewhere with rock and alternative music. I was able to explain that this probably was the best place in Warsaw for heavy metal and rock, and also talking about how I was writing about experiences of rock bars as I travelled. They also really appreciated me telling them about the Putin toilet paper in the previous bar, and also taught me the Ukrainian for “Cheers!” which I subsequently forgot. I returned there the next evening for one last gig on this trip, featuring three Polish rock bands: progressive rock band Memorial, stoner rock outfit Bold Wombats, and finally alternative band Redhead Hero:

It was a pretty good gig and I particularly liked Redhead Hero at the end, and this was a great way to conclude another tour of the mainland European metal scene.

INFORMATION

• Hopito: Żurawia 32/34, 00-503 Warszawa, Poland. Open Mon 17-00, Tues-Thurs 15-00, Friday and Saturday 14-02, Sunday 14-00. Tel: +48 797 393 282. Google Maps Facebook
• Beczka Chmielu PUB: Wolska 89, 01-229 Warszawa, Poland. Open Mon-Sun 15-00. Tel: +48 690 472 884. Google Maps Facebook (not updated since December 2022)
• Metal Cave: Jana Olbrachta 46, 01-111 Warsaw, Poland. Open Mon-Sat 19:00-23:45, closed Sun. Tel: +48 502 422 266. Note this place is cash only so make sure you have plenty with you before you leave the centre, cause the nearby machines will charge extortionate rates to make withdrawals on foreign cards. Website Google Maps Facebook (Facebook is the most reliable way of keeping up to date with gigs happening in the bar)