CLEVELAND — Cleveland is one of the most ethnically diverse cities in the state, home to people from dozens of different backgrounds. But members of one cultural center in the Slavic Village area are fighting to keep their Central European heritage alive.

What You Need To Know

  • The Polish American Cultural Center opened in Cleveland's Slavic Village in 1998

  • Participation in the center has dropped off following COVID and other changes in society

  • Chef Brandon Chrostowski is helping draw attention back to the center through a restaurant pop-up

  • Bar Mleczny serves traditional Polish cuisine and reservations are requested

After more than 20 years of cooking in the Polish American Cultural Center’s kitchen, it’s a labor of love for Bernadette Zubel and Zofia Kazimierczak.

“This is our second home,” Zubel said.

And making traditional meals takes time.

“The Polish food is not the fast food,” she said.

That's a lesson chef Brandon Chrostowski learned hands-on.

“It’s amazing working in this kitchen with such, like, gentle hands to the Polish cuisine,” he said.

Chrostowski is lending his name and talents to a pop-up restaurant called Bar Mleczny, serving guests Thursday nights at the center.

“It’s going to keep the fuel going in all of our souls,” he said.

Chrostowki said he’s the second generation of his family from southern Poland and grew up with the classic cuisine on the menu.

“At home this is what I cook,” he said.

He’s also familiar with the restaurant business. He’s the head of EDWINS Leadership and Restaurant Institute and was nominated for Outstanding Restauranteur by the James Beard Foundation this year.

“He’s an angel coming to the center kitchen,” said Agata Wojno, a volunteer with the Polish American Cultural Center.

Agata said her husband Darek, the organization’s CEO, encouraged her to reach out to Chrostowski for advice on how to fire up interest in the center.

“We didn’t expect a miracle,” Agata said, surprised he volunteered to help feed the community.

She said member involvement has dropped off in recent years.

“The volunteers, they’re getting tired,” she said.

Profits from the restaurant will help preserve the history held inside the center’s museum and keep the facility going.

“The world has been taken by social media a lot,” Agata said. “Polish people moved out of the Slavic Village. There is a tendency to say it is a very unsafe place.”

But with Chrostowski pouring his passion into the project, Darek said he’s confident the restaurant can help revive the entire community.

“When we started, Brandon said we can open the best restaurant in the area,” he said. “I think it’s going to be the best restaurant in the United States.”

The group is proud to share the Polish culture and hoping the restaurant’s a recipe for success.

“This is home,” Chrostowski said. “This is home now, and we’re looking forward to having people visit our home.”

Right now Bar Mleczny is only open Thursday nights and reservations are required. They’re hoping to expand to more days in the future.

Non-Polish American Cultural Center members must pay a special $5 membership fee to dine at the restaurant.

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