Some restaurant names are marketing. Morriña - Taberna Galega in Poznań is named after a feeling. Morriña is the word Galicians use for homesickness, the particular sadness of being far from home and missing family and friends. The restaurant explains the name itself, and it is a fair summary of what the place is for.
A tavern built around missing home
Morriña's own description reads like a list of things a Galician would pack. The walls carry ceramic letters spelling out the main cities of Galicia. There are signs from the Camino de Santiago and scallop shells, the symbol pilgrims have carried to Santiago de Compostela for centuries. And there is a Racing de Ferrol shirt, because Ferrol is the hometown of Iago, the owner.
The word "taberna galega" in the name is Galician rather than Castilian Spanish, which matches the rest of the room. Galicia, in Spain's green north-west corner above Portugal, has its own language, its own music and a long history of emigration. Galicians left in large numbers for Argentina, Cuba, Mexico and later for the rest of Europe, and Galician cultural centres abroad, like Casa Galicia in Queens, founded in 1940, grew out of that. A Galician tavern in western Poland is a newer version of the same story.
More than a place to eat
What stands out in Morriña's record is how much of it is about people rather than plates. The restaurant says many customers come to speak Spanish, with the staff and with each other. Others come for Spanish music, or to watch Spanish league football. For a Spanish learner in Poznań, a bar where the conversation switches to Spanish at the counter is useful in a way no menu is.
The team says it wants to promote Spain and Galicia, their culture and their food, and to be recognised as a Spanish restaurant while living in Poland. You'll find it at Święty Marcin 61, one of the main streets of central Poznań. It sits in the mid price band in our directory.
What to order in a Galician tavern
Morriña's record doesn't list a menu, so check with the bar for what is on the day. If you are new to Galician food, these are the dishes most tied to the region:
- Pulpo a la gallega, also called pulpo á feira: boiled octopus cut with scissors onto a wooden plate, finished with coarse salt, pimentón and olive oil.
- Empanada gallega, a large, flat filled pie cut into squares, often with tuna or pork.
- Pimientos de Padrón, small green peppers fried and salted. Most are mild; the odd one is hot.
- Tetilla, a soft, mild cow's milk cheese shaped like a cone.
- Queimada, a flaming punch of orujo spirit, sugar, lemon peel and coffee beans, traditionally made with a spoken spell.
Galicia's white wines, Albariño from Rías Baixas in particular, are the usual match for seafood. With octopus, Galicians traditionally drink young red wine from a small white ceramic bowl called a cunca.
Other Spanish tables in Poland
Our directory lists 16 Spanish restaurants in Poland, half of them in Warsaw. Two are especially relevant if Morriña is your starting point:
- Pasodobre at Śniadeckich 25 is Poznań's other Spanish restaurant in the directory. It takes its name from the paso doble dance and describes itself as an ambassador for Spanish food and hospitality in the city.
- La Bodega Bielsko in Bielsko-Biała specialises in traditional Galician cooking, with ingredients sourced from Spain, and regularly hosts evenings of Spanish music and dance.
For more on Warsaw, see our weekend tapas crawl, or browse all Spanish restaurants in Poznań.
