A city's history can be read in its buildings and archives, but in Koszalin this summer, 760 years will also be explored through food.
Food has a way of preserving history differently from monuments or documents. Recipes change, ingredients travel and traditions adapt, yet meals can still offer a direct connection with the people and places that came before us. That idea sits at the centre of Ulica Smaków 2026, a culinary event bringing Koszalin's history and contemporary food scene together under the theme “Koszalin Smakuje 760 Lat”.
Taking place on Sunday, 30 August, at the Koszalin Amphitheatre and surrounding green areas, the free event forms part of the city's 760th anniversary celebrations. Organised by Centrum Kultury 105 in Koszalin, the Krajowy Ośrodek Wsparcia Rolnictwa and the City of Koszalin, it will explore the city's culinary history alongside the work of today's local restaurants and food producers.
The concept reaches back across centuries, from medieval recipes and historic marketplaces to Pomeranian food traditions, the development of food processing and the modern restaurant scene. Rather than presenting those periods as separate chapters, Ulica Smaków places them alongside one another.
From medieval recipes to today's local kitchens
One of the event's central attractions is the historical culinary demonstration, where Łukasz Gładysiak will explore recipes, products and culinary stories connected with Koszalin's past. The programme is designed to show how ingredients and cooking traditions can change while remaining connected to the history of a place.
That historical perspective is paired with a distinctly contemporary one. Local restaurants, bistros and food outlets have been invited to take part in a culinary competition, with each participating dish required to use a regional product sourced from local producers or associated with Western Pomerania.
The competition gives the festival a practical way of examining what “local food” means today. Rather than simply displaying regional products, participating restaurants are being asked to interpret them through their own cooking.
Visitors will also be able to encounter those ingredients and dishes through the event's permanent zones. The #KupujŚwiadomie market brings together regional food producers, rural women's associations and craftspeople, while the restaurant zone provides an opportunity to sample dishes from Koszalin's contemporary culinary businesses.
There is a historical dimension to the market as well. The planned history zone will present old photographs, menus from earlier periods and a “Kalendarium Smaków Koszalina”, creating a visual timeline alongside the food being prepared and served in the present.
The result is a festival in which history is not confined to an exhibition. It becomes something visitors can see, discuss and taste.
A competition shaped by local ingredients
The event's culinary competition adds another layer to that connection between past and present. The dishes entered by Koszalin restaurants and bistros will be assessed by a jury including chef Andrzej Polan, representatives of Centrum Kultury 105 and Krajowy Ośrodek Wsparcia Rolnictwa, and the President of Koszalin.
Polan's role also connects the local competition with the wider Polish culinary scene. He will present a modern cooking demonstration using local ingredients, offering another perspective on how regional products can be interpreted in contemporary cuisine.
The programme culminates in the announcement of the first winner of the Ulica Smaków competition. According to the latest published programme, the awards are scheduled for 17:00, followed at 17:15 by a final culinary presentation led by Robert Bochenko and Łukasz Gładysiak. The demonstration, titled “Historia spotyka współczesność”, will bring historical recipes and products together with modern culinary approaches.
That structure captures the central idea of Ulica Smaków particularly well. The event is not attempting to recreate the past as a museum piece. Instead, it asks what remains relevant when historic ingredients, recipes and traditions are brought into conversation with the kitchens of contemporary Koszalin.
The wider programme continues that theme through performances and entertainment, including a presentation by the Bałtycki Teatr Dramatyczny and a closing concert. Across the day, the Amphitheatre becomes a meeting place for food producers, restaurateurs, performers and visitors.
For a city marking 760 years, it is an appropriate way to look backwards without becoming fixed in the past. Koszalin's culinary history has been shaped by generations of people, products and changing tastes, while its present-day food scene continues to add new chapters. At Ulica Smaków, those chapters meet around the same table.
Visitor Information
Event: Ulica Smaków – “Koszalin Smakuje 760 Lat”
Date: Sunday, 30 August 2026
Time: 12:00–19:30
Venue: Koszalin Amphitheatre and surrounding grounds
Admission: Free