February 5th, 2006 | The lowdown by Steven Brooks

Two Cats, Lots of Flavor.

In Wroclaw, there are copious tearooms and coffee shops – but I’ll mention my favourite, lest anyone claim they can’t find anything better than Coffee Heaven or Coffee Planet.

The name is K2 – or as it’s also known ‘Two Cats’. The name is important as it used to be known as K7, you guessed it: ‘Seven Cats’, until about two years ago, and many locals still haven’t noticed the different sign on the door. The reason for the name change is unknown and is never discussed – neither is the whereabouts of the other five cats: so if you’re having trouble finding K2 – try asking for K7 and you’ll probably get lucky.

In fact getting to K2 is half the fun. On the south side of the market square you’ll see a sign advertising The Blue Passage under the Golden Sun, it’s in Polish of course, so just look for Coffee Planet and an ESL book shop, and the entrance to the Blue Passage is between them. Go through the passage until you get out the other side and you’ll arrive on ul. Kielbasnicza (Sausage Street) turn left, and then left again into the next passage you see and you’ll find the entrance to K2 in a little courtyard.

At this point you’ll only be able to see K2’s front door, next comes the exciting part: go up the steep concrete steps you’re presented with having opened the door and turn left when you reach what appears to be some old lady’s hall way. Her front room is now ahead of you, warmly lit, with knick-knacks on the wall and candle-lit tables, but this is K2 and the steep concrete steps ensure that this is only a cool person’s hangout with not a single granny in sight.

You’re next adventure will be deciding what you would like to drink. K2 is well-known for its fruity varieties of teas and coffees and it would simply be a waste of time getting a cappuccino or hot chocolate. Banana, Orange, and Vanilla are among the flavours of tea available, and come in large wide glasses (with a biscuit), but the coffees are preferable if only for their tendency to be different every time you go there depending on who is making them – as you might have guessed, I’m something of a regular.

The fruit coffees comprise of a think fruit syrup at the bottom with a flavoured coffee poured over it. The coffees are listed with the flavour of the syrup first with the flavour of the coffee second, so if you ordered my own personal favourite: Kawa Jagodowa-Orzechowa (Coffee with Berries and Hazelnut) you can stick you’re straw into the berry flavoured syrup at the bottom and then mix it with a swig of hazelnut – what could be better than that at the end of a cold day?

Now you can sit back and be tempted by the Ciastki (cakes) and listen to the music being played, which again seems to vary depending on who is working. K2 is a charming little place that you should go to when you feel like getting away from bars and restaurants for a little while, and should be returned to over and over again until you have sampled every combination of tea and coffee they have until, like me, you have found your favourite.