borsch, vodka & tears

some consider it a chapel street institution; a stalwart that has withstood the test of time and numerous intoxicated patrons after they indulged upon the niceties of their extendedvodkalist. many consider it a place to get hardy polish-inspired food (and other morsels from that countries neighbours) however i think of borsch,vodka& tears  on chapel street as a fun place that you really can't take too seriously. not in the sense that the food or anything is a joke per se, but because it is a fun atmosphere that doesn't try to exude an attitude or be something that they are not. a heavily stocked bar withvodkafrom both poland and the general area around its borders greets you before service tends to. most of the time you are left to choose a table to your liking however it is a small dining room so the few choices by the window will either be already taken or dirty, which was the case when i turned up on a recent visit. a seat was happily taken in the rear of the restaurant which

styled after a krakow bar, borsch,vodka& tears in prahran specializes in polish vodka, authentic wormwood absinthe and hearty polish cuisine. sit by the bar and soak up the charming bohemian atmosphere of yesteryear. try one of their turkish apple teas, served with pomegranate molasses and medos honeyvodkaand a big bowl of borsch. if this doesn’t get your blood pumping, nothing will.

hearty food, always reliable. funky crockery and morevodkathan you can shake a stick at. it's a favourite of ours. highly recommended, along with its sister restaurant "after the tears".

walking in on a cold saturday night to a cozy mood lit restaurant we were greeted by friendly staff who took us straight to our seats. despite us being 1 of 3 tables there, it took about 10 minutes for our waitress to bring menu's, which was my only criticism. for there out the experience was great. our waitress explained the menu (read:vodkaselections) as it can be quite overwhelming for a first time. the food was brought out quickly (gnocchi, lamb croquettes and polish borsch) and was plenty for the two of us. thevodkais very much up to personal preference so go by the bar staffs recommendation. i will definitely be back

amazing food, incrediblevodkaand outstanding service from taylor and the rest of the team. highly recommend the chopin chocolatevodkaand the health kick cocktail. yum

the best way to warm up this winter is with a few polish bitches. now i am not usually a big friday night drinker but i did find myself at borsch,vodkaand tears on a friday night after innocently attending a pop-up craft market at prahran town hall. i do love a pop-up market. anyhoo, i have always wanted to try this cosy, intimate polish bar and this was the perfect time to do it. arriving at 6pm afforded my companion and i what i predict is a rare opportunity to sit up at the bar and be part of the action. this seating position provided us a lot of entertainment and education but it was also our undoing.

a memorable birthday lunch!. everything about borsch,vodka& tears (service, food, and setting) can be summed up in a word: warm. my friends and i loved it there, and i'm planning to go back. the polish dumplings and polish cheesecake are a must try!

my mum talked of this place back when it was run by the original polish couple. she's been coming here for almost 30 years for what she calls 'fab famous borscht'. we decided to return and see what it's like now for mother's day last weekend.
we ordered the polish borsch and the krok madame which was absolutely beautiful. the brie was melted perfectly into the waffle topped with a perfectly poached egg. i would highly recommended. the beetroot soup was authentic, flavoursome and just how my mum remembers it 25 years ago while the dumplings were absolutely delicious with a wonderful combination of herbs.

we also decided to do the threevodkatasters, we selected:
- sobieski karmel (smooth and butterscotch-y)
- zozworówka ginger
- wiśniówka nisskosher (dark cherry)

the best by far was the smooth and butterscotch-y which is a must try for any people wanting to try the vodkas here (which you should). the three types in taster glasses was a great way to try a few of the extensive range of vodkas on offer.

my partner and i had an amazing valentines dinner, they had a special menu consisting of farmer’s platter, peirogi, salad, dessert and cocktail. we also ordered the date nightvodkatasting platter.
the drinks were all amazing, hazelnutvodkablew my mind away.
farmers platter was equally delicious with lots of different flavours, we loved the cheeseburger peirogi.
we asked if we could change prawn to beef peirogi and they accidentally served us prawn but that’s totally okay as they were delicious, my partner has a very mild allergy so he couldn’t eat it and they were kind enough to give us replacement but we were too full.
the service was by the staff was just brilliant, they were super friendly and attentive to our needs, they apologized a thousand times for giving us the wrong order but we could totally understand as it was a busy evening.
overall, 9/10 would definitely revisit with my friends.

good food, questionable service. with not many polish restaurants around, we thought we'd go there for something a little different. the menu provided a delicious range of options, with my favourite being the lamb ragout and mushroom blintzes. the beetroot salad and gnocchi were tasty. the honeyvodkaprawns sounded amazing, however they were overcooked and not to the standard of the rest of the meal. the drinks and huge selection of vodkas were fantastic.

the downside of our experience was the extremely rude and very pushy waitress. despite never having met us, she kept trying to persuade us not to order certain items that we all wanted, instead insisting that we order things we didn't want and making us feel very uncomfortable. she continued to be rude throughout our time there and it ruined our experience. despite really enjoying most of the food, we won't be going back again.

delicious food and amazing drinks delivered with great customer service, i mean come on! borsch,vodkaand tears was my go to when i used to live in the area. the place is edgy, always filled with a large gathering of uber cool crowds. i had no experience of polish food prior to bvt, but man i was utterly impressed by everything on the menu. i highly recommend their sharing dishes, the more the merrier! i can not fault this place on bit, highly recommend!

ps: don't forget to visit their sister restaurant - after the tears in elsternwick. tha bomb!

very interesting dining experience as this was my first time trying polish food. although i think it has to do with more of personal preferences, some of the dishes were too confusing for me. many of the dishes were similar in taste and ingredients, just presented and cooked differently. they were also very saucy and mushy. the cauliflowers were great though! also amazing cocktails andvodka(as the name suggest!)

i came here for dinner w my partner and a friend. i’ve wanted to come here for ages now and i keep missing out so i was really excited.

initially i started w a flight of 3 strong vodkas and whoa they certainly warmed me up. the first one was fine until a few mins later hahaha, happy days!

my partner and friend ordered a vesper cocktail w gin, vodka, vermouth and this took my breath away hahaha! phew, it was strong.

food wise we ordered cabbage rolls which were good, but the cabbage leaves were thick and tasted a little undercooked for me.

we shared some dumplings, one beef and chicken and the other one was porcini mushroom and sauerkraut and they were both delicious. they were really moorish and filling. they came w different sauces and this was a highlight.

the sticky cranberryvodkaglazed pork belly was fantastic, the pork was cooked really well, it was juicy and the sticky sauce was like toffee. yum!

we then shared a platter called a farmers zakuski which consisted ofvodkacured kangaroo “tartare” and lamb croquette, venison & smoked duck terrine, devils on horseback (what was that? lol), old fashioned salami,ham hock fritter and rich mans butter.

the farmers zakuski was delicious, i really enjoyed the different elements to this dish and the various flavours. even the rich mans butter tasted good, it was almost like lard w meat pieces. i am not sure what the devils on horseback was but everything tasted really good hahaha.

this was a really fun night and this place is definitely worth a visit.

a beautiful baked pretzel with a generous helping of chicken, bacon and cheese as well as some delicious pickles. when you see borsch, the first thing you’d expect is avodkabar but trust me when i say that, start looking at their food instead 😛

borsch’s pretzel club was phenomenal and for $13,it was one of the best value for money dishes i have ever eaten. the chicken was a good portion and cooked beautifully, the bacon and cheese went amazingly with the soft pretzel and it was just a really really good dish.

borsch truly delivered with this dish and i would highly recommend their food to anyone in windsor/prahran because you’d be surprise that their polish food is definitely delish as well!

one of my favourite spots in south side, it's casual and cozy, love the vibe, comforting soup, crazyvodkamenu, despite not a huge fan of vodka, still impressed by the cocktails and the infusedvodkachoice.