By Nadine Waldow: Atmosfera Café, Poznan, Poland

What makes a place special to you? The places most special to me are all related to good conversations and a feeling of warmth—a certain kind of music, and lovely scents. All in all, it is related to atmosphere. If you appreciate a nice atmosphere as much as I do, then you would love a place called Atmosfera, a hidden secret, situated in a small side-street near the town square in Poznan, Poland. This café is becoming more and more famous among lovers of heavenly sweets, tourists, and students.

Opening this jewel in December 2003, artist Kinga Winiarska made her dream come true of owning, decorating, and caring for a place. Finally she has a location to introduce many lovely creations for our taste buds, such as atmosferynki, which is the newest spring creation, or her piernik—chocolate cake with almonds and candied orange peel. The choice of cakes and ice creams is as wide as the selection of teas, from almond-cinnamon to rose-leaf; you can get anything and will most certainly love everything.

"It isn’t work, it’s a lifestyle!" the mother of a newborn boy explains, when asked how she feels running the place. And she must love this lifestyle; everything is hand-made, starting with the paintings and drawings adorning the walls, to the furniture, and to the detailed décor, and flower arrangements. "Some things appear raw," she says, "but this is fine. The guests know that I do it all by myself and that the next time this chair might look different and be finished."

Atmosfera is a two-level café with an upstairs smokers’ section, as well as a third floor for occasional exhibitions of young artists. Formerly a paper warehouse, Kinga has transformed this location into a pearl in the old town. Atmosfera can be found at ul. Mokra 2 in Poznan. It is open daily from noon to 11:00 pm, and until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.