Iconic Greenpoint Polish restaurant Christina’s (853 Manhattan Ave.) is reopening on Saturday, May 24, with a new name and owner.
The eatery is now called Retro Polish Restaurant and Wine Bar and will be run by Slawek Letowski, the owner of Karczma (136 Greenpoint Ave.), another Polish mainstay in the neighborhood that recently celebrated its 17th anniversary.
Krystyna Dura, the previous owner of Christina’s, sold her namesake restaurant to Letowski after 30 successful years. Now, Letowski is ready to run two of Greenpoint’s oldest Polish restaurants.
After serving traditional Polish cuisine at Karczma, Letowski will offer “something a bit different” at Retro Polish Restaurant. “The food is still based on Polish classics, but with a modern twist,” Letowski told Greenpointers.
Retro Polish Restaurant’s main menu is extensive. It starts with a variety of soups including red or white borscht, chicken noodle, and tripe. There are several salad options, plus appetizers like potato pancakes, beetroot carpaccio, and mini zucchini pancakes with smoked salmon.
Pierogi options include potato and cheese, sauerkraut and mushroom, pork, spicy beef, fried duck, spinach and cheese, and blueberry, a favorite from Christina’s.
Main course options include dishes like fried chicken liver, slow-roasted short rib rage, hake fish fillets, grilled salmon, kielbasa, pork schnitzel, and stuffed cabbage. There are also hot sandwiches, like one with a breaded chicken cutlet, and burgers.
“One thing that really makes us stand out is breakfast,” Letowski told Greenpointers. “There are only a handful of spots in Greenpoint that offer it, and we’re proud to be one of them.”
Another highlight is Retro Polish Restaurant’s happy hour which runs Tuesday to Friday, from 3 to 7 p.m. During happy hour, 16 ounces of Żywiec beer is $5, select wines by the glass are $7, and customers can get two Italian wine spritzers for the price of one.
Retro Polish Restaurant will offer a more expansive wine list than Christina’s, with over 40 wines, plus a wide beer selection. The beer selection is mostly from Poland and Europe, but a few local favorites will be available, too.
Letowski also told Greenpointers that Retro Polish Restaurant will have live jazz every Sunday and “some fun surprises for our single neighbors.”
“This project is very close to my heart,” Letowski said. “I’ve lived in Greenpoint since 1989, and Retro is my way of bringing back the spirit of the old neighborhood, while offering something fresh and fun for today’s Greenpoint.”
Letowski is planning to extend the restaurant’s hours soon and is looking for a bartender to be able to do so. Currently, Retro Polish Restaurant is open Sunday through Thursday 9:30 a.m. – 10 p.m., and Friday and Saturday 9:30 a.m. – 11 p.m.