A UK-based Polish celebrity chef who made a traditional babka cake in Mary Berry’s kitchen that the doyenne of baking described as “sheer perfection” on her BBC Tv show, is cooking a 12-course feast in Dublin.

Damian Wawrzyniak, who has worked at Noma in Copenhagen, and with Jamie Oliver in the UK, is joining forces with Irish chef Andrew Rudd for the event at Medley, near the Westin hotel in Dublin 2, on Sunday, June 4th.

The event is called a Polish-Irish Feast and is part of the nationwide PolskaEire Festival, which runs until June 18th. It is open to the public, and both Irish and Polish guests are expected for what sounds like it could become a competitive eating event.

12-course feast

The 12-course feast will include chicken broth with handmade kluski (dumplings); pork schnitzel, bigos (hunters’ stew); pork loin with plum and juniper sauce; pork pierogi (more dumplings). Side dishes of herring, eggs; salads and root vegetables will fill any gaps, and the dessert selection will include apple strudel, Polish raspberry cheesecake and hand rolled knedle (yet more dumplings), stuffed with cherries.

As if that wasn't more than enough food, Medley owner Andrew Rudd and his head chef Vincent Blake will be cooking some Irish dishes to introduce to the banquet.

Closer communities

The aim of the festival, and the feast, is “to bring the two communities closer, and there is no better was to do it than through food and drink”, says Nikola Sekowska-Moroney, cultural affairs co-ordinator at the Polish embassy in Dublin.

Tickets, €47.97, are now on sale at Eventbrite, and cost €45 (€47.97 with booking fee). Doors open at noon and the feasting is expected to begin at 1pm, and continue until the last man or woman standing concedes defeat. There will be a full bar available, as well as Polish cocktails and Zubrówka vodka.