The delights of Baltic Deli in Roswell
Tuesday, June 30 — Happy Tuesday! Welcome to the table.
This week’s “Family Meal” features a story from Rough Draft reporter Hayden Sumlin on Baltic Deli and Market in Roswell. Hayden chatted with the owners last week about moving to the U.S. from Poland in the early aughts and later opening their market and deli in Roswell.
Baltic Deli has become a real dining gem in Roswell since opening in 2024, especially for pierogi and grilled kielbasa. But the owners spoke candidly with Hayden about some of the challenges they face as a small business, like importing authentic goods and ingredients from Poland and other Eastern European countries.
For my editor’s pick this week, I tell you why Pan American Bakery off Clairmont Road in Chamblee remains my favorite Cuban bakery in the metro for pressed sandwiches and guava pastries.
Finally, Buttermilk Kitchen in Buckhead shares the recipe for its brunch burger made with crispy pancetta and topped with a runny egg.
Cheers!
🍸 Beth
🍑 PeachFest is back! PeachFest returns July 12 to Underground Atlanta for an unforgettable celebration of Georgia peaches. Enjoy chef-crafted dishes, creative cocktails, live music and experiences from Atlanta’s top chefs, bartenders, artisans and farmers. Bring your friends. Learn more and buy tickets today. SPONSOR MESSAGE
From Poland to Roswell: Baltic Deli
🇵🇱 Even with the crushing loss to Sweden that eliminated Poland from this summer’s FIFA World Cup, the national team has White and Red fans in metro Atlanta who serve up some of the country’s culinary staples.
Ania Górczyńska and Paweł Bekasz came to the U.S. from Poland in the early 2000s, settling in Roswell. A trip to Chicago a few years ago inspired the couple to bring some of their Polish culture and cuisine back to Roswell, where they opened Baltic Deli in 2024 at Holcomb Place shopping center on Old Alabama Road.
Located less than a mile southwest of Big Creek Park, Baltic Deli caters to a diverse customer base that includes people with and without ties to Eastern European nations like Poland. The market stocks numerous Polish grocery and pantry items, as well as other foods like German chocolates. But customers also come for the couple’s homemade dishes served at the deli during breakfast and lunch.
Chicken schnitzel, stuffed cabbage, pierogi, and grilled kielbasa are some of the most popular dishes at Baltic Deli.
“We cook ourselves, we make our own handmade, home-style pierogi and golabki,” Górczyńska said. “These are well-known things also in other countries like Ukraine, Belarus, or Czechia. They may have slightly different names, but [these dishes] are very similar.”
🥟 Chicago-inspired
Górczyńska said the idea behind their Polish market and restaurant started becoming a reality during a trip to Chicago. The city and its metropolitan area features nearly 900,000 people of Polish descent.
“[In Chicago], it seems like people were more packed in one place,” she said. “Here, people seem to be spread out more. I think it’s just also due to how the city is organized, so there’s a lot of Polish people and other Eastern European people [in metro Atlanta], but we are more spread out.”
Many of Baltic Deli’s regulars speak Polish, while others speak with a Southern twang. The staff includes family members, like Górczyńska’s sister, and non-Polish employees trained in traditional cooking.
“The store was my husband’s idea; he wanted to have a second business,” Górczyńska said. “He has always loved cooking, and his mom has been a chef her whole life, so he’s been around the kitchen cooking and serving food.”
On an early Friday afternoon, Baltic Deli patrons were a mixed bag of retirees, a young family, two Polish gentlemen, and a table of area mothers.
“People from different countries, different backgrounds, come here and they say, ‘Oh, I’ve missed it, I’ve missed my grandmother’s stuffed cabbage.’” Górczyńska added.
🛒 Making it work in Atlanta
Opening Baltic Deli did come with challenges. The couple faced permitting issues to convert the original space into a functioning restaurant with a kitchen and then bringing everything else up to code.
“There are big wholesalers up in Chicago and New York … they bring stuff from Poland on those big ships,” Górczyńska explained. “We are too small to have a big container shipped just for us.”
Keeping Baltic Deli stocked with authentic ingredients and market items involves coordinating transportation from wholesalers for weekly deliveries.
Górczyńska said it can be hard to run the business because Polish cuisine and shelved groceries are such a niche market in metro Atlanta, which is why Baltic Deli’s stellar Google reviews mean a lot to the couple.
“People are happy when they come here, and that makes us happy,” she said. “In the background, it’s a lot of hard work, a lot of effort to put everything together and make it work.”
And while Górczyńska said Bekasz is the “real” soccer fan, they’re still watching a lot of World Cup matches together this summer.
“We’re thinking about going to [June 27] Colombia versus Portugal at Centennial Olympic Park with our friends,” Górczyńska said. “Since Poland doesn’t play, our Colombian friends are going there, so we’re going to cheer with them.”
📍 Baltic Deli, 1530 Old Alabama Road, Roswell. Open Tuesday-Saturday.
When the Matches End, the Dining Begins
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More than 50 participating restaurants are serving exclusive prix-fixe menus and inventive pairings crafted to turn post-game energy into an unforgettable evening. Whether you crave bold flavors or a relaxed celebration with friends, Buckhead delivers.
➞ Explore the lineup and discover your next favorite meal. The final whistle is just the beginning of a delicious night.
Editor’s Pick: Pan American Bakery
🇨🇺 While there’s no shortage of solid Cuban and Cuban-adjacent restaurants in metro Atlanta, Pan American Bakery on Clairmont Road will forever have my heart when it comes to the country’s iconic toasted pressed sandwiches and fruit-filled pastelitos (pastries) like guava.
In fact, I’m not alone in my adoration for this little bakery just off of Buford Highway in Chamblee. As a wholesale bakery, restaurants from across the metro procure sandwich bread and sweet and savory pastelitos weekly from Pan American. I’m partial to the pineapple and guava and cheese-filled pastelitos here. But it’s the bread that regularly reminds me why this place is so special.
🥖 Traditional Cuban bread dough incorporates lard, providing it with a soft, velvety texture and a rather thin but crispy crust when baked. The dough is then shaped into baguettes. Pan American kneads its bread dough by hand, which further activates the gluten and improves the texture. Traditional Cuban bakeries also place a palmetto palm leaf atop the loaf before baking. When baked, the leaf gives the loaf that signature split down the middle.
My order at Pan American tends to be the ham, pork, and cheese Cuban sandwich. But if you’re not looking to take down an entire sandwich, order a slice of the ham and cheese bread (ham and gooey cheese encased within a cross between Cuban bread and a pastelito).
💁♀️ Pro tips: Pan American Bakery is cash only. While there are one or two small tables, this is really a takeout spot – and you can’t order ahead. Pastelitos tend to sell fast, especially in the morning. For caffeination, always get Cuban coffee.
Recipe: Brunch Burger
🍔 This week, we’re sharing the recipe for the brunch burger special at Buttermilk Kitchen in Buckhead.
Buttermilk Kitchen founder and “Brunch Season: A Year of Delicious Mornings from the Buttermilk Kitchen” cookbook author Suzanne Vizethann said her Italian background inspired the recipe, which pairs a burger patty with crispy pancetta and a fried egg.
🍳 Get the full brunch burger recipe here.
🍑 PeachFest is back! PeachFest returns July 12 to Underground Atlanta for an unforgettable celebration of Georgia peaches. Enjoy chef-crafted dishes, creative cocktails, live music and experiences from Atlanta’s top chefs, bartenders, artisans and farmers. Bring your friends. Learn more and buy tickets today. SPONSOR MESSAGE
➡️ Get double the Atlanta food and dining coverage with “Family Meal,” edited by Beth McKibben, on Tuesdays at 5 p.m., and “Side Dish,” edited by Sarra Sedghi, on Thursdays at noon. Subscribe to both here.
