Little Walter’s in East Kensington has quickly established itself as a staple for Polish food.
So it’s only natural for owner and chef Michael Brenfleck to delve into the beloved traditional Polish Christmas Eve dinner with his own Wigilia Dinner.
This multi-course festive feast — held at Little Walter’s at 2049 E Hagert Street on Monday, Dec. 23 — is a collaboration amongst the Philadelphia region’s leading Polish chefs including Brenfleck, Pat Alfiero of Heavy Metal Sausage Co., Krzysztof Babik of Comcast Technology Center, Patrick Czerniak of Square 1682, and Ryan Elmore of Mom-Mom’s Kitchen.
In Poland, Wigilia Supper is a traditional Christmas Eve dinner composed of 12 dishes (one for each apostle), each honoring the animals that kept Jesus warm upon birth, and is an entirely meatless feast.
Highlights from the Wigilia Dinner menu at Little Walter’s include a plethora of chleb i konserwowe (breads and spreads) such as braided potato bread with roasted shallots, raisins, and cultured butter; surówki, a seasonal selection of pickled vegetable salads; zupy (soups) including Barszcz, a beet soup with smoked oil; and Kawior i Wódka, caviar with paczki and a shot of potato vodka; trzy ryby sledzie, a trio of fish including pickled herring, steelhead salmon, and smoked trout; Pierogi z Kapusta, cabbage pierogi with mustard sour cream and rye bread crumbs; Kapusta z Trufla, braised cabbage and mushroom with truffle, and Gołabki, rolled cabbage stuffed with farro, wood roasted mushrooms, and piennelo dill sauce.
It all ends with a smattering of desery (desserts) such as cold wheat porridge with poppy seeds and puffed rye, a selection of Polish cookies, and a fruit tea with amaro and smoked apple chip.
Little Walter’s Wigilia Dinner will take place on Monday, Dec. 23 with one seating at 6 p.m. Cost is $125 per person, which includes tax and gratuity, and beverages are available for purchase separately. Reservations are encouraged and can be made via Resy.
