Bites Nearby: Europa

I happened to take a wrong turn out of downtown Enumclaw and found myself on McHugh Avenue.  It was a turn I will never regret for in front of me attached to the Chevron station was a tiny building with a new banner strewn across that said 'Europa.'  I did a double take at the realization that an authentic European bakery and cookery had arrived in town.

I pulled up to the front and the first thing I noticed was the sign on the door that stated “cash only” and the next was the sign “take out only.”  Some things are good enough to go to the cash machine for and fortunately, there is a cash machine inside the attached convenience store—hurray for future visits!

When I stepped inside I was greeted happily by chefs and owners Grzgorz (Greg) and Maria Goch.  We started chatting and it came to be that they are relatives of the owners of one of my favorite European restaurants named Bruno’s.  I went on and on about Bruno’s pierogis only to find out that last week’s special at Europa was indeed those famous delicious pierogis. 

As I perused the menu, I wondered if heaven had food and if it did, then the clouds must be made of this homemade soft dough, carefully stuffed with rich potatoes and cheese.  Of course the devil would make an appearance with hot drizzled butter and rich sour cream dollops--oh so good and oh so bad: a perfect combination to add as an entry in my secret food diary.

Other sinfully delicious options are cabbage rolls topped with tomato sauce, potato pancakes (Latkes), Polish sausage, cheese crepes and goulash soup.  Then there are sausages such as bratwurst and Polish sausage and meat dishes such as Frikadelle and sauerkraut-noodle and sausage mixtures.  All creations at Europa are prepared from scratch using traditional European recipes.  There is a tremendous amount of love, memories and pride put into the creation of this cuisine and most recipes are handed down by grandmothers and great-grandmothers. 

Europa offers weekly specials not found on their standard menu.  They are open every day except Monday which I am sure is a well deserved and earned day of rest for Greg and Maria.  As for me, I have some of those old recipes which have been lovingly handed down from my mother’s side of the family but when I think about satisfying my immediate need for gratification I just hop in the car and drive—bye-bye rolling pin, hello Europa!