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The Communist Baguette: A Bite of Nostalgia

by Berenika Serwatka 18. February 2026

From Communist-era Poland to Berlin’s streets, zapiekanki have come a long way. In this video feature, the owner of ZAP shares how a humble fast-food creation became a cross-cultural favourite. A reminder that street food often carries the richest stories.

Script, Footage, Interviewing, Voiceover, Editing, Sound Mix & Translation: Berenika Serwatka
Archive visuals credits: Narodowe Centrum Cyfrowe; “Konfederacja, hod dog, zapiekanka, 10.1991. Poznan.jpg”, author: MOs810, source: Wikimedia Commons, lic. CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Konfederacja,_hod_dog,_zapiekanka,_10.1991._Poznan.jpg; Wikimedia Commons public domain.

Berenika Serwatka

Berenika’s path – both on and off the page – is shaped by a paradox: the escapism of fantasy novels and the raw truth of reportage. To her, they aren't opposites, but reflections of one another. She balances writing fiction for the drawer with the daily hustle of freelance journalism, believing that quality storytelling happens when the author steps back to let the characters speak. Originally from Łódź, Poland, she’s now based in Berlin, combining her journalistic quests with master studies in Applied Linguistics and Speech Research, seeking to better understand the threads of human communication. Things you can’t ask her to choose between? The dojo and the dancefloor – martial arts and dancing remain the two non-negotiables of her life.