A lion crushed some food at a popular zoo. “Disgusting”

Książulo at Wrocław Zoo. Even the first few dishes caused quite a stir

YouTuber Książulo visited three eateries operating within the Wrocław Zoo: Karczma u Lwa, Karczma Koala and Laguna Bistro Cafe. The first of these restaurants caused the biggest stir, having been described in online posts as receiving exceptionally poor reviews from internet users.

At Karczma u Lwa, the YouTuber ordered, amongst other things, a hot dog for 17 zł, a cheeseburger for 23 zł, a zapiekanka for 25 zł, a tortilla for 38 zł, a beef burger for 45 zł and a pork chop costing 55 zł. The YouTuber had serious reservations about both the quality of the products and the way the dishes were prepared.

A burger for 45 zł? Książulo didn’t even want to try it

The 45 zł beef burger raised such concerns for Książulo that he ultimately decided not to try it. In the report, he compared the appearance of the meat to something that had gone off and said he didn’t want to risk any problems after eating it.

The cheeseburger fared just as badly. The reviewer criticised the patty, the bun and the toppings, and at times simply refused to swallow the food he was testing. In his assessment of the restaurant’s offering, he repeatedly emphasised that, in his opinion, very cheap ingredients had been used, even though the prices on the menu were by no means low.

The worst bit: some sort of Swedish cucumber, a slice of tomato and a bread roll as thin as paper. It’s all the cheapest stuff; there’s that ketchup again, and basically, as far as sauces go, that’s it. “The cutlet looks like a lion’s tongue, 23 zlotys – it’s f*cking disgusting,” he said.

Książulo speaks out sharply about food prices at Wrocław Zoo

It wasn’t just the taste that annoyed the YouTuber. One of the main topics of the video was the price of food at the Wrocław Zoo.

A set of four nuggets with chips was said to cost 38 zł, whilst dishes such as pork chop or fried cheese cost around 55 zł. Książulo felt that the portion sizes and quality of the food did not justify such prices.

Karczma Koala and Laguna Bistro Cafe also came under scrutiny

The test didn’t end at Karczma u Lwa. Książulo also checked out Karczma Koala, where he ordered, amongst other things, a burger, a fish fillet, a cordon bleu, Russian dumplings and a pork chop.

He had plenty of comments there too. He described some of the products as mass-produced or frozen, whilst, in his opinion, some dishes were overcooked or burnt.

Laguna Bistro Cafe fared slightly better. Książulo praised the chips there, but once again he was not convinced by the quality of the other items. Among the dishes tested were meatballs with chips for 55 zł and spaghetti Bolognese for 30 zł.

Książulo took a swipe at the zoo’s catering

Finally, Książulo drew attention to more than just the taste of the food. In his view, poor catering could affect perceptions of the entire Wrocław Zoo, which is one of the city’s most recognisable tourist attractions.

The Wrocław Zoo is visited by between one and a half million and 1.7 million people a year. Are they really supposed to eat that? (…) It’s a shame that such a great venue, so popular, should suffer a blow to its image because of something like this, he admitted.

The YouTuber emphasised that visitors spend many hours on the zoo grounds, which is why the opportunity to enjoy a good meal is an important part of the visit. In his view, such a popular venue should not suffer reputational damage due to the standard of the catering on offer.

Wrocław Zoo responds to Książula’s video

The matter did not end with online comments. On 1 September, Wrocław Zoo addressed Książula’s widely discussed video.

The zoo emphasised that it does not operate the food outlets itself, does not prepare the food sold there, and does not set their prices. The outlets are to be run by independent external operators under rental and lease agreements.

At the same time, the zoo acknowledged that the catering facilities influence the perception of the entire site. Consequently, the tenants of the catering outlets were asked to respond urgently to the allegations. Further decisions are to be taken following an analysis of their responses and the relevant legal options.

Will Książula’s film bring about changes at Wrocław Zoo?

This may well turn out to be the most intriguing development in the whole story. Książulo has repeatedly demonstrated that his videos can instantly draw internet users’ attention to a specific restaurant. This time, the scale of interest is particularly high, and the story has already spread far beyond YouTube itself.

The video about the food at Wrocław Zoo surpassed one million views within a dozen or so hours, and by 1 September it had already racked up over 2.3 million views.