Clifton resident Michal Ledwozyw, 27, recently visited his hometown in Poland for the first time in three years. And the first thing he bought once he got there was a zapiekanka.

"The food reminds me of my college days when I used to stop by this booth in Rzeszow with friends and pick one up every day after class," he said.

Zapiekanki, an unfamiliar word to most Americans, will make every Polish-American’s mouth water at the mention of the word. Somewhat similar to the American version of a pizza but much less salty, zapiekanka (singular form) literally means baked, and is a popular Polish fast-food composed of a long baguette, sprinkled with chopped mushrooms, covered with cheese, and poured on top with ketchup, and additionally other toppings.

Ledwozyw said he thought how this food was very popular with the vast Polish population in New Jersey and yet, very few places made them.

When he got back home, he decided to open one up himself and make the Polish delicacy accessible to everyone. His father owns a few zapiekanka cafes and booths in Poland, and therefore taught him the basic tricks of the business before his son opened one up on Aug. 1. Today Ledwozyw and his wife Anna, 22, run a zapiekanka cafe on Clifton Avenue, across from the Board of Education building.

"I thought, why open up another pizzeria when there’s dozens of them in this area," he said. "Why not open up something new?"

Zapiekanky, the trademark spelling that Ledwozyw uses for business replaced a former pizzeria and now sells zapiekanki, hamburgers, fries, wings and combo meals that could be enjoyed as takeout, or under big parasols outside the store surrounded by a white picket fence, nostalgic of Polish cafes in cities such as Warsaw and Krakow.

"The most important thing is the crust," said Ledwozyw. "(Zapiekanki) have to be crunchy, that’s why a good stove is everything."

Aside from traditional make-up ingredients, one could also request the following toppings on a zapiekanka: fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, pickles, scallions, corn, mayonnaise and ketchup, and others. These ingredients are a favorite with not only Poles, but also vegetarians, since there’s no meat in them, and those that like to keep kosher, since there’s no mixture of cheese and meat combined. Pepperoni could also be added on for meat lovers. A smaller baguette piece goes for $2.99 plus tax, while a larger-sized one is $4.69. The café also started making fried pierogies and a kebab machine is coming next.

Slawek Pilega’s favorite ingredients in a zapiekanka are the chopped-up mushrooms under the cheese. The 29-year-old Forest Hills, N.Y. resident was visiting a client in Clifton when he saw the "Zapiekanky" sign while driving by and excitedly stopped by to buy one.

"There’s not enough access to zapiekanki in the United States," said Pilega, who had never had one outside of Poland until that day. The financial advisor said the food also reminds him of his high school days, a cheap comfort food that always did the trick for an empty stomach.

Ledwozyw admits that so far 90 percent of his clientele are from the Polish population, and word-of-mouth referrals, although more Cliftonites and Americans pop in. He gives a free sample of the zapiekanka.

Clifton resident Rob Dierking, 20, said he likes a lot of flavor in his food, that’s why he became a regular at Zapiekanky after stumbling upon it while taking his usual route home.

"I like how you get such a good flavor combining all of these ingredients," said the figure skating performer. "I really enjoy the fresh cucumbers and tomatoes, the bread is hot and crunchy but not too hard, and everything is so fresh."

The young Clifton couple invested all of their savings in this business, and Ledwozyw said he has strong faith in his investment.

"Everyone (Polish) relates zapiekanka to Poland and that’s what it’s all about," he said

"I want the clients to taste it and say ‘yes, it tastes exactly as the one in Poland does.’"