A market trader has fulfilled her dream of running a restaurant after opening a new bistro in Deal offering the best of traditional Polish food.

Slawomira Engel, known as Slava, has had a stall on the town's Saturday Market since 2018, which her partner Przemyslaw Kononowicz, known as Andrew, previously managed.

But this month, Slava, 44, achieved her goal of opening her own restaurant.

Engel's Paradise has opened in Golf Road, with Deal mayor Cllr Chris Turner cutting the ribbon, which was white and red, the colours of the Polish flag.

Mum-of-one Slava said: "My dream came true on when for the first time the door of my new bistro opened to customers.

"I would like to say a massive thank you to the Mayor of Deal who found the time and accepted my invitation to officially open it, and to many regular and new customers, who came and showed support."

Slava – who has experience working in restaurants in Poland and Germany – and Andrew met in 2006 when Andrew was visiting family in Poland.

He had moved to the UK the year before, having followed in his great-grandfather's footsteps, who had lived here following the Second World War.

Slava, who also works as a cleaner, said: "It was his dream to come to the UK to visit a country where his great-grandfather lived.

"He was working for Polish local government and but to try and live here himself he applied for a job in the UK.

"He decided to stay on his own and try life in the UK."

The couple, parents to 15-year-old Nicole, moved to Deal in 2009 and Andrew started working at Deal Town Hall.

He also ran the Deal Saturday Market until 2020.

It was in 2018 Slava decided to rent a stall at the market and open her own business selling traditional Polish dishes.

The main offer was grilled Polish sausage served with vegetables, cheese and sauce in a roll, 'Pierogi' (dumplings) with different stuffing, and different soups including 'barszcz' (beetroot soup) – which Slava says is a must on the Polish table during Christmas – or 'zurek' (sour soup with egg and Polish white sausage) – which is on every table in Poland during Easter.

Slava added: "As we both were working with our other jobs, the idea was to trade only on Saturdays in Deal and see if customers would enjoy Polish dishes.

"So many local customers enjoyed it, and many became regulars.

"As it was my dream to run a small bistro I started to look for the right premises, where with proper equipment I could offer and show more what the Polish kitchen has to offer.

"This would include more of the traditional Polish dishes, which are popular in Poland as home-made everyday dishes and cakes, or those prepared for special occasions like traditional Christmas Eve supper or Christmas Day and Easter dishes."

For now, Engel's Paradise will be open on Fridays from 9am to noon and 3pm to 9pm, on Saturdays from 9am to 9pm and on Sundays from midday to 6pm.

Slava also hopes to continue running her stall at the market with the help of her family.

She added: "Andrew always laughs that Polish government should pay us for advertising Poland, as from the beginning we always treated it not as our main source of income but as a mission to get British and Polish communities together, especially now.

"Andrew’s great grandfather and his grandma used to live, before the Second World War, on Polish land, which is a part of Ukraine now.

"He visited Ukraine in 2004, so we understand how important is to get local communities to live and build better future together."