It's not all kielbasa and pierogi. Well, OK, it's a lot of that. But what we know in America as "polish food" is some seriously watered down bland greasy stuff that is related to actual Polish Food like a Big Mac is to a nice Filet Mignon.
Take kielbasa - that's just the word for "sausage". I had a couple of kielbasa's in Poland and they were delicious and flavorful. You wouldn't think that the words "subtle" and "garlic" could appear in a sentence together, but the sausages I had in poland were both subtle and garlicky. Unlike US sausages, I did not run into any of those un-chewable mystery particles that have marred many a sausage dinner for me. Very pleased!
Pierogis also deviate from what I remember as sort of slimy, potato-filled packets of blandness. All pierogis I ate contained at least three ingredients in the filling - a meat, a grain and a vegetable. They were of course topped by bacon, and quite possibly sauteed in lard. I cannot say. But they were delicious. The pierogis filled with only potato and bland cheese were referred to as "Russian Pierogis" and I never tried them. For all I know they were also delicious, but I went with the ones guaranteed to have flavor.
The seafood... dear god, the seafood!!! I have never had such a collection of simply seasoned but delicious fish in my whole life. Every menu contained a huge seafood choice, and especially in Gdansk, much of it was fresh.
Cheese - I can't forget the Oscypek, a super-yummy cheese produced only in the Tatras in southern Poland by about 120 farms. It is unpasteurized so our government, who have no problem letting us eat domestic eggs produced in nauseatingly filthy environments, will not let us import this. I had my first taste outside the ruins of Ogroniediecz at a booth with two older people selling either full sized cheeses, or little mini ones they were grilling on an electric grill. I was immediately hooked. It is a smoked, slightly salty cheese that squeaks when you eat it. It's also delicious with a little cranberry preserve, and normally I am against eating fruit stuff with my cheese. I hear that there are delis in Chicago that somehow get ahold of these little footballs of amazingness. I suppose this is just another reason to get me to visit my relatives in the midwest.
Sweets and Candy - every time I travel abroad I note the differences between how England/Ireland/Germany/etc does sweet stuff compared to the US. With Poland I was unable to do that too much. I think most of our sweet stuff is directly related to that in Poland - the Pacek (plural Packi) is like a super-sweet artisanal Krispy Kreme, the chocolate leans toward milk rather than dark. My sweet consumption felt less exotic in Poland. Two places I would travel to Poland just to eat - A. Blikeles for a fresh Pacek and Wedel for their scrumptiously decadent drinking chocolate. I will also be begging folks in Chicago to send me Polska Krowki candies - which are like caramels but with the consistency of fudge.
About eating... here are some things to note when going out to eat in Poland:
Soda fountains are rare. Ice is rarer. Mostly when you order soda you will be served an adorable 8oz bottle of soda with a glass on the side. Order a water and you may get a 12 oz bottle (make sure you ask for "niegazowana" if you don't like fizzy water). This takes some getting used to and makes the American feel a bit piggy when ordering more. Luckily the exchange rate is so favorable that this does not make much of a dent in your pocketbook.
Eating Out is a Thing here. One does not do it for a quick bite - it is meant to be time spent with friends and as such, it is really hard to get the check. There are not waiters hovering, trying to encourage you out the door so someone else can have the table. The downside of this is that as a tourist, sometimes you don't want to have a slow, civilized meal that is the focal point of your evening. Thank god we didn't have theatre tickets in Poland like we do in London, so we had nowhere in particular to be in the evening. Still, having the kitchenette in our Krakow hotel was a godsend a couple of days.
While they are absolute Pros at using garlic, the concept of "Spicy" to most Poles is much cooler than Americans are used to. For instance, with one dinner TR was presented with a few sauces on the side, one of which was labelled "Diablo". Turns out this was pretty much ketchup that a bell pepper had been waved over. Yummy, but hardly devilish.
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