The more subtle differences: Ireland/Britain v Poland

It's the remnant of communist pauper mentality, when everybody tried to nick something for himself from the 'nation-owned communal property'. In those times it was important to know that the teabag in your glass was a virgin. If they were allowed to put it in in the kitchen, every other time you'd get somebody else's teabag, and the resulting surplus would go to the staff. There was a special regulation on that, and you were entitled to complain if you couldn't actually check that the teabag was pristine.


So there's Polish food shop in every London village :)

Man, you are a real pain in the a**. Are you a fortune teller? Thought you are some sort of 'consultant'..
For me? I have my job and a good life in Germany. Why move?
Why do you live in Poland there if so many things are bothering you?


It looks your experience is not so nice, partially. I simply made different ones while being there and cannot share your view.


Ever seen your full drunk, coma like, lying on the streets in Palma de Mallorca? You should go there and observe. A good example for your country.


Projection, man. You're good at it.

@English'cuisine': I was in UK with an international travel group. French, Italian, German,... also tasting traditional English food. French and Italian were disgusted of it. Just observation.

You just don't know Polish breakfasts. You can have selection of dairy based dishes, both cold and hot, boiled sausages, fried sausages, scrambled eggs in full glory of combinations and full choice of other egg-based dishes, both hot and cold. You can drink tea, coffee, cocoa, milk, corn coffee, all traditional Polish breakfasts. You are just unlucky to be stuck with a lazy cook.

On the other side is the all-day-English, day in, day out. I saw people in a hotel, who after a couple of days just made an eye contact with the waiter, and then got their bespoke personal breakfast. The biggest deviations were in toasts: white bread or brown, well burned or pale, and the number of them. Some didn't eat 'scrambled eggs', some avoided mushrooms.


:)) yeah, and sausage tastes of sausage :)

That is very true...the last Polish breakfast that I partook in was an extravagant affair, amazing eggs, sausage, uber sexy pickles...it was great! For bonus points, it was someone off of PF :)

Seriously though, a good 10 different dishes to choose from, plus the cold cuts and cheeses. An incredible outlay :)

Do tell ... :)

Convex doesn't kiss and tell.... But I can tell you it was an honest to god Polish breakfast. Some of the best eggs I've ever had (fresh from the hen house!), there was a battle for the pickles (they were that good), and the rest was equally amazing :) But most of all, good people make the meal, and that was definitely the case :) . I would rather eat Mcdonalds with a good friend than eat at a place with Michelin stars with assholes.

oh, now you are making me nostalgic. My parents had a summer house in the countryside and the food coming from their vegetable garden was amazing. The best tomatoes I had in my life. Those here taste like ... nothing. My mother also kept chickens and rabbits: THOSE were eggs and proper chicken soup, I tell ya!!


How poetic ... :)

I don't know what the problem is.... not one person goes to England for the food. You can't compare it with that of other cuisines either - only on quality and value.

Poles don't move to England for fish and chips, they move there for minimum wages over 3 zl/hr and for a sense of economic liberation.

And really they can't complain - they have everything at their finger tips in any one of numerous polish skleps, and if they want home cooking - well they are only 3 hours flight away.

I wish Poles would bring less of their negativity and more of their art and culture to the countries they choose to relocate to.

Ha!, thanks for the answer.

I find that there still is this mentality here when dealing with bureaucracy, the state or bureaucrat (with all the stamps) goes on the assumption that everyone's a criminal and it is your job to prove you are not.


I know, but but but... cheese cake, tasting like cheese???
I think it is very funny too :)) I mean it's in the name after all :)


I have become addicted to gherkins (American Eng pickles, right?), I was wondering if there are any help groups for me?

Absolutely, I was curious about why Poles where moving here in big numbers, and I've found very few positive comments vs negative comments, originally I was actually quite happy about this, provides a helping hand to labour work in the UK and they get something good in return.

But after reading all these comments it's very disconcerting, it seems few here enjoy British society/culture, and very few want to engage with it.

I feel sorry for the Polish people who genuinely want to be here, all this negativity is only going to make things harder for them in the long run.

"Don't bite the hand that feeds you".

I guess cause being negative about their new surroundings is A. A way of adapting, B. A way of building solidarity with other Poles in a similar situation, and C. A way of feeling better about the home that cannot provide them with the kind of life they want.

I guess as long as they feel unsettled, they will externalise what is wrong with their situation... It's a coping mechanism, but is oretty destructive so it doesn't do you much good.

How many of us call 2 places home...? I know I do. It can be very easy to either shower negative or positive feelings towards the place where you don't happen to be living at the time. "Absence makes the heart grow fonder."

In matters of the heart - we are highly subjective anyway. And home is a VERY emotional concept.

Haven't been there for 6 years, but I'd be guessing you are right. Old habits die hard.

Then the way to tackle it should work still. Have a guess. Only I was never good at it, can't give you any practical advice. It's more of a knack anyway.


:)) yeah. Not enough for us. Like, it was People's Republic, wasn't it? :)

And there's Great Britain... sorry, just couldn't help it :)


Just in case: gherkins are pickled cucumbers, specifically. I suspect that convex experienced a variety of pickled thingies.

'when dealing with bureaucracy,'

I find bribery works best.

I'd say it's a misunderstanding coming from cultural differences in expressing opinions, or something. Kitchen aside, surprisingly (to me too) many Poles really like this country. The British mentality, attitude to most things, the way things work here, how people get along. After a few years people go to Poland for holidays, to meet the family and such, and being there they ask themselves 'WTF I'am doing here...' Sad but true. Poland is a crippled country.

I feel stupid. What's SO funny ??

Someone pointing out that Polish cheesecake tastes of cheese.

It is called cheesecake after all (!)

Although the version of cheesecake I am accustomed to (and presumably the poster who made the comment) doesn't actually taste of cheese - it is sweet with a mild creamy texture, but not "cheesy" at all.

To be honest, I think my stomach would do somersaults if I bit into cheesecake that actually tasted cheesy.

One difference: Britons go to a cafe to eat, continentals go there to drink.

One subtle difference (or not) is the behaviour of pedestrians and drivers at zebra crossings.

By and large, in Poland, drivers don't give a damn about the pedestrians and if one driver stops another is likely to overtake across the zebra (especially at night when the zebra is unlit). pedestrians fall into several categories... one of which just strides across the crossing without looking to see if a car can stop, another stabds and waits for you to stop so they can wave you on.

Also, there are a group of pedestrians who, when crossing to an island in the middle of the road, see a car coming and stand still rather than walk to the island. It doesn't occur to them that they are standing in the road at the time.

British driving instructors are a lot stricter about stopping at crossings etc, so there is a greater consideration and trust between drivers and pedestrians.

I thought there was some overtone in that what he said :)
We should think about the new name for that:
whitecheese-and-vanilla-cake-which-is-not-cheesy-in-the-yellow-way ;)

I think another subtle difference is hash browns. The Poles have gofry (waffles) but they are not the same and are not seen as a breakfast food.

Yep it's exclusively summer food :)

Pity that as they are warming. Nothing like sth warm inside you in the morning to get you going. Gotta warm the cockles :)

we are minimalistic... just warm tea/coffe and no problem ;)

Btw I have no idea how people can eat fried becon in the morning. My belly wouldn't bear such stuff that so early... The only fried thing in the morning I can eat is scrumbled eggs fried on butter...

Now that would turn my stomach into a washing machine.

How about some mulled wine? I wonder about the impairment level if you drink a little of that and an expresso.

Fried bacon comes with the full English breakfast. It's an integral component of it and shouldn't be skipped. Scrambled eggs are good anytime, esp in the morning with freshly squeezed orange juice.

urgh, you put orange juice on your eggs? And i thought fruit in an omlette was weird.

To those of you living in Poland, don't you just miss crumpets, thick cut marmalade, English mustard, Christmas pud, Yorkshire pud, poached eggs, Red Leicester, Wensleydale, Caerphilly.....

The English national dish is curry.

Oh yes, chicken tikka masala. Official.

@bimber. I'm happy to report that I have two curry houses within 35 minutes drive which given I'm here (Polska) is pretty good. So my subtle difference of the day is that there are less curry house in Poland than the UK. :)

However, the quality of curries I have found to be higher standard in Polska. Quality over quantity.