Poles Change Their Eating Habits
20May 16, 2010 by Aleksandra Łuczak
Post prepared by Wojtek M.
Traditional Polish dishes such as soups, pierogi and zapiekanka are losing out to take-away kebabs and pizzas.
A survey by the OBOP(Ośrodek Badania Opinii Publicznej) finds that 37 percent of Poles tend to choose pizza for a take out. Twenty four percent declared they opt for Turkish kebab, while 19 percent indicated hamburgers as their favorite snacks. Traditional Polish dishes like soups or pierogi are not the only one to come second best to pizzas and kebabs. Polish zapiekanka once popular among Poles – is now the favorite snack for a mere thirteen percent.
What happened with good Polish meal? Are we forget about Sunday’s dinner or it is happened like that because we are still in rush?
Have you say !
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I think this situation is present becouse kebeb is the chepaer alternativ to polish zapiekanka itp. becouse if we want to eat something in hurry and we want to be fed we whave to eat 2-3 zapiekanka.One Kebab can fed us enough.So polish student want rather to eat kebab than zapiekanka.Next reason is that the Kebab bar is easiest to each than polish fast bar.
In my opinion this situation is really bad.
Some people think that kebab or pizza is
cheaper and easier to make than
polish traditional dishes pierogi, zapiekanka,pyzy. If we want to eat
something fast, we often choose kebab
or pizza becouse it is faster and cheaper
when you are in hurry and stress.But I think,there are many traditional dishes such as soups for example tomato soup,
which are really good,fast and cheap.
We couldn’t forget about Sundays dinner!!!
I think that the reason of this situation is that kebabs and pizzas are now more available than traditional polish food. This kind of food is almost everywhere. On every train station or shopping mall. Its easier, faster and cheaper for us to buy take- away kebab or pizza. We are all busy all the time and we dont have a time to look for good polish traditional food (which is hard to find nowadays) or even sometimes prepare it at home.
I wouldn’t agree with the whole article. Kebab or pizza is considered a fast food while pierogi or polish soups like barszcz or rosol aren’t what you can call fast food. Zapiekanka was something you could call a polish traditional fast food but kebabs and pizzas are much easier to get. There is a lot of kebab bars and many restaurants serving pizza, while zapiekanka is almost impossible to buy. So the reason polish dishes are losing out to kebabs and pizzas is not that the people won’t buy them anymore, it’s because bars and restaurants aren’t selling them.
I think that people are accustomed to this that they need not stand in the kitchen and wasting time when they can go to fast food. In the few minutes they can get something to eat. Unfortunately it is unhealthy but tasty indeed. It’s true, sometimes it comes out cheaper but we should not forget about our delicious traditional dishes!
What you’ll be a wife? when always on Sunday in a lunch time you said “lets order a pizza to the house” and you will fatten your children from childhood.
To be honest pierogi, zapiekanka and soups are not traditional polish dishes. I’d rather say that it’s potatoes or grits with meat or fish. But I wouldn’t agree that we don’t eat traditional meals. In nowadays we have such a range of fastfood available on the market that we can eat something different everyday. And when we talk about pierogi, there are more and more “pierogarnie” in our country, where you can order pierogi and take it with you as you take hamburger or kebab. But what’s weird in the fact that people prefer kebab? It’s fast, cheap and have all that the dinner should contains: meat, vegetables and carbonates (pita or roll). We’re a global village so we’re living in a rush and we can’t change that,
it’s inescapable process.
Hi everybody!
In my opinion polish dishes are the best in the world! It is the pity that they are not available when I just want to grab something to eat. I agree with Ania T. that the reason for this situation may be lack of availibility of our delicious polish dishes… Especially after the party when you want to eat something cheap and quick it is ipossible to find something Polish. Maybe it would be a great idea to open small bar with Polish take – aways, prepared in a little futuristic way? what do you think?
In my opinion, more and more people eat kebab for their snack. I think that people choose kebab because it contains meat, vegetables and carbonates. In fact, is the same fastfood as hot dog or hamburger. People eat it, because is cheep and fast.
We can just dream about situation, which appear in Japan or China, where people eat for their snack cheep shrimps or sushi. In Poland it is an expensive dishes, and ordinar people don’t eat them often. Of course, there are lot of people who dislike such food, but they can’t argue with the fact, that sushi is made of very healthy products. Shrimps and other sea food have a lot of protein which make our dishes valuable
But, at least, the soup is not one of the “traditional Polish dishes”. It’s characteristically for Europe and some of the asian countries.
In my opinion the main cause of the dropping popularity of “zapiekanka” and other “traditional Polish dishes” is a fact that we are not good in selling it.
A lot of the people eat hamburgers, pizza’s, kebab’s, and quasi Asian (‘cose this dishes are not pure asiatic – it’s half Polish and half Asian) dishes ‘cose it have a good advertisment, ‘cose we can find it on the corner of the street, and quickly buy n’ devour.
It’s like with the bottled water, nobody thinked that someone can sell water and now nobody can live without it. Maybe Polish food is waiting for someone with idea, money and who is very stubborn to create a first bar with “karkówka and smalec in five minutes”.
Sorry for mistakes, I’m writing very quickly.;)
I am spending this weekend in Łódź. Today I have strolled along Piotrkowska Street and there were mostly oriental restaurants and bars. So, there must be something in it. Is it tasty? Cheap? Probably both.
PS Unfortuantely the cafe which Mr Ponder recommended to me was closed. By the way, isn’t it absurd that they close a cafe in the main street in the third largest city in Poland at 5 o’clock on Saturday?
In my opinion we do not see one thing – we eat kebabs and pizza not just because they are cheap, but also because they taste good. When we go with our friends somewhere it’s seldom we go to a “pierogarnia” . More often we go to restaurant serving pizza, or quasi-turkish food. Also, many people go for pizza’s and kebab’s because they like that. But, nevertheless, we must remember that although that food is tasty – it’s also unhealthy.
In my opinion, people are lazy and prefer cheap and fast meals than prepare something in home. Take aways are everywhere. When you are in city it is easier to find pizza or kebab than place where is traditional polish food. But I think that when people prepare dishes at home, they make soups, pierogi and other polish bests:)
I don’t consider this fact as an issue. Sure, it’s easier to buy well prepared kebab or pizza than zapiekanka or pierogies in Warsaw. Have you noticed how are they stored? Zapiekanki lies on board for few hours before someone buys them. Pierogies are mostly frozen. Kebabs and pizzas – freshly made on customers view.
Other fact is Poles following fashion of foreign food. But, as all ot trends, this too seems to pass one day.
What is more, Polish zapiekanka and pierogi only becomes more exclusive :). Restaurants specialized in pierogi are having all tables booked in advance.
Tak care, and take pierogi next time your hungry 🙂
Bartek
In my opinion, people often buy kebab, pizza or other kinds of fast food because it’s cheap, fast and they don’t want to stay for “hours” in kitchen and prepare a meal for all family. I also sometimes buy some fast food because I want to eat something unhealthy and different than home dinner, but it’s once a week and I think that people also buy fast food mayby once or twice a week and at the rest of the week they eat traditional polish meals.
In my opinion one reason for growing popularity of pizza or kebab is easier availability, than well prepared pierogi in competitive price. In the city is only few good restaurants with traditional cuisines, so people in rush is more comfortable to eat fast food. If in the city were booths with delicious, freshly prepared pierogi, certainly they would become a fast favorite snack.
This article is terrifying. Turikish kebab, pizza and zapiekanki are really junk food. Do people not have any decent food here in Poland ??? It turns out that I’m in the minority because I’m avoiding such a rubbish food. I preffer to eat fresh vegetables or fruts for a snack instead of this fat containing fast food. We need to care more about our helth. Remember : You are what you eat !!! I don’t want to be zapiekanka 😛
I agree with Ewelina, that pierogi, zapiekanka and soups are not traditional polish dishes. Even schabowy and mielony unfortunately. In times of globalization we are exposed to many foreign trends also in cuisine. Almost 2-3 years before we didn’t know sushi, which comes from Japanese streets. Now everyone knows it and heard about it. For Japanese it’s a fast food like tapas for Spanish. Who knows? Maybe for a few years we will eat something like that. Or maybe we will back to the roots because of new current. Finally society is getting rich.
I think that the situation isn’t that dramatic. Looking around more and more people choose water instead of sweet drincks. We are also trying to eliminate carbohydrates replacing them with salad. We want to look fit and feel healthy and the good diet is a good way to improwe those indicators. I know that we sometimes are eating fast foods, but it is still hard to eat something cheap and healthy in the city. But the situation is changing for good, fast foods are becoming more popular as an occasional pleasure rather than a regular meal. Also I think that our traditional Sunday meal is irreplaceable.
I think that the main cause of that change is fact that Polish like everything what is different. It is like with holidays and going abroad. Most of Polish who every year go abroad do not know how beautiful is our country. They choice holidays abroad because that is distinguish, new. Polish think they know their own country and they do not want to see it more but they are in mistake. It is the same with food. They would prefer kebab or hamburgers, pizza because it is something new. However they have forgotten about Polish zapiekanka, pierogi, or kaszanka 🙂 and another Polish dishes which often are more healthy, cheaper and more tasty. I thing that this situation is a matter of time. A big bang will expire and traditional Polish dishes will come back on Polish tables.
Polish meals are considered as one of the most delicious and healthy dishes in the world. A great deal of Polish products are transported to e.g. Germany, France or Great Britain. Polish people are still in rush and frequently they have not enough time to cook for themselves, so instead they buy take-away products. I do not advocate eating junk food. I reckon that we should take advantage of our traditional Polish products even if we are in a hurry. But still I perfectly understand those ones whose eating habits are bad. Because of the fact that stress is omnipresent and almost inescapable in our lives, we do not really have time to eat good Polish meals.