refusing polish food politely...

hi guys,
im vegetarian and obviously most Polish foods contain meat, & i have been reading up a bit on poland & i have read that it is rude/offensive to refuse to eat anything made by the host. So i was just wondering what would be a polite way to refuse food? (other than the standard 'no thank you')

if you could help that would be great :)

Well, some Poles (female cooks especially) may be a little sensitive about your refusing to even try what they have prepared (it takes time and effort to cook a good meal after all).

But if you directly state that you are a vegetarian, they will understand. Vegetarianism is quite popular in Poland.

yeah, i think i'd tell the chef straight away no matter the nationality.. it applies in just about any home.

If you tell them you can't eat meat they will understand - but if you turn down the whole meal that's something else.

poland has an extensive range of vegetarian food - you can have a greek salad or pizza serowa... or you can go to green way and have grated cabbage and beetroot in pita

as for sensitive feelings of someone who serves dead animal on a plate to a vegetarian...

some of my family members (in the large sense: aunts, cousins and some really far relatives) can't hammer that in their heads for 20 years, and they still offer me some nasty bits, asking if I had been cured of my vegatarian insanity :(
so sometimes you have to be tough, "Thank you, I don't eat meat. Period"

Just pass the Polish food over to another forum member instead. We'll gladly dispose of it for you.