Food & Drink in Polish: Ordering with Poproszę
One word — poproszę — plus a menu gets you fed anywhere in Poland. This lesson stocks the pantry and teaches the tiny ending change that makes your order sound native.
The Staples
| Polish | English |
|---|---|
| chleb | bread |
| ser | cheese |
| zupa | soup |
| jabłko | apple |
| woda / mleko | water / milk |
| kawa / herbata | coffee / tea |
Ordering with Poproszę
Poproszę… — "I'll have, please" — is the politest way to order, and it comes with a rule you can hear: feminine -a words change their ending to -ę.
| On the menu | Your order |
|---|---|
| kawa | Poproszę kawę. |
| herbata | Poproszę herbatę. |
| zupa | Poproszę zupę. |
| chleb (masculine) | Poproszę chleb. — no change |
Liking Things
Lubię… — I like — follows the same pattern: Lubię kawę. Lubię polską kuchnię (I like Polish cuisine). Ask back with A ty? — and you.
Lubię herbatę z cytryną, a ty?
I like tea with lemon — and you?
Note: z cytryną — with lemon; another case sneaking in, explained soon.
Smacznego!
Before anyone lifts a fork, someone says Smacznego! — enjoy your meal. The only correct answer is dziękuję. At a toast you'll hear Na zdrowie! — to health (also the response to a sneeze).
Proszę bardzo — zupa i chleb.
Here you are — soup and bread.
Dziękuję!
Thank you!
Smacznego!
Enjoy your meal!
Dziękuję bardzo.
Thank you very much.
Common Mistakes
- Ordering in the dictionary form. Poproszę kawa sounds like reading a shopping list. kawę!
- Answering smacznego with smacznego. The reply is dziękuję.
- Na zdrowie for meals. That's for toasts and sneezes; meals get smacznego.
What You Can Do Now
You can order food and drink politely, say what you like, and survive the smacznego ritual — a complete café visit, start to finish.