A Polish Wedding Feast

A Polish wedding feast includes plenty of food, vodka, and dancing. Photo by Nathan Cowley on Pexels, found on Canva.   I have truly enjoyed writing about Polish wedding customs. I feel a bit sad that we're on the last one. However, I did save the best for last. Get ready to learn all about a Polish wedding feast!  

Bread & Salt

You may remember that a Polish bride and groom must make their way to the reception venue, quite possibly through a series of roadblock gates. Meanwhile, they are followed by a caravan of their party guests. Once everyone arrives at the venue, the opening ritual begins. The moment the bride and groom arrive, their parents present them with a special gift of salted bread and a goblet of wine. As they offer the bread sprinkled with a touch of salt, their parents bless them by saying, "According to our Old Polish tradition, we greet you with bread and salt, so that your home might always enjoy abundance." (source) The bread, specially prepared and typically decorated with the names of the bride and groom, ensures that the couple will never go hungry. On the other hand, the salt reminds the couple that throughout their life hardships will come, yet they can learn to overcome. Traditionally, salt also carried the power to drive away evil spirits, heal and cleanse, reveal thieves, protect the home against fire, and calm storms. Meanwhile, the wine ensures the couple will enjoy health and happiness. Once they take a bite of the bread and drink from the goblet, they break the plate and cup for good fortune. Finally, their parents kiss them to symbolize love, unity, and welcome. Following the presentation of the bread and salt, either the father of the bride or the groom brings the couple two glasses. One is filled with vodka, the other with water. He offers first choice to the bride. The father offers a toast, and the two drink from their glasses. Whoever chooses the vodka will wear the pants in the relationship, so the saying goes. Upon finishing their drinks, they toss their glasses to the ground. They hope to hear the sound of shattering glass, a portent of good fortune. These opening rituals offer the guests an opportunity to shower the couple with gifts of cash in envelopes. While gifts are welcome, cash remains the offering of choice for a Polish wedding.  

A Polish Wedding Feast

As a guest to a Polish wedding reception, you can expect two things: plenty of food and plenty of vodka and wine. According to one site I found, Polish receptions are long, sometimes lasting up to 12 hours. Expert guides suggest serving food no less than every three hours. Therefore, in one night, you'll be served food at least four times. (source) Each region of Poland offers slightly different cuisine. However, you can expect the party to begin with cold appetizers - cheese and meats, pate and herring, and a vegetable tray. At the next serving hour, a hot entree arrives - pork loin, grilled meats, smoked fish, roast chicken, or even tripe. Later, you might enjoy a hearty stew served with potatoes and bread. Other Polish feast favorites include beet soup, hunter's stew, dough pockets, dumplings, and meat pastries. Don't worry, plenty of sweet treats abound, as well - fruit, tortes, fruit bars, and cakes. When the servers present the wedding cake, the bride and groom cut the first slice and feed it to each other. After that, the servers offer cake to all the guests.  

Gorzko, Gorzko

Vodka, of course, is bitter. And at a Polish wedding feast, vodka is the drink of choice. While the bride and groom may not kiss during their wedding ceremony, they make up for that at the reception. Throughout the night, cries of "Gorzko, gorzko" ring out. Gorzko means bitter. The drink is bitter and needs a little sugar. The sugar comes in the form of a kiss between bride and groom. The night will be filled with lots of lively music. Many couples hire a polka band, or another type of band to provide live music. Typically, the first toast involves a special song called Sto Lat, which means "100 years." The band strikes the chords, and all the guests sing the blessing, "Good health, good cheer, may you live a hundred years, one hundred years…" (source) Another Polish wedding feast tradition involves a line of guests who wish to dance with the bride. Traditionally, the guests pinned money to the bride's dress for the privilege of a dance with her. Alternatively, the couple can provide a basket for collecting the money. This money is for the honeymoon.  

Oczpeny at Midnight

While most wedding receptions around the world are winding down at midnight, a Polish wedding reception looks forward to midnight as the kickoff to an even greater celebration. At the stroke of 12, the bride presents herself to her mother for the oczpeny ceremony. This essential rite of passage is primarily symbolic today. However, long ago, the bride changed her hairstyle completely. In Poland, young girls and teenagers wore their hair in braids to signify the playfulness of youth. Once a young maiden married, her mother cut her hair and placed a white kerchief (or cap) upon her head. This new hairstyle symbolized her new role as wife and homemaker. This is the ritual of oczpeny. Standing behind her seated daughter, the mother of the bride carefully removes the wedding veil. Next, she slowly unbraids her daughter's hair and then cuts it. Next, she takes the special wedding cap, gifted to the bride by her godmother, and attempts to place it upon her daughter's head. Tradition held that the bride refused the cap three times before ultimately accepting the monumental transition in her life. The wedding cap was kept by the bride to wear at very special religious ceremonies throughout her life. Today, the oczpeny represents a time for great frivolity and fun. Sometimes the bride removes her own veil, tossing it into a crowd of gathering single women. The groom also removes his tie and tosses it to his single male friends. Those who catch the respective garments will be the next to marry. Next, the bride and groom lead a series of games, often beginning with a bit of trivia about each other. They can also invite their guests to participate in inane competitions and ribald scavenger hunts. As you can imagine, these activities last well into the next morning. Indeed, many Polish wedding feasts last two days, continuing well into Sunday. ~Angela Magnotti Andrews