Assessment of the recognisability and attractiveness of regional kinds of Polish cuisine in the context of culinary tourism

Abstract

Eating is an inevitable part of every journey and therefore, expanding the gastronomic offer should be a priority for the tourism industry. There are dishes popular among tourists in particular parts of Poland and they are indicated in this paper. The regions are connected with the products which added to the List of Traditional Products have an opportunity to become famous not only in the country but also to become a great export commodity. However, agri-food products are under special protection and have the potential to become unbeatable in the gastronomic offer when enlisted in the European Union system of Protected Designation of Origin, Protected Geographical Indication and Traditional Speciality Guaranteed. Also current trails in Poland are presented in the paper. On such culinary trails, a tourist can become familiar with both regional flavours and traditions as well as with local customs. There are not too many of them in our country, but new ones are constantly being established and becoming more and more popular. A questionnaire survey was carried out to evaluate the attractiveness of a regional cuisine and its importance in tourism. It consisted of questions concerning the knowledge of regional dishes and the willingness to know them. On the basis of the obtained results, it has been stated that a potential tourist is interested in getting to know new dishes. However, she or he does not know many regional dishes. There were also problems with names and locating the dishes in a particular region correctly.