Trust me, starfish, any non-Orthodox who asked any Orthodox priest I have ever known if he could commune in an Orthodox parish would have been politely told "no."
I really don't see how your priest would be in a position to know the *Orthodox* position on intercommunion better than those of us who are Orthodox on this list (from a variety of jurisdictional backgrounds) -- most of whom have many non-Orthodox in our families. He may get his information from Rome itself, but Rome is not where Orthodox praxis is determined.
It is true that if I approached for communion in a local Catholic church that I would be given communion. Around here, that would also be true if I were Protestant or Hindu. And Catholics are correctly told that the Catholic church has no objection to Catholics communing in Orthodox parishes.
But that is only the Catholic side of things. The Orthodox side is very clear: no inter-communion. Period. Knowledgable Catholic clergy know this, and unless they are being aggressively disrespectful of Orthodoxy, they will not encourage their parishioners to request communion at Orthodox parishes. Some Catholic priests, not knowing any better, will tell their parishioners that they can commune in Orthodox parishes, assuming that if Orthodox are allowed by the Catholic church to commune in Catholic parishes that the reverse must be true. This is an understandable error, and one that I have encountered before.
Regarding someone being turned away at the chalice, I have seen this done quietly any number of times. If a priest doesn't know the person approaching for communion, it is his duty to quietly inquire as to whether they are Orthodox and if they have prepared for communion. If the answer to either is "no", or if there is any question, they are quietly turned away -- often the priest will bless them with the chalice, or in Russian parishes with a tradition of kissing the chalice after communing, unprepared Orthodox may be invited to kiss the chalice.
I have even seen an Orthodox priest turn someone away, then after the service approach the person, discuss it further, hear the person's confession, and then commune them after the service before they themselves finish consuming the gifts.
Most Orthodox parishes will have a small sign or a notice in the bulletin (or even a short statement will be given by the priest prior to communion) saying something to the effect that only Orthodox Christians who have prepared themselves for communion should approach the chalice. Because of this prior notice, in my experience, it is very rare for someone to approach for communion who doesn't fit those criteria.
He wouldn't know about the Orthodox's attitudes about inter-communion unless he was informed about it via the diocese and, from them, Rome.
This was stated as "only last week" when I heard it.
I don't mean to be blunt, but you might not be in the full loop on what goes with your Church's hierachy with Rome and the latest on that front. Unless YOU are part of the hierarchy that has been in on this. THAT I don't know.