Cuisine

Since time immemorial the typical Czech meal has consisted of pork, dumplings and cabbage. Other common meals are various kinds of goulash, beef with special cream sauce (svickova) or other sauces with various flavors (dill, tomato, etc.)
Sweet dishes, such as fruit dumplings, pancakes and strudel are also very popular. In many regions, restaurants offer local specialties, which are particularly interesting for gourmets. In the centers of big cities, even the lower grade restaurants serve select meals from international cuisine including fish and poultry meals. Venison is popular, too.

Above all, Czech beer and Moravian wines are national gastronomy treasures, which should not be missed.

Beer is regarded as a typical product of the Czech Republic. The Czech brewing industry has a long tradition with beer being brewed on the territory of this country for many centuries. The quality of the beer enjoys a very good reputation as one of the best in the world (Pilsen, Budvar and Velkopopovicke beer are among the finest).

Excellent wine is produced in South Moravia and the Bohemian regions around Zernoseky and Roudnice. A rather unique drink is the Czech herb liqueur, Becherovka. In central Moravia, in the area around Vizovice, plum brandy (slivovice) is very popular. It contains up to 90% alcohol.

Meals and the Czech beer
Beer goes very well with a number of Czech dishes. It is unthinkable for the Czechs to drink with the traditional Czech dish, which is pork with cabbage and dumplings, any beverage other than beer. However, in case you have decided to taste a number of different beers and you want to rest your pallet between particular types and so need to eat something smaller, then choose a bit of mild tasting cheese, bread or a bit of mild salami. You will not spoil your beer tasting. Another idea is to take the beer with beer soup, as the recipe on this dish is contained even in the first Czech cookery book of Magdalena Dobromila Rettigova.

Czech Beer Club

Pubs
The Czechs prefer to drink beer in pubs and beer halls rather then at home. A visit to a favorite pub is a good opportunity to meet friends. Czech pubs and beer halls in villages have their own unique nature and generally have a friendly atmosphere. Hot discussions especially on football, ice hockey, politics, women and neighbors are among the standard topics. New visitors are usually warmly welcomed.

Brewery Museum (Pivovarske muzeum)
Visiting the Brewery Museum in Plzen is a unique opportunity to learn about Czech brewing history. The Brewery Museum in Plzen is the oldest museum of its kind in the world and experts rank it as top in its field. Hundreds of unique exhibits follow the history of brewing and of beer culture from ancient times to the present. Almost 50, 000 people annually visit the original brewery building, which contains a Gothic malt house, an old Czech pub, a lager cellar and a picture gallery.