Czech
Svíčková's cream-sauce sliced beef, vepřo-knedlo-zelo's pork-dumpling-sauerkraut trinity, Pilsner with everything — Bohemian heart of Central Europe.
Svíčková na smetaně
Beef sirloin braised then sliced over a cream-vegetable sauce with knedlíky bread dumplings and a swirl of cranberry. Sunday family lunch.
View page →Czech cooking sits at the geographic center of Central Europe — wheat dumplings, pork-and-cabbage, dark beer, cream-sauce braises, and a quiet but defining use of caraway, marjoram, and dill. Svíčková na smetaně, the national dish, is sirloin slow-cooked in a vegetable-purée cream sauce served with bread dumplings and a spoon of cranberry. Hovězí guláš (the Czech beef goulash) is darker, thicker, and more onion-heavy than its Hungarian cousin, served over dumplings with cold Pilsner. Smažený sýr (breaded fried Edam) is the universal pub lunch. Kulajda is a sour-cream-and-dill soup with a poached egg per bowl — unique to the Czech repertoire. Two regional kitchens: Bohemian (Prague-centered, beer-led) and Moravian (eastern, wine country).
The Palate
Start Here
Czech sirloin in cream sauce — slow-braised beef sirloin served with houskové bread dumplings, vegetable-purée cream sauce, whipped cream, cranberry, and lemon.
Why start here · The Czech national dish. The combination of dumpling, cream, tart, and sweet on one plate sounds wrong on paper and works in your mouth.
Beef chuck slow-braised in dark Czech beer with a 1:1 weight of caramelized onion, paprika, caraway, and marjoram. Served over bread dumplings with a glass of Pilsner.
Why start here · The Czech goulash isn't the Hungarian one. Darker, thicker, dumpling-served — closer to a stew than a soup, and tightly partnered with the beer that went into the pot.
A breaded slab of Edam deep-fried until the crust is golden and the interior molten. Served with boiled potatoes, tartar sauce, and a lemon wedge.
Why start here · The most-ordered cafeteria dish in the country and the most-found pub menu item. Texture-driven eating — crunch outside, molten inside, no surprises.
South Bohemian sour-cream soup with diced potato, fresh mushrooms, an enormous amount of dill, and a poached egg per bowl.
Why start here · Nothing else in Central Europe tastes like this. The tart-creamy-dill combination is uniquely Czech; the soft egg yolk broken at the table is the finishing move.
The Pantry
See all 91 ingredients›
Grains & Staples
Two Regions
Two regional kitchens — Bohemian (svíčková, vepřo-knedlo-zelo, Pilsner), Moravian (slivovice, Slovak-influenced). Tap a region to see its table.
How They Cook
Techniques that define this cuisine
See 9 more techniques›
Kindred Kitchens
Cuisines built on the same signature ingredients
Signature Dishes (31)
Browse all 31 dishes›
Starters
3
Mains
13
