Olomouc Tvarůžky – Traditional Czech Cheese with a Distinctive Aroma and Original Taste

Some people love it. Others pull a face as soon as they smell its aroma. My mother liked it very much. But when the whole kitchen smelled of this special cheese, I was discouraged and didn’t even want to taste it. So it wasn’t until years later that I had to travel to Olomouc to discover that those little stinky yellow discs were delicious and could be used in many ways.

What are those famous Olomouc Tvarůžky (pronounced [tvaruozhky])? They are made from sour curd, and no preservatives are used in their production besides salt. Their production has a long tradition in the Olomouc Region. The earliest written reference to them dates from the 16th century, but this kind of cheese was probably made in the home before that. However, they were mostly sold at the markets in Olomouc, which is why they came to be called “Olomouc Tvarůžky”.

The most famous person associated with the production of this cheese was Josef Wessel, who founded a manufactory in Loštice in the Olomouc Region. In 1892, his son Alois took it over and turned it into a factory. The original Olomouc Cheese is still produced in Loštice today. More than 2,000 tonnes annually. The factory also includes a museum. I haven’t had a chance to visit it yet, but I did go to the Festival in Olomouc dedicated to that cheese (Tvarůžkový festival). It was its 8th year in 2025.
The festival is held every year on the first weekend in April, on the Upper Square (Horní) and also on the Lower Square (Dolní). It features regional traders and restaurants offering a wide variety of cheese specialities and top Czech chefs performing a culinary show on stage.

The festival was complemented by a rich cultural programme and a fair with stalls selling various local products (ceramics, spices, chocolate, painted eggs (it was before Easter), etc.). Children could ride on the carousel…

…or model their own cheese.

The benches at the Town Hall in the Upper Square soon filled up. People enjoyed beer and cheese specialties.

So let’s take a look together at the offerings at some of the stalls. I was fascinated to see what all could be cooked, baked or otherwise prepared with this smelly cheese. From the classic offer, there were various spreads, cheese with whipped butter and cheese tartare or sandwiches decorated with pieces of the cheese.

In some stalls, you could buy pickled tartare or pickled Olomouc Cheese with onions, peppers and garlic.

At the festival, we also met Michal Duračka, the chef from Asago Grill Restaurant, who was named the 2024 Olomouc Cheese King. Every year, there is also a competition for the best recipe with this special cheese. Now Michal was baking potatoes in the coals, filled with a mixture of cheese and herbs.

Lángos with cheese sauce is also very popular. By the way, tvarůžky are also suitable for a dietetic diet thanks to their low fat content (around 1%).

At another stall, a nice young man with a curly moustache was baking pizzas – with ham or bacon and, of course, with tvarůžky.

People were also enjoying burgers with cheese spread, the savoury version of strudels with tvarůžky and the buns filled with pulled meat and stinky cheese.

Fried tvarůžky or baked on toast and garnished with onion rings are among the traditional dishes with this speciality. But at the festival, I also discovered stalls where tvarůžky were also used as a filling for tacos or even to make sushi!

In these pots, a creamy risotto with tvarůžky and wild garlic was cooked.

Sausage lovers were welcome at this stall. Of course, the sausages were also flavoured with Olomouc tvarůžky. This is the only Czech cheese with a protected geographical indication.

A large crowd of visitors watched the baking of savoury pancakes. These were then flavoured not only with tvarůžky, but also with ham, wild garlic, rocket and sour cream. Many visitors preferred hot dishes. At this stall, a cream soup was on offer with tvarůžky, ham, croutons and herbs. The smelly cheese is also very often used in the classic garlic soup.

The stuffed potato pancake also looked tempting. Today, tvarůžky come in more than 30 different weights and shapes. The stick-shaped cheese is perfect for making a hot dog.

Puff pastry canapés or cupcakes filled with various foams and spreads are also very popular. In this period, the combination with wild garlic was very common.

The two-day festival attracts over 20,000 visitors each year. Most of them crowded around the stall of the Olomouc Cheese Pastry Shop. The products on offer really looked like sweet cakes, but in reality, they were again filled with various savoury foams and spreads and decorated with, for example, cranberries or grated gingerbread.

I didn’t have the courage to try the chocolate truffles with the tvarůžky filling, although they looked tempting…

Another specialty that caught my eye was the potato-cheese pancake with cabbage, onions and cracklings…

…or the fried potato gnocchi with tvarůžky dip.

As you can see from the descriptions and photos, the menu and variety were really rich. Last year, 6.5 tonnes of tvarůžky were consumed in two days! This year it was certainly the same. The choice was not easy. Sometimes I decided more based on where fewer people were waiting.

I tried some dishes – I liked the potato pancake with cabbage salad and the cupcakes filled with savoury spreads. But I didn’t like the bun with pulled meat and cheese or the tvarůžky chips at all.
I liked the products from the aforementioned pastry shop the most. In the soft foams and spreads with wild garlic, peppers and other ingredients, the taste of tvarůžky was not so strong.

Visitors could also buy souvenirs. Some were really very funny, like these T-shirts. The first one says: You’ll find me by smell, and the second: I’m eating Olomouc Cheese.

For more information about the Tvarůžky Festival: Olomoucký tvarůžkový festival
If you missed the festival in Olomouc and would still like to enjoy or at least taste this aromatic delicacy, you can visit the shop of the A.W. Loštice Company in Olomouc (Horné náměstí – Upper Square 7). Other company stores can also be found in Loštice, Brno and Ostrava. Olomouc Cheese is also offered by several restaurants in Olomouc. After all, this culinary curiosity is said to go well with beer! And so I have one more special tip for you.

During my previous visit to the region, I also visited the Tvarg Restaurant and Brewery in Velká Bystřice, just a 15-minute drive from the centre of Olomouc (you can also get there by bus).
Tvarg (opened in 2020) has continued the tradition of brewing craft beer in this small town, dating back to 1579. All beers are unfiltered and unpasteurised. They also produce seasonal and limited-edition beers, around 20 varieties during the year. The emphasis is on the highest quality ingredients, and they use water from their own well. The company also offers 75-minute brewery tours, including beer tasting.

The brewery’s premises also include renovated old stone cellars, which provide an ideal environment for the production of tvarůžky, which they call tvargle. You can learn more about the production process during a 45-minute tour of these cellars.

A vessel that was once used in the production process is also on display. The vessel was filled with non-fat curd, salt was added, and then the girls trampled the mixture with their bare feet for two hours. Using wooden moulds, they then shaped the mass into small discs. Even today, the recipe has not changed, but the women’s feet have been replaced by machines.

We also looked at how the cheese matures. If you buy this product with an unmistakable taste, it is best to remove the original packaging and store the cheese in a glass or porcelain container and store it at a temperature of 4-8°C. Properly aged, it should have a golden yellow surface and should smell properly. The greatest gourmets eat tvarůžky only when they are melted.
Tours are held every Saturday, also in English. You should book online. More information: TVARG

At the end of the tour, we tasted not only beer, but also tvargle in various dishes.
The fried tvargle with chips and vegetable salad were delicious. By the way, tvarůžky are suitable not only for diabetics but also for celiacs with a gluten-free diet. They are exceptional not only because they are very low in fat, but they are one of the most naturally concentrated sources of protein in food ever. They contain natural probiotics and positively regulate the digestive process.

However, I liked the tartare the best. I found one recipe for you: cut 200 g of tvarůžky into tiny cubes and mix well with 1 tbsp of Dijon mustard, 2 tbsp of beer, 1 tbsp of oil and 2 tbsp of chopped chives and season with black pepper and paprika (can be hot). The tartare is served with toast, rubbed with garlic, and chopped onions.

Bon appetit!
More information about the Olomouc Region: Visit Olomouc Region
More about other interesting destinations in Czechia: CzechTourim

Text: © Copyright Ingrid, Travelpotpourri
Fotos: © Copyright Ingrid, Travelpotpourri