What should you eat and drink in Pilsen?

The three that define Pilsen

• Unfiltered Pilsner Urquell in the cellars. The Pilsner Urquell brewery tour ends in the sandstone cellars under the brewery, where you taste unfiltered, unpasteurised Pilsner poured straight from an oak barrel. Where: the brewery, a short walk east of the old town across the river. Tip: the tour lasts about 100 minutes and costs about 430 CZK (≈ $19.7); the cellars are cold all year, so bring a layer even in summer.

• Tank beer (tankové pivo). Unpasteurised Pilsner delivered to pubs and kept in large tanks, which is as close to the cellar taste as you get outside the brewery. Where: pubs in the old town with a 'tankovna' or 'tankové pivo' sign. Tip: order a hladinka, the standard pour with a firm head; a mlíko is almost all foam and is drunk in one go.

• Guláš and roast pork with dumplings. Czech goulash is a thick beef stew served with bread dumplings; vepřo knedlo zelo is roast pork with dumplings and sauerkraut. Pilsen kitchens often cook both with beer. Where: pubs and the brewery-area restaurants. Tip: many Pilsen pubs list a pivní guláš (beer goulash); it is the local version to order.

Nine more things to eat and drink in Pilsen

• Nakládaný hermelín. Soft Hermelín cheese marinated in oil with onion, garlic and chilli. Where: every pub as a beer snack. Tip: order it with bread for the table, not as a meal.

• Utopenec. A sausage pickled in vinegar with onions. Where: pubs, often in a jar on the counter. Tip: it is a beer snack; one per person is enough.

• Pivní sýr. 'Beer cheese', a pungent soft cheese mashed with onion, mustard and a splash of beer, spread on bread. Where: traditional pubs. Tip: mix it at the table if it arrives in parts; that is how it is meant to be eaten.

• Svíčková. Beef in a creamy root-vegetable sauce with dumplings, cranberry and lemon. Where: traditional restaurants and as a pub lunch special. Tip: it is the dish Czechs would choose for a celebration; try it once on the trip.

• Smažený sýr. Breaded fried cheese with tartar sauce. Where: pubs and food stands. Tip: the safe vegetarian order in a city of pork.

• Gambrinus and Pilsen's other beers. Gambrinus, the most popular everyday Czech beer, is brewed on the same brewery site; Pilsen also has small craft breweries. Where: pubs across the city. Tip: compare a Gambrinus and a Pilsner Urquell side by side; the difference in bitterness is obvious.

• Spa wafers (lázeňské oplatky). Large, thin round wafers filled with sweet layers, a speciality of the West Bohemian spa towns. We came to Pilsen from Karlovy Vary and Mariánské Lázně, where they are sold warm. Where: the spa towns, and boxed in shops and supermarkets. Tip: buy them warm in a spa town if you pass through; boxed ones are a fine souvenir.

• Becherovka. The herbal liqueur from Karlovy Vary, the spa town north of Pilsen where we stayed 2 days before coming here. Where: any bar. Tip: drink it cold as a digestif after a heavy pub dinner.

• Chlebíčky. Open-faced sandwiches with ham, egg or potato salad. Where: bakeries and supermarket deli counters. Tip: the easiest breakfast before the brewery tour or a train.

The brewery and where to eat in Pilsen

Pilsen's food and drink revolve around the Pilsner Urquell brewery (Plzeňský Prazdroj), whose gate is a short walk from the old town and the main square, náměstí Republiky. Book the brewery tour ahead in summer; it covers the brewhouse, the bottling line and the cellars, and ends with the barrel tasting. The Brewery Museum in the old town covers the history of brewing in the city.

Most pubs and restaurants are inside the old town grid around the main square and St. Bartholomew's Cathedral. Pilsen is far cheaper than Prague, and it has none of the tourist-trap pricing of Prague's Old Town Square. For self-catering, see our Czech supermarket guide.

Tipping and ordering in Pilsen

Tipping works the same as in Prague: about 10% for good table service, rounded up and stated as the total when you pay rather than left on the table. Our Prague tipping guide applies here too.

In a Czech pub the server marks each beer on a slip on your table and brings another when your glass is nearly empty; put a beer mat over the glass when you are done. Weekday lunch menus (polední menu) are the cheapest hot meal in the city.

If you only have one day: a Pilsen food plan

Morning: chlebíčky and coffee near the main square, then the Pilsner Urquell brewery tour, ending with the unfiltered beer in the cellars.

Lunch: a polední menu of soup and beer goulash at a pub near the brewery or in the old town.

Afternoon: the old town and the cathedral, with a stop for coffee and cake.

Evening: a tankovna pub: nakládaný hermelín and pivní sýr with the first beers, then svíčková or roast pork, and a Becherovka to finish. Pilsen is a common day trip from Prague; see what to eat in Prague, our Prague and Bohemia guide and the Czech food guide. The spa towns we visited before Pilsen are in our Karlovy Vary guide.

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