Olomouc eats well and inexpensively, with traditional Moravian cooking still dominant despite a wave of newer cafés and modern bistros. Specialities to look for include svíčková (beef in cream sauce with dumplings), vepřo-knedlo-zelo (pork, dumplings and sauerkraut), and bramboráky (potato pancakes flavoured with marjoram).
The local cheese, Olomoucké tvarůžky — soft, fermented, and famously pungent — is a Hanák regional treasure and an acquired taste. Locals fry them in beer batter, layer them in salads, or serve them on dark rye with onions. Cukrárna Mahler is a good old-fashioned café for kava and kremrole pastries; Moritz is a brewery-restaurant with reliable Czech food and its own house lager; and Drápal, around the corner from Horní náměstí, has been pouring beer to locals since 1936.