Fried Cheese · Canteen Classic

Smažený sýr (Fried Cheese)

Photo: Pastorius / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

This deep-fried cheese slab is such a beloved cheap eat that it's a school-canteen staple, not just a street snack.

Smažený sýr is a thick slice of cheese — usually Edam — breaded in flour, egg, and breadcrumbs and deep-fried until the outside is crisp and the inside melts. Street stalls and fast-food windows serve it in a bread roll like a burger, with tartar sauce, or on a plate with potatoes.

Why it's made this way: Cheap, filling, and quick to fry to order, it became a go-to budget meal in Czech and Slovak school canteens and street kiosks alike, prized for costing little while feeling indulgent.