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The Czech Republic scored a major diplomatic victory over neighbouring Germany and Austria this week after the European Union granted the cherished protected geographical status to the country’s pungent Olomoucké tvarůžky cheese. That means only the original cheese produced in the village of Loštice - near the Moravian city of Olomouc - can sell the product under that name; everything else is an impostor.

Beer producers say that sales of beer on tap in the past three months have dropped as compared to the same period last year due to the cold and rainy weather. Although no official statistics are out yet, some brewers say the drop is likely to be in two-digit numbers. Beer sales usually soar in late March, early April with the opening of outdoor eateries and garden restaurants. These outlets account for a third of overall beer sales.

The Trade Inspection Authority said a recent inspection of 28 pubs and eateries in smaller towns and villages revealed that 16 of them failed to adhere to set norms. Among the failings for which they were fined was undersizing food portions and drinks and failing to properly mark the price of goods. The TIA said it meant to intensify inspections of small eateries ahead of the holiday season.

The US restaurant chain Hooters will open its first location in Prague on Friday. The beach-style eatery will open in Vodičkova Street, off Wenceslas Square, as the first Hooters location in central and Eastern Europe. The franchise holder is planning to open another 11 Hooters restaurants in the Czech Republic. Prague’s Hooters location will also be the only one in the world to offer draught from a beer tank.

Prague Zoo has begun repair work on Cubist wooden buildings designed by the great inter-war architect Josef Gočár. The buildings were damaged by severe flooding which hit the Czech capital in 2002. The repair work is being carried out in a higher part of the zoo complex. Once it has been completed the timber structures will house a restaurant, a museum, a gallery and a lecture hall. Gočár is regarded as one of the founders of modern architecture in Czechoslovakia. His other works include Prague’s House of the Black Madonna and the Church of St. Wenceslas in the city’s Vršovice district.

This week marks fair trade week in the Czech Republic and the main focus is on coffee. Consumers can sample various brands and speak with coffee producers from Mexico and Tanzania. While the consumption of fair trade goods in the Czech Republic increased by 22 percent last year, such products are still relatively new to the country – they only became available in 2004 when the Czech Republic joined the European Union. John Kanjagaile, the export manager of a fair trade farmers’ union based in Tanzania, spoke about the situation of coffee farmers

It is perhaps the best-known Czech dish: svíčková, a beef roast with creamy vegetable sauce, served with dumplings. It can be found on the menu of virtually every Czech pub. This month in Czech Life, we take a look at this traditional dish, what makes it so special and find out if Czechs are still cooking their country’s classic meals at home.

Czechs celebrate 100 years of aviation, a car-thief steals a car with a baby in the back-seat and the Prague Academy of Fine Arts has organized a course in Gothic bookbinding. Find out more in Magazine with Daniela Lazarova.

Prague’s National Agriculture Museum in Prague held a special day this week to highlight a culinary phenomenon enjoyed not only by Czechs but also by their neighbours, a day honouring the dumpling. The day, open to schools and members of the public, accompanied an on-going German-Czech exhibition entitled Knedlíkové nebe (Dumpling Heaven) – a three-year project looking at the history of the food as a shared culinary heritage.

There is nothing like buying fresh produce on an open-air farmers’ market – but what may be common in other European cities has been missing in the Czech capital for years. Now things have finally changed. The very first farmers’ market was held in the district of Dejvice in March and immediately attracted some fifteen thousand people. On Saturday, the stalls opened for the second time.