What to do in Ostrava, Czechia

One of Czechia’s technology hubs, my wife’s work with 3Pillar Global took us to Ostrava, the country’s third-largest cities. A former mining city, remnants of the industry remain most notably in Dolní Vítkovice, a former mine that’s now an entertainment center.

Spending four full days in Ostrava, here’s what we did.

Eat:

• Corn soup at Hogo Fogo Bistro, a popular restaurant with beautiful design and a menu that changes weekly.
• French toast with sweetened sour cream at CØKAFE Dolní Vítkovice, a cafe inside an old industrial building.
• Katowicke rurky (a crispy roll filled with whipped chocolate cream) at PLATO Bistro, a cafe inside an old slaughterhouse that’s now an art gallery.
• Kimchi fried rice from Rodem Korean Food & Cafe, a popular Korean restaurant that does takeout only after 4 p.m.
• Okonomiyaki (savory pancake) at Maido, a Japanese restaurant and bar.
• Scrambled eggs with chive butter on toast at AlterNativa Café, an inviting cafe in the Poruba neighborhood.
• “Trouble Breakfast” of sausage, scrambled eggs, toast with chive butter, fruit, bacon, and more at Trouble Cafe, a spacious cafe with award-winning coffee.

Drink:

• Coffee at Black Tree Cafe, an award-winning coffee shop with a colorful yogurt/granola/fruit bowl.
• Latte at Shothouse, a design-forward cafe with Wi-Fi and outlets.

Do:

• Climb Bolt Tower, a tower with an observation deck built on top a former mining complex’s blast furnace.
• Explore the lower Vítkovice Area, a former mining complex with galleries, cafes, concerts, and museums.
• Jump around at HopJump, a three-level, indoor trampoline park.
• Learn about science at the Science and Technology Centrum, a large museum with over a dozen exhibits.
• Take the train less than an hour to Štramberk, a small town in the hills with a 14th century castle and Štramberské uši (gingerbread-type pastries only found here).

See:

• 3,000 animals at the Ostrava Zoo, a large zoo with playgrounds throughout the space.
• Horse mural on the side of Vinograf Italian Bistro.
• Modern art at PLATO Bauhaus, a gallery, artist space, cafe inside an old slaughterhouse.
• Ostravská Madona mural by American artist Nils Westergard.
• Sculptures outside the Gallery of Fine Art, a museum with a few exhibits and a cafe.
• Social realism architecture down Hlavní in the Poruba neighborhood.