Cheesy Stops on Your Next Wisconsin Road Trip

— By Stacy Brooks —

Wisconsin’s nickname is “America’s Dairyland,” and it’s easy to see why on a road trip across the state. As you make your way through, you’ll find cows grazing next to the highway and deep-fried cheese curds on the menu at roadside diners. The state is home to nearly 1,200 licensed cheesemakers who produce more than 600 different varieties of cheese, ranging from classic cheddar to unique specialty creations. In 2024, Wisconsin cheesemakers produced 3.58 billion pounds of cheese, or 25% of the cheese produced in the United States.

Want to get in on some of that cheesy action? These kid-friendly Wisconsin cheese factories (also known as creameries) offer a peek at the cheesemaking process, photo opportunities with giant cows, and delicious dairy-based eats like fresh cheese curds, grilled cheese sandwiches, and ice cream cones.

Marieke Gouda

Located just off Highway 29 in Thorp, Wisconsin (less than an hour’s drive from Eau Claire), Marieke Gouda uses traditional Dutch cheesemaking methods to craft a wide range of gouda cheese, from mild young gouda to versions flavored with bacon, honey clover, jalapeño, and more.

Marieke Gouda was founded by and is overseen by cheesemaker Marieke Penterman, who grew up in the Netherlands and in 2024, became the fourth woman in history to earn a Wisconsin Master Cheesemaker certification. Marieke Gouda is a farmstead cheesemaker, meaning that the cheese and milk are produced at the same location.

We started our visit with a stop by the barn, which is just across the patio from the building housing the creamery, cheese store, and cafe (more on those later). We missed out on seeing the cows being milked, but we were able to see the milking parlor through viewing windows and learn more about dairy farming thanks to educational displays that explained the process. 

For a more in-depth experience (and guaranteed cow viewing), guests can join a guided tour of the milking parlor and barn (offered June through August, Monday through Saturday, at 9 a.m. and 1 p.m.). Although we weren’t able to see real cows, we were able to snap a photo with the giant cow statue next to the barn.

At the Marieke Gouda Store, we peeked through the windows to watch cheesemakers in action, monitoring the cheese vats in the adjacent creamery and rotating large wheels of cheese in the aging room. Informational signs walked us through the entire cheesemaking process, from the pipeline system that transports the milk from the barn to molding the cheese curds into wheels. The store is stocked with the full lineup of Marieke Gouda cheeses, with sizes ranging from manageable wedges to five-pound hunks.

We were delighted to discover a variety of cheeses made by other Wisconsin producers including cheddars, string cheese, and fresh curds, along with a few flavors of Marieke gouda available to sample. Locally made cheese accompaniments like jams and crackers, candy, and gifts rounded out the sizable selection of merchandise.

By this point, we were ready for lunch at Café Dutchess, Marieke Gouda’s full-service restaurant. The dining room has windows with views of the aging room — as we waited for our food, we admired hundreds of large wheels of cheese stacked on shelves. Appropriately, Café Dutchess serves deep-fried curds, burgers, sandwiches (we loved the gouda grilled cheese with fries), and salads featuring Marieke Gouda cheeses. On the kids’ menu, there’s gouda grilled cheese as well as gouda mac and cheese.

Scray Cheese

Although it’s only about a 20 minute drive from Green Bay, Scray Cheese Factory & Shoppe in De Pere, Wisconsin has a remote, rural feel. Our drive took us down picturesque roads and ended at the small factory that’s been churning out handmade cheese since 1924. The fourth generation, family-owned factory has a shop stocked with curds fresh from the production line; our bag of curds was still warm, and there was a delightful squeak as we bit into each curd. Fresh curds are produced every day except Friday and Sunday.

The cheese shop is located in a brick building that used to house the factory’s head cheesemaker — before modern technology like refrigeration, cheesemaking was a round-the-clock job. Today, the small shop sells blocks of cheddar, gouda, and fontina (plus, of course, fresh curds), with a handful of cheeses available to sample.

Scray Cheese is especially known for their creative flavors of cheddar. We loved ogling the unique options like French onion, guacamole, and taco. Some of the flavors are longstanding recipes, such as the Tuscan rosemary; others are experimental ideas pitched by the factory’s employees, like strawberry tajin and coffee maple. We ended up bringing home a tasty block of blueberry cheddar.  

The shop also has an ice cream counter serving hard scooped ice cream and a selection of cheese-themed gifts, like t-shirts and magnets. 

Ellsworth Creamery

Ellsworth Cooperative Creamery’s Menomonie location is just off of I-94, perfect to break up our drive from Green Bay to our home in Minnesota. A series of viewing windows gave us a step-by-step, behind-the-scenes perspective on the entire cheesemaking process — from receiving the milk to transforming curds into blocks of cheese, with helpful educational signs. 

The size of the facility was mind-boggling, especially compared to smaller creameries like Marieke Gouda and Scray Cheese. To get a sense of scale, it’s helpful to keep in mind that Ellsworth sources milk from 200 family dairy farms.

After watching cheesemaking through the windows, we perused the finished products. The creamery’s expansive store is stocked with more than 280 Wisconsin cheeses, including fresh Ellsworth cheese curds. The store is known for occasionally offering brand-new cheesy creations that are being tested on customers, like Buffalo Wing Jack cheese. Other items include locally-made snacks, fudge, and beverages.

Before hitting the road, we grabbed a bite to eat at the food counter. The menu features grilled cheese sandwiches made with curds or your choice of cheese, on your choice of bread. We went with the curd grilled cheese on marbled rye and loved the oozy, slightly chewy texture. Other options include pizza, quesadillas, soup, and deep-fried curds. The soft serve and hard scoop ice creams are made with local milk, and you can create custom sundaes or shakes from a slew of fun toppings and mix-ins.

A Delicious Family Trip Through Wisconsin

Our road trip stops at creameries were obviously delicious — we’re still thinking of those grilled cheeses, plus the fresh curds, gouda, and blueberry cheddar we brought home as edible souvenirs. But this kind of road trip offers families even more. Stopping by Marieke Gouda, Scray Cheese, and Ellsworth Cooperative Creamery took us behind the scenes to watch how cheese is made. At the end of it all, you leave with deeper appreciation for the hard work and technical skill that Wisconsin cheesemakers put into each block of cheddar and wheel of gouda.

—