National Cheese Curd Day: the complete guide
National Cheese Curd Day falls on October 15 every year. It was founded in 2015 by Culver's, the Wisconsin-born fast-food chain, to celebrate America's squeaky little dairy obsession. The holiday now anchors a calendar of cheese curd festivals, restaurant promotions, brand stunts, and creamery open houses across the Upper Midwest and beyond. Here's everything to know about the day, the dish, and the people who keep it going.
One day. Three regions of America that celebrate hardest. A growing list of restaurants, festivals, and dairy fans worldwide.
The short version, by the numbers
The origin: how Culver's invented the holiday
National Cheese Curd Day didn't grow out of any older folk tradition. It was created by Culver's, the Wisconsin-born fast-casual restaurant chain, in 2015. Culver's had added cheese curds to its menu in 1997, and by the mid-2010s the chain had grown to hundreds of locations across the Midwest and beyond. The holiday was, plainly, a corporate marketing creation, but it landed because Wisconsin and the broader cheese curd community genuinely wanted a day to point to.
Culver's positioned the day on October 15 — deep enough into fall to feel autumnal, after the state-fair-curd season had wound down, and timed to a window when Wisconsin restaurants and creameries were looking for traffic between the summer rush and the holidays. The chain promoted the day with limited-edition merchandise, cheese-curd-themed advertising, and (eventually) one of the most successful menu stunts in recent fast-food memory.
The CurderBurger and Culver's NCCD traditions
The most famous NCCD ritual is the CurderBurger, which Culver's debuted as an April Fools' Day joke in 2021. Customer demand was so strong that Culver's actually launched it as a limited-edition real menu item on National Cheese Curd Day 2021. The CurderBurger is a Culver's ButterBurger topped with a single oversized fried cheese curd patty — a giant disc of breaded fried cheese curd, roughly the diameter of the burger itself, sitting on top of the meat patty.
It went viral. Madison, Wisconsin-area Culver's locations sold out before noon on the debut day. The CurderBurger has since returned for NCCD in subsequent years as a one-day-only menu item. The chain also released a cheese curd mascot named Curdis the Curd Nerd, who shows up in NCCD promotional materials and on social media around the holiday.
All Culver's locations source their cheese curds exclusively from LaGrander's Hillside Dairy, a three-generation family creamery in Stanley, Wisconsin, where Master Cheesemaker Ryan LaGrander holds one of the rare Wisconsin Master Cheesemaker certifications in cheese curds specifically. So when Culver's celebrates NCCD, it's celebrating a real Wisconsin family cheesemaking operation, not a corporate abstraction.
How NCCD is celebrated
Beyond Culver's, NCCD has become a regional anchor day for cheese curd promotions and celebrations. A few of the common ways the day shows up:
At Wisconsin creameries
Many Wisconsin cheese curd brands run open houses, tours, tastings, and promotional pricing on NCCD. Ellsworth Cooperative Creamery, the official Cheese Curd Capital, hosts events tied to the day. Smaller creameries use NCCD as a sales push and a community open-door event. If you're within driving distance of a Wisconsin creamery, the week of October 15 is one of the best times of year to visit.
At restaurants nationwide
Restaurants serving cheese curds — supper clubs, sports bars, breweries, fast-casual chains — often discount fried cheese curd orders, run drink pairings, or add a one-day-only special on the menu. Wisconsin and Minnesota restaurants are the most consistent. Other states with strong dairy or curd culture (Iowa, Illinois, Michigan, Oregon, and even Vermont in some pockets) also see scattered restaurant promotions.
At cheese curd festivals
Several Wisconsin cheese curd festivals are timed to the late summer / early fall window and pair well with NCCD energy:
Festivals are organized independently and dates shift year to year. Check the official festival website before traveling.
At home
For people not within driving distance of Wisconsin, NCCD has become an at-home celebration day. Common rituals: order fresh curds from a Wisconsin creamery to arrive by October 15, host a small curd tasting with friends, fry up a batch of cheese curds with a few different dipping sauces, attempt homemade poutine, or pair plain curds with a flight of Wisconsin beers.
Five ways to celebrate National Cheese Curd Day
If you want to mark the day, here are practical options ranked roughly by ambition:
Visit a Culver's location for hot fried cheese curds. If the CurderBurger is on the menu, try it — it's only available on or near NCCD and tends to sell out by midday. About 1,000 Culver's locations across 26 US states.
Place an order with one of the recommended Wisconsin cheese curd brands in our recommended cheese curds to arrive in time. Most ship 2-day air with cold-pack. Order 4-5 days before NCCD to be safe.
Stock 3-5 flavors of curds (Plain, Garlic & Dill, Jalapeño, Buffalo Wing, and a seasonal like Pumpkin Spice). Pair with cold beer, Wisconsin Bloody Marys, or a flight of dry ciders. Provide three or four dipping sauces. This is the lowest-pressure way to make it feel like a holiday.
A proper homemade poutine takes about 90 minutes (gravy + frying potatoes + assembly) and rewards effort. See our poutine guide for the method. Source the cheese curds direct from a creamery for best results.
For the full experience, drive or fly to Wisconsin during NCCD week. Visit a creamery for a tour, hit Ellsworth for the Cheese Curd Capital experience, sample fried curds at a supper club, and grab a Wisconsin Bloody Mary somewhere along the way. The dairy state takes the holiday seriously.
Why a holiday for cheese curds matters
Marketing holidays often feel hollow. National Cheese Curd Day didn't, because the underlying food deserves the attention. Cheese curds are a genuinely regional American food — one of the rare specialty foods that's deeply tied to a specific dairy region (Wisconsin) and a specific community (the cheese curd makers that produce them). The fresh squeak is a sensory phenomenon you can only experience with curds that were made hours, not days, before eating. Most of the country never gets that experience.
NCCD pulls cheese curds out of the regional snack category for one day a year and gives them national visibility. It drives traffic to Wisconsin cheese curd brands that might otherwise stay invisible. It introduces new people to the food. And in a small way, it helps preserve the production tradition by celebrating the people who keep doing the work.
Frequently asked questions
When is National Cheese Curd Day?
October 15 every year. Same date annually since the holiday was founded in 2015.
Who created National Cheese Curd Day?
Culver's, the Wisconsin-founded fast-casual restaurant chain, established the holiday in 2015. The chain's first restaurant opened in Sauk City, Wisconsin in 1984; cheese curds were added to the menu in 1997. NCCD was created as a brand celebration that has grown into a broader regional and national holiday.
Is the CurderBurger available year-round?
No. The CurderBurger is a limited-edition menu item released only on or around National Cheese Curd Day each year. It originated as an April Fools' joke in 2021 and went viral; Culver's brought it back as a real menu item later that year for NCCD. Locations sell out quickly — the Madison-area restaurants sold out before noon on the debut day.
Where can I celebrate National Cheese Curd Day?
Anywhere you can get fresh cheese curds. Culver's restaurants nationwide run NCCD specials. Wisconsin cheese curd brands host events and promotions. Supper clubs, breweries, and sports bars often add NCCD specials. For an at-home celebration, order fresh curds direct from a Wisconsin creamery to arrive by October 15.
Is National Cheese Curd Day a federal holiday?
No. NCCD is an unofficial food holiday created by Culver's, not a federal or state government-recognized holiday. There's no day off work. There's just better cheese.
What's the biggest cheese curd festival in the US?
The Ellsworth Cheese Curd Festival, held annually in Ellsworth, Wisconsin (the official Cheese Curd Capital of Wisconsin), is the largest dedicated cheese curd festival in the United States. It's held in summer rather than October — verify current year's dates on the official festival website before traveling.
Order curds, find a festival, or just visit Culver's.
However you mark the day, the curd directory and our guides have you covered. Make a plan a week or two ahead for shipping windows to work in your favor.