Cheeses of Upata
A Venezuelan cattle town in Guayana, known for soft, fresh queso de mano and telita sold along the highway.
Made, aged and sold here
Best time: December to April, the dry season.
Upata is a town in Bolívar state, in the cattle country of Venezuelan Guayana, south of the Orinoco. It is one of the best-known places in Venezuela for fresh cheese: soft queso de mano, also called queso guayanés, and telita, a thin layered cheese. Roadside stalls on the highway to Ciudad Guayana sell both, often eaten with fresh cachapas.
Queso de mano and telita
Queso de mano is made by kneading warm, soured cow's milk curd by hand until it is smooth and stretchy, then shaping it into soft rounds. It is mild, milky and moist, and it is the classic filling for arepas and cachapas, sweet corn pancakes. Telita is a related fresh cheese stretched into thin, flat sheets that are folded into layers.
Guayana
The land around Upata is savanna and low hills, with cattle ranches and small dairies. Ciudad Guayana, the industrial city at the meeting of the Orinoco and the Caroní, lies to the north. Further south are the Gran Sabana and the tepuis. Travellers on the main highway stop at Upata's cheese stalls.
A trail idea for Upata
- Highway cheese stalls Buy queso de mano and telita fresh from the vendors.
- A cachapa stand Eat a sweet corn cachapa folded around queso de mano.
- Upata centre The plaza and church of the cattle town.
- Ciudad Guayana The river city where the Caroní meets the Orinoco.
Written by the EveryCheese desk with AI assistance. Background: "Upata" on Wikipedia. Opening hours, markets, caves and tours change; check locally before travelling. If something is wrong, tell us.
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