Kolaches
Kolaches in St. George: Where to Find Them in Southern Utah
15 September 2026 · 6 min read
Kolaches are a soft yeasted roll with the filling baked inside the dough. They are ordinary in Texas, uncommon in Utah, and close to unheard-of in the southern half of the state — which makes St. George a strange and good place to find them. We make them on Brigham Rd, fresh from 5:00am, Monday through Saturday.
Why southern Utah barely has them
The route matters. Kolaches came to the United States with Czech settlement in central Texas in the nineteenth century, got adopted wholesale by Houston and Dallas bakeries, and spread outward from there — north and west, slowly, shop by shop. They are not a chain product and they never had a national marketing push.
By the time that spread reached Utah it had thinned out to a handful of independents, and those clustered where the population is: Salt Lake County and Utah County. Below Cedar City the map essentially goes blank. If you have moved to St. George from Texas and been quietly disappointed for a few years, that is why.
What one actually is
Bread dough, proved soft, wrapped around a filling and baked. Not fried, not a pastry, not a donut. The dough is faintly sweet and very soft, and the filling is fully enclosed — which is the practical difference from a breakfast sandwich. Nothing falls out. Nothing needs a plate.
There is a naming technicality worth knowing: in Czech usage a kolache is the sweet, fruit-filled one and a sausage-filled roll is a klobasnek. Texas bakeries have called both kolaches for generations, and that is now the standard American usage. We follow it. The longer version is in what is a kolache.
Every filling we make, with prices
Small kolaches are the snack size. Large ones are a full breakfast.
| Kolache | Size | Each | Dozen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ham & cheese | Small | $2.50 | $26.50 |
| Ham, cheese & jalapeño | Small | $2.50 | $26.50 |
| Sausage & cheese | Small | $2.50 | $26.50 |
| Sausage, cheese & jalapeño | Small | $2.50 | $26.50 |
| Bacon, egg, cheese & potato | Large | $4.75 | $49.50 |
| Sausage, egg, cheese & potato | Large | $4.75 | $49.50 |
| Sausage, egg & gravy | Large | $4.75 | $49.50 |
| Ham ranchero | Large | $4.75 | $49.50 |
Which to pick, briefly. Sausage, egg and gravy is the richest and the one to order if you are skipping lunch. Bacon, egg, cheese and potato is the most familiar. Ham ranchero is the one with actual heat in it beyond the jalapeño. Small ham and cheese is the one to hand a child.
The fillings are broken down further in kolache fillings explained.
Why they are the right thing to take to Zion
A large kolache is a complete breakfast that needs no plate, no fork and no second hand, and the bread holds it together over forty minutes of switchbacks between Brigham Rd and the Springdale entrance. Donuts are a treat in the car; a kolache is actual food.
Two large kolaches and a coffee is the order we would recommend if you are hiking. Coffee is $2.50, ground fresh. More on the early start in breakfast before Zion and donuts in St. George.
Where and when
The Donut Run — St. George, 922 E Brigham Rd, St. George, UT 84790, (435) 628-9290. Open 5:00am to 3:00pm Monday through Thursday, 5:00am to 2:00pm Friday and Saturday, closed Sunday. Shop page.
Kolaches come out of the oven in the morning and are not re-made through the day, so the large ones in particular are an early item. For a dozen or more, call the day before. Our Spanish Fork and Ogden shops make the same set.
Common questions
Where can I get kolaches in St. George, Utah?
The Donut Run at 922 E Brigham Rd, St. George, makes kolaches fresh every morning from 5:00am, Monday through Saturday. Small kolaches are $2.50 and large breakfast kolaches are $4.75.
What is a kolache?
A kolache is a soft yeasted roll with a filling baked inside the dough rather than served on it. In Texas the savoury versions — sausage, ham, cheese, egg — are the standard, and that is the style we make.
Are there kolaches anywhere else in southern Utah?
They are rare below the Wasatch Front. Kolaches came into the United States through Czech settlement in central Texas and spread north and west slowly, so Utah's kolache places are mostly clustered around Salt Lake and Utah County. St. George has very few.
What kolache fillings does The Donut Run have?
Small: ham and cheese; ham, cheese and jalapeño; sausage and cheese; sausage, cheese and jalapeño — each $2.50, or $26.50 a dozen. Large: bacon, egg, cheese and potato; sausage, egg, cheese and potato; sausage, egg and gravy; and ham ranchero — each $4.75, or $49.50 a dozen.
Are kolaches a good breakfast to take to Zion?
They are the best thing we make for it. A large kolache is a full breakfast in one hand, it does not need a plate or a fork, and the bread holds everything together in a car. St. George to the Springdale park entrance is about forty minutes.
Is a kolache the same as a pigs-in-a-blanket or a klobasnek?
Strictly, a sausage-filled roll is a klobasnek and a kolache is the sweet fruit-filled one. In practice, Texas bakeries have called both kolaches for generations and so does almost everyone in the United States. We use the common usage.