What brought us joy in 2020

So let’s be honest here: 2020 sucked hard for just about everyone except maybe divorce lawyers and real estate agents who focused on summer houses and cottages in the Czech Republic.

So we thought we’d end the year with something nicer and more positive - you know, it wasn’t all that bad. So we asked some of our friends from the food industry, many of whom were guests of our podcast over the last year, two very simple questions:

1. What has brought you most joy in 2020?

2. What are you looking forward to the most in 2021?

We hope you find them inspiring.

Have a fantastic 2021, everyone. Thank you for sticking with us in 2020.

Markéta Pavleje

(aka Kitchenette, food blogger and online business owner)

1. That we had the opportunity to spend so much time together as a family. More time with the kids. We have realised that we can adapt to change. I think that we have taken a lot from 2020.

2. I look forward to anything new! I am an optimist: I believe that we will unwrap new challenges that will end up enriching us.

Juliana Fischerová

(aka Maškrtnica, baking guru and blogger, baking consultant)

1. That my favorite places have and probably will survive. As a mother of two small kids, I basically live off of coffee and takeout food, so the changes haven’t been that dramatic for me anyway (of course I am exaggerating a bit, but in hindsight, I can see that my power duo of kids prevented me from enjoying that short period of time in the summer when indoor dining was an option this year). I am happy that until Eliáš was a tiny baby, he managed to join me for a few work-related things, including a business trip to a bakery in Slovakia.

   I am also happy to see the boom of baking - many coffee shops and pubs that used to bake at least a bit have really delved into bread and baking with bigger intensity. Sometimes it’s a bit rough around the edges, but it seems that many want to invest and get better at this.

2. I look forward to being able to work just a little - probably in a consulting capacity for bistros and bakeries, since large workshops for the public are still untenable. And if the development permits, I can run at least smaller and more personal workshops for „normal people“, hopefully in my own space. And I can’t wait to return to Laboratorio whenever I can. And I look forward to eat lunch indoors - my bet is late spring, early summer: I am not an optimist in that regard, and outdoor dining will have to do until then.

   And what I am looking forward to the most is not having to worry about seeing my parents and grandparents in fear - because we’ve seen very little of each other this year.

Karolína Fourová

cookbook author and nutritional specialist

1. In addition to the great feedback to my book, food has been the source of joy for me in throughout 2020. All those thought-out products in jars for the home from my favorite restaurants and bistros, all those produce boxes from farmers, or your Eating Alone Together idea have been the best help line in 2020. What’s more, I could share all of these things with my man, who’s been at home much more due to the current situation.

2. I can’t wait until the doors to all those bistros and coffee shops open again, until I can hide away with my laptop over at Alchymista and have their tiramisu, have a long breakfast at Etapa with my girlfriend, or coffee and banana bread at Letec on my way to the office. And I hope we will all begin to travel again. I can’t wait to have a Norwegian boller with raisins.

Lukáš Hejlík

THE food influencer in the country and actor

1. 2020 was an unforgettable year for sure. I was happy I could spend time with my family. I was able to put Vojta to bed maybe 200 times, and I could spend more time with Klára, my daughter. So on one end, you lose three things you like: culture, dining out and travel, but on the other end, you are at home more.

2. I hope we can come out of this smarter, and more aware that disinformation are not only fraudulent but can be deadly, that we will remember all of this the next time we vote, and that we will approach our work and personal lives with more humility and the knowledge that nothing „everlasting“ lasts forever, for good or bad.

Jackie Tran

Owner at Cafefin, Mazelab coffee, Format Coffee and Botanica Coffee Truck

1. In my personal life, I was happy to realise that I could stop and take care of my family and spend more time with them, and that I didn’t have to - and had nowhere to - rush. In my work life, I was very happy with the amazing team that stayed with me throughout this whole time, although business is not as usual after we opened three places.

2. In 2021, I cannot wait to see Emily, my daughter, speak and put little short sentences together. And in February, we’re going to start roasting coffee in Mazelab. Can’t wait to see that, too!

Vojta Václavík

Chef/owner at Kro Kitchen

1. Seeing Klárka, my daughter, confidently stroll on her own through the forest, walking up hills without crying and lying in the grass, calling it her “bed”: I knew everything was going to be okay eventually.

2. I look forward to reorganise our operations in March: that will, for us, alleviate some of the financial distress we have all been feeling in the food industry. So this is my short-term goal for 2021.

Zuzi

The Boss

1. What I liked about 2020 was the realisation just how little do you really need in your life. And how little do you need to make ends meet. It sounds like a cliché, but in many ways it is so true.

2. What I look forward to in 2021 is travelling for sure. And I expect a wave of optimism as we bounce back - we’ve seen too many people devastated by the covid situation in 2020, so I hope to see them all happier in 2021.

Jan

Instagram husband

1. What I liked about 2020 was the sense of empathy and community I was getting around us, especially as the situation unfolded. People cared more about each other. Also, people were nicer to each other in 2020. This may not sound true, but just remember how off it was when somebody was mean or rude or lacked basic empathy online or in the public discourse. I also realised that eating humble pie may be an enriching experience that can move you forward.

2. I really miss travelling, so I look forward to that. I also look forward to watch JJ growing and enjoying life. I’ve made humble plans for myself in 2020, but the theme is reconnecting to my roots I think.

Five Faves: Prague tips by locals - Marcela Vuong

[Part of the Five Faves series, wherein locals in the know give quick tips to tourists. Simple as that.]

If you want to see the Sapa market, you want to see it with Marcela - project manager by day, Vietnamese food tour guide by… ehhhh… day, too (but mostly on weekends). Warm, friendly and passionate about food, she is the perfect companion to what at the beginning might seem like an impenetrable maze of warehouses and hole-in-a-wall pho places. (Did we mention she’s beautiful, too?) Heck, she gave us her own tips when we wrote about the market, and they have never failed us on our own visits.

Born in Vietnam yet raised in the Bohemian town of Chomutov (“No-one comes from there,” she claims incorrectly, not knowing that Zuzi was in fact raised there, too.), she has a unique insight into both Vietnamese and Czech food and culture, and isn’t afraid to share it. What started as cooking Vietnamese dishes for her friends (and she has many, often recruited from young fashion and design circles) eventually snowballed into one of the most popular tours to Sapa. She also seems to be travelling all the time, which we often observe on social media with thinly disguised envy. So yes, we like her, and we think you’d like her too. Here’s her five faves for Prague and social media.

FIVE FAVORITE PLACES IN PRAGUE

I have so many favorites in Prague! It's hard to choose, but this is my ideal day in Prague:

Eska

Gotta do breakfast there. The bread! Just add butter and salt, and I am happy camper.

Kavárna co hledá jméno

Coffee time. They will be opening again. I am stoked! Love the premises! Beautiful and cosy.  

Bú cá Hai Phong

Lunch in the Sapa market. My favourite eatery in the market. They just serve one single dish: broth with rice noodles and bits of fried carp with lots of herbs. A great hangover cure that has saved my life a few times already. :)

QQ Asian Kitchen

Hungry for dinner yet? Fantastic Asian food in a casual setting and nice atmosphere. I like sharing plates because you can taste more things in smaller portions. Smart.

Cobra

Let's have some drinks! Great atmosphere and delicious drinks. I really like the concept. Open 19 hours a day! (Breakfast, lunch, dinner and bar)

FAVORITE SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS

Silvie_tiplicova

For food and travel tips. I sometimes check out what's Silva up to to get new inspiration for food. :)

Marek Pavala

For food tips. I follow Marek when I am looking for breakfast ideas. His breads with toppings are awesome! 

Yeseter

Adam is currently travelling through Asia, living with the locals etc. I love following his feed and his Instagram stories.

redpoppyzuz

For fashion and travel tips. The girls have just started the @pokojovky project. I am a big fan of that. 

lana.rychter and rychter_d

The perfect couple who loves to travel and eat. On top of that, David makes beautiful hand-made leather goods! 

SECRET TIP FOR PRAGUE

I really like green spots where you can go and have a picnic. So I really like the Stromovka park, Grébovka vineyard, or Riegrovy sady park.

It's a boy! (Oh, and we're alive, too.)

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This post is really one long apology. 

You see, if you’ve been reading this blog for some time, you may have noticed that the frequency of our blog posts has decreased in the past years. Well, "decreased" is a nice way of putting it. We hardly posted anything this year. We’re sorry. We did not die, or split up, or go on a hunger strike. But there’s a reason for the silence, and a change is coming.

What happened?

So, we were in California and Mexico in January 2017 - a week in LA (revisiting our favorites, like Bestia, Gjelina, Eggslut and others, and finding some new ones, like Baroo or Genwa, to mention just a few), a few days in San Francisco (with a great dinner at Benu and one of the best meals ever at Saison) and a week in Mexico City (mostly stuffing our faces with tacos al pastor and other delicious street food, and loving Contramar). We had a great time. 

So we come back, and suddenly, Zuzi has nausea, intertwined with cravings, followed by sickness. „Jan, how about burgers?“ (Zuzi never craves burgers.) „No, pizza. Wait. Pork belly. Did I mention burgers? Hey, actually, I don’t feel that well… …Burgers?“ Long story short, our little baby Jonas was born on October 4, just a month ago. He’s honestly the cutest and, in what seems to be the first son-on-father joke of his life, has already more hair than I do. Hey, enjoy it while it lasts, buddy. 

Anyway, that is why we have stopped posting: pregnancy has altered the way Zuzi tasted and appreciated different foods, and closed many options available before (so long, cocktail bars and Champagne!) and we simply focused on the process and on the baby actually being healthy before and after it was born.  

What is going to happen?

We will start writing again. We promise. That said, we may be looking for new ways of doing this. 

You see, to echo an unnamed US president, who knew parenting was so complicated? Honestly, being a food enthusiast with a baby is difficult, and requires planning. Once we get settled into our new role, we will start writing again. Maybe from a different angle. Maybe not. We’ll see. 

We also plan to travel with Jonas. (Just took his passport photos today, and it was fun.) We have already some trips planned, and may focus more on our travel writing, too. We probably won’t hit as many three-Michelin-star places as we did before, but hey, change is life. We see what happens as we go along. 

Can we make up?

We’re sorry we have been quiet for such a long time. We will start writing again, and revisiting some of the favourites might be a good start. Breakfasts? Coffee shops? We’ll do a roundup soon. We may also reflect our new experiences into our writing, and perhaps see things from a different angle from now on. As a little sampler, we give you...

Three first observations as Prague foodies with a baby:

We haven't been parents long, but here's our takeaway from the first five weeks:

1. Baby Jonas loves cobblestones. Loves them. We haven't reached a stage where we'd ask ourselves, "Sure, nice restaurant, but is the street in front of it cobbled?", but we're not that far off.
2. I have seen more ladies' bathrooms in the past five weeks than I did in my entire previous life. I am yet to see a changing table in a men's bathroom in Prague, which is a feat that seems to be uniquely sexist to both women and men.
3. We're not keen on product endorsements, but our BabyZen Yoyo+ travel stroller is the best thing ever. We can sneak into the smallest of espresso bars and still fit in. Hey, we think we could even pass the legendary anti-stroller column in the door of The Barn coffee shop in Berlin with this thing.  

So that's that. Please stay tuned. We can sense a lot of fun ahead, and we will try to share it.

Zuzi, Jan, Jonas and everybody from Taste of Prague

Zuzi's Five Favourites in Prague

"Capo di tutti capi.” "Da boss.” “The interrogator.” These are only a few things people say about Zuzi. When she’s not in the room. The truth is that Zuzi runs a very tight ship and likes to be in control of things. Because she cares. She’s not that type of person with a “whatever” attitude. Only the best will do, especially when it comes to the guests of the Taste of Prague tours. And she’s a leader with a strong - and usually the right - opinion. And she’s not afraid to voice it. You know what Zuzi thinks. As Karolina put it during one of our Taste of Prague outings: “Zuzi, you’re tough, but I have never, ever, ever thought you were a b*tch.” Wow, thank you for the compliment! (We were all tipsy.)

Zuzi is also a loving foodie with a discerning palate. Heck, she even quit her good lawyer's position in big law to pursue her passion for food. She’s known for one thing: she will not finish a dish or a cup of coffee she does not like. (Unlike Jan, who can gobble things that are less then perfect because, you know, food.) Which can mean long dry coffee spells during vacations. Or the relative lack of fruits in the winter because, hey, they "don’t taste the way they should”. Yes, Zuzi demands perfection not only from people but also from fruit.

But Zuzi also has one of the biggest hearts you will ever see, and if you’re a friend - or a guest - she will do whatever it takes to help you or make sure you’re happy, and she is genuinely excited for your success. She is the girl behind our “will not write about bad dining experiences” policy because she understands perfection takes time and effort. And that's what makes Zuzi so great: she is the perfect combination of demanding - which is great for what we do - and loving, which is great for everything.   

Five Prague Favourites

Pekarna Praktika

One food I could never get enough of? Bread and butter. And Pekarna Praktika bakes my favorite bread in Prague. Crispy on the outside and beautifully moist on the inside, I always eat about one half more than I should. You can buy it to go or eat it straight in the bakery with a house-made marmalade or paté. Tomas, the owner and baker who lived abroad for some time is a total nerd and could speak about bread and flour for hours. Perhaps that’s why Praktika is a very simple room where the main star is his fantastic bread.

Maso a Kobliha  

There isn’t any other place in Prague that could turn pork belly, blood sausage and marinated hermelin cheese into a sexy (and delicious) dish other than Maso a kobliha. Their donut is my absolute guilty pleasure, and whenever I feel down or just plain naughty, their pub classics made from his happy pigs and cows will always hit the spot.

Bokovka 

Great wines, friendly and warm people, and the perfect atmosphere. This was love at first visit, and it’s not going anywhere. When we started writing our Prague favorites, it was difficult to reach an agreement in our household about who’s going to write about Bokovka. And you see, Jan didn’t ask and wrote about it, too. So that’s that. And if you ever want to meet us, just head over to Bokovka on a Saturday night. We’ll probably be there.

onesip coffee

Since onesip coffee opened in the summer of 2016, I have been there literally every single day. Is it because we start our tours there? Maybe. But I like to think that I would be there all the time even’t if it weren’t so conveniently located. Sure, it’s tiny and I won’t get as much work done there as in other coffee shops I like, like Misto, Muj salek kavy, EMA Espresso Bar or Eska, but the coffee is delicious to the point I literally crave it whenever we travel. And the two guys who run it are so nice and helpful: one is a joy to talk with, and the other is a joy to be silent with. 😉

Prague’s farmers markets

Visiting Prague’s farmers markets is always a good idea. We get coffee, something to eat, something sweet, walk around the stalls and see what’s new and what’s in season. What makes the visit even better is that we usually meet our food-loving friends there and just gossip over a cup of coffee, and then usually move on to some restaurant from there. A great way to start the day in my book.

FIVE FAVORITE SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS

Cuketka

Cuketka’s blog was the first food blog I ever started following, and it only inspired me to get more into food. He’s a food nerd in the best possible sense of the word: when he writes something on the blog, you know he’s researched it extensively, which is sadly not that common these days. I also like that when he advertises something, he clearly shows: this separation of paid and independent writing is something to look up to. Oh, and I always learn something new. 

Lucky Peach

Lucky Peach is always a fun read: when they cover a topic, they cover everything about it. Their writing is almost scientific at times but also very subjective. They are above hip trends - a whole issue can be about places that are cool but not cool, if you know what I mean. And when they write a guide for a city, they really go for the spirit and the grit of the city, the places that have come to embody the town, and not for the glitzy and superficial. And I like the illustrations, too.

The Infatuation

I love how these guys write restaurant reviews: they are clearly well-informed and deep, yet with a sense of confidence, humour and wit that is hard to resist. You simply have fun reading them. Because food can be fun, too. They can also cover a city very well and unlike many other sites, their recommendations tend to be spot on. Oh, and the way they work with social media is a big inspiration to me.  

Man Repeller  

This is basically like The Infatuation but for fashion. Many fashion blogs tend to take themselves very seriously and keep stressing you out about what’s a must-wear and what’s out. (It’s usually what you have in your closet.) The girls of Man Repeller can make fun of themselves and their styles and there’s a sense of fun about the whole fashion thing, because fashion should be fun, and you can wear whatever the hell you want to wear. And I like that.

My friends on Instagram stories

It’s so hard to catch up with your friends as often as you would like to nowadays, no matter where they live. That’s why I like to watch what they do, cook or bake (I’m talking about Maskrtnica, Bjukitchen, Martina and Tomas Pavlik, copywriterka, or our own Anna, Karolina and Martin, and so many others), and I like to see them doing well and being happy. 

Martin's Five Favourites in Prague

You know, Czech has a formal and an informal “you” (think “tú” and “usted” in Spanish). And just like Jaromir Jagr, the Czech ice-hockey legend and Jan’s future husband (if his dream/nightmare becomes a reality), Martin hasn’t used the formal “you” in years. Yup, you had Martin at “hello”. You’re friends now. 

He also has a very interesting background (and we don’t meant that physically): How on earth does a psychotherapist with an Austrian passport born in the Czech Republic become a butcher in Prague? Is it because stabbing dead flesh with a knife gives you more job satisfaction than dealing with problems of people who are alive? Well, that’s Jan’s theory. The fact is we hit it off the instant he appeared behind the counter of the Nase maso butcher shop, and we’ve been hitting it off ever since. He’s a big guy with an even bigger heart who’s main problem is that he doesn’t call Zuzi after the tour to tell her how it went soon enough because he just wants to make sure you don’t get lost on your way to the hotel so he just takes you there. Or for a beer.

And he loves food. Having travelled through most of the world (under conditions we sometimes find hard to believe - do commercial aircrafts really have a spare seat in the back?) and eaten just about anything, Martin knows good food and spends most of his free time trying to recreate the food memories he has gathered over the years. Want to meet him on Sunday? Check out the Vietnamese Sapa market, or the new Mexican joint that has just opened. Do you want to meet him at night? Just visit a popular pub or club. Because he just loves company, and the company loves him back. 

Five Prague Favourites

Sapa Market 

The Sapa Market is where they scratch my itch when I'm craving Vietnamese food. It doesn't get more authentic and delicious than inside this warehousing complex. You feel like you’re really in Hanoi. People are riding bikes with pho in hand, and you have to speak with your hands and feet. 
My favourite place is Hai Ha. You get the best Bun Cha there. It's s pork belly grilled on a outside grill with rice noodles and lots of fresh herbs. 
The unpleasant thing: the screaming lady. She's the owner of this place and she is the one that rules there. So don't say something inappropriate or try to argue with her. She will scream at you and be very unfriendly. And trust me, you don't want that. Especially when she is the one who prepares your food. 
The other places I love: Dung Lien. The best grilled duck Vietnamese style. Or Pho Tung, where they have the best pho noodle soup.
Besides that you, can shop the freshest veggies and herbs in the Asia market. Beautiful! 

Nase maso

My workplace! I’ve been a huge fan from the first day they opened. We at Nase Maso love what we do. Best meat in town and it's hilarious working with these guys. It's fun and we are very proud of what we are doing. I applied for the job just out of fun and I’ve been stuck there over a year now. Never meant to work in a butcher shop but I cought fire from the first minute on.

onesip coffee

My daily routine. It's around the corner from Nase Maso and my daily go-to coffee shop. Either they really have the best coffee in town or they trained me and spoiled me so much that I don't know the answer any more. Although I try many different coffees across town, I think Zdenek's and Adam’s is the best. There. I said it. (Drops the mike.)

U zlatého tygra

Yes, I am Czech, and I'm a beer lover. Sue me. Pilsner Urquell never tasted that good in any other place I've been. Although the staff can sometimes be unfriendly and rude and the thick clouds of cigarette smoke can sometimes obscure your view of the next table, this will always be THE pub with the best beer. The whole interior and ambience is part of the Czech soul. The photos of former presidents and international celebrities remind you of the importance of this place. If this pub ever closes, the Czechs will lose a great cultural institution. 

Stalin in the summer

My favourite place in the summer. I remember watching a big statue of Michael Jackson on Letna (replacing the statue of Stalin who used to stand there) as a teenager. Yup, used to be a huge Michael Jackson fan. Please don't judge me. From this moment, this place has been magical for me.
The thing I like the most about Prague is how beautiful it is and how different it looks from different viewpoints. And Letná/Stalin is my favourite point of view. You have a beautiful view of the entire Old and New Town and the river with its beautiful bridges. 
I always get a beer "to go" at Lokál nad Stromovkou and sit on top of the concrete stand. During the day there is one of the best skateboarding spots in Europe and during the night you can enjoy electronic music (or classical music) and just hang out with your friends.

FIVE FAVORITE SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS

Anthony Bourdain 

Still a classic! He inspired me to travel for good food. Because of him, I wanted to travel to places I never thought of visiting. He has the same taste buds as I do, and he’s open to every new taste experience as I am. I get very curious when it comes to tasting strange new things. 

Pitt cue and co 

Masters of the "nose to tail" philosophy. A London restaurant that makes wonderful things out of parts that are normally thrown away. Entrails. I love entrails. 

Local bloggers

Every good local food blogger from the destination I'm planing to visit next. Because the pleasant anticipation of what’s coming is the best joy ever. 

Appetite for China

The best recipe blog when it comes to authentic Chinese recipes. I loooove Chinese food! 

Honza Zima

To keep up with Prague’s hipsters ;)

My secret tip in Prague 

Letná district, my hood 

For me the best part of Prague to live in. Many good places to eat. Two tram stops from the centre, and the Letná and Stromovka parks are in front of my door. The walk trough the Letná park during this time of year is simply breathtaking. I love being a resident of the Letná district! 

Karolina's Five Favorites in Prague

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When we told Michal, the sommelier at Cafe Savoy, that Karolina would we working with us, he had to have a seat. He knew her too well, having roamed the city with her, hopping from bar to bar. He said she was perfect for us. And he was right. Yes, Karolina likes to party and we are yet to meet a person who wouldn’t want to have a drink with her, having known her for at least ten minutes. Yet she is organised and reliable. More than we are. We guess that’s what being a mom of a super cute toddler does to you.

What Jan admires about Karolina is her system of “cheat days”. While Jan just goes on a eating rampage with the will power of a three-year-old in an empty candy story without adult supervision, Karolina stays calm, breaths in, breaths out and let’s the opportunity go, instead waiting for one of her cheat days when the limits are off. Eating out with her is fun: just like Zuzi, preparation seems to be a big part of Karolina’s eating out experience. She just has a plan when she walks into a restaurant and sticks to it. And we like a woman with a plan.

Karolina’s also an unlimited source of incredibly funny stories and an open book who just loves people. Need a recharge? Just give Karolina some enthusiasm and affection, and you’ll get it back tenfold. And she’s our resident dim sum dumpling expert. A lover of Asian cuisine, she knows where to go and what to get. Just ask her. Trust us.    

Five Prague Favorites

Sansho

Sansho is definitely one of my faves. I am big on Asian fusion cuisine. What does it for me is the combination of great food, a homey atmosphere, the variety, and their philosophy. I mean, did you try their Hoisin Pork Belly or Soft shell crab sliders? I think I don’t need to explain myself any further. (Drops the mike.)

SaSaZu

Sasazu. Yep. Again. Asian Fusion. I did’t lie. I just love it. I have favourite dishes in SaSaZu that I keep coming back for. I love the interiors and the atmosphere of this place. Not all the dishes on the menu are worth the money in my opinion, but if you know what to order, it is well worth it.

Café Savoy

Café Savoy is where I love to have a late Saturday breakfast with my friends. Eggs any style, followed by a croissant or French toast, along with a Mimosa or two. Can there be a better start to the day? After we’re done, we usually go for a walk through the Kampa park, over the Charles Bridge and into the city, where we get hungry again and seek some lunch.. .)

Bokovka

This wine bar just has that Genius Loci. You can feel it the moment you walk in. The vibe will instantly make you feel at ease and thirsty for some great wine. White or red, local or foreign, bubbles or flat - whatever your “poison” is, they will have it. And the cheeses to go with the wine! Don’t even get me started on those... :)

Náplavka Farmers markets

Another Saturday delight. What pulls me out of bed is the vision of combination curd cheese/plum jam kolachky with a dose of caffeine from mamacoffee. The best kolache and frgaly are from Fimako on Naplavka in my opinion. After I’ve had my sweet fix for breakfast, I go on to buy some veggies and meat for my weekend cooking.

Five favorite Instagram accounts

Taste of Prague

The Instagram of Taste of Prague. This might seem like sucking up to the bosses (Jan’s note: It totally does. And lose the “bosses” part, too) but the truth is that I was following their accounts before we ever met, otherwise they wouldn’t be my bosses today.. .) They just do the best job here and keep discovering new places and inspiring me to visit those as well. Their pics on Instagram are feast for the eyes and when it comes down to Instagram stories, I just can’t wait for the daily does of “So Zuzi, how many stars”? .))

Kitchenette

I have been following Markéta Pavleje for a couple of years now. I don’t even remember how I came across her web initially, but I liked it instantly. The web page is very sophisticated with great and healthy recipes, beautiful pictures of food, and some travel stories. Following her account on Instagram was a must for me and I still love to look at the food and even some moments from her personal life, those are a nice touch that add a familiar feeling for me.

_foodstories_

I also love _foodstories_ on Instagram. Two Berlin-based girls - a food stylist and a photographer. Their pictures have a certain calming vibe for me. They are always in great composition thanks to the food styling skills of and amazing light and overall feeling. Just like to look at those.

bakingamoment

Another soft spot for me is bakingamoment account on Instagram. Allie is a Philadelphia based food blogger, who loves baking and does a marvelous job too in my opinion. I came across her web thanks to my newly found passion for the Kitchenaid appliances - bakingamoment.com was listed on their official web as one of the blogs “they crave”. I absolutely get why. When I look at her instagram pics my mouth just won’t stop watering.. For those that have a sweet tooth like me, you will also love it

Zachking

This one is not related to food, but I just love what Zach does. I can go on and on and on watching his videos. Cool stuff! Nuff’ said.. :)

Secret tip in Prague

I have two tips. One would be to make the most out of the Saturday farmers market on Naplavka by getting up early and being there right after 8AM when the markets start. You will avoid the crowds and queues and it will be a whole other experience than mid morning, when it gets super crowded.

And another tip would be to visit Bio Oko in the Letna district. This 1940s cinema has been reinvented in 2009 and turned into a really cool hip venue with very unconventional seating. You can watch a movie from a bean bag, a beach chair or a Cadillac that is parked inside of the theatre. Check it out! It’s fun and you can have drinks at the cinema bar before, during and after the movie screening, too. ;-)

Jan's Five Favourites in Prague

He likes to call himself Taste of Prague’s “Supreme Leader”. Until Zuzi enters the room. Anyway, nerdy and mostly lovable - and “too nice” according to Karolina (Zuzi shakes her head in disapproval), Jan is a people person. Zuzi sometimes complains that when she walks off to the restroom and comes back, she can hear Jan’s loud voice, as he’s chatting with the other people in the restaurant. And it’s totally true. He just can’t help it.

Jan has a discerning palate and appreciates great food, yet shows no traceable elements of will-power whatsoever when it comes to various types of junk foods. Nutella, French fries, burgers and pizza, you name it, he’ll eat it. The faster the better. Apart from food, he is a translation nerd (“That’s Doctor Jan to you!” he exclaims whenever he’s fighting with Zuzi over anything and loses, referring to his quasi-doctorate) and his biggest life achievements are the facts that he was an extra in Barbara Streisand’s Yentl (true story) and went to high school with Beyonce for a year (true story, too). 

Five Prague Favourites

Dish Fine Burger Bistro

I am a man of simple tastes. I’m always satisfied with the best burger. And I have not found better than Dish. (Although the dry aged burger at Nase maso comes close.) And I looked everywhere. Sure, the bun is a tad too big. And some of the variations are a bit busy. But hey, nobody’s perfect, and the burgers at Dish come fairly close. In all honesty, if Zuzi and I didn’t eat together, I would be eating at Dish a lot more. More than I should, that's for sure.

Bokovka

I stopped drinking in college and did not drink until we started running our Prague food tours. Then I picked up the bottle again because I thought I simply needed the insight into wines and beers, and still am more of a wine than a beer drinker. And when I get thirsty for a few glasses of wine, I head over to Bokovka. There's so many reasons to like it: the interiors are beautiful, the wines are interesting, the cheeses and fermented vegetables are nice, too, and I like the people who work there. And it's a bit hidden in a courtyard of a 16th Century brewery from all the stag parties and madness that ten to plague Dlouha street's nightlife. Zuzi and I go to Bokovka nearly every Saturday evening, and I don't plan to change anything about that in the near future.  

Lokál

I always tell during our Prague food tours that it’s hard for me to drink a cold, fresh Pilsner and not to sing the national anthem. Yes, it’s an exaggeration but then again, not really. There’s something magical about having, let’s say a school reunion, sit down with people you’ve known forever, and just drink good beer with them. It feels good. It feels safe. It feels like home. Lokal takes some of the classic details of the pubs you’ve been visiting forever and nails them. The bartenders tell me that the average number of beers Czech patrons have in the evening is nine. With the beer that good and the atmosphere so drinking-friendly, I am not surprised. 

Misto

Coffee is a big part of my life. Let’s be honest: I am an addict and will sometimes go for mediocre or straight down bad coffee (think every gas station, or the Sophie’s Choice every time we visit Zuzi's dad - Turkish coffee or Nescafe?) but of course enjoy a great cup when available. Misto is a five-minute walk from where we live, and while we do have some gripes about it, I really like the atmosphere and the plentitude of light inside. It is also a place where I seem to get lots of work done, and when I don’t feel like work, there’s always some friends I can chat with. (And onesip coffee was already taken by Zuzi.) 

Sansho

There are not many places in Prague that in my mind could survive in the merciless jungle that is the NYC food scene, but Sansho is definitely one of them. I am yet to have a disappointing dining experience at Sansho. I remember when it opened: spending relatively big money on food while sitting at communal tables? Whaaaat? But then you have the first bite of the salmon sashimi and it all makes sense. Just let it all hang out and enjoy. And how many good restaurants in Prague serve fun cocktails with dinner? Exactly.

Five favorite Instagram accounts:

cuketka

Whoever has dabbled into food writing in Czech and says he hasn’t drawn some inspiration from “Mr Zucchini” is a damn liar. Martin has set up standards of conduct for food bloggers few have been able to adhere to. I also personally think he’s a sleepless vampire because the amount of reading and research he does is astounding. In that way, he’s a window to the world, bringing global knowledge to our little pond. He now does video, which makes me super jealous. We should do them too.

davidchang

I am a big fan of all things Momofuku, and David Chang is a hero of mine. And he knows how to instagram: I could honestly watch close-ups of pressed bacon release its fatty juices, or chicken wings bubbling in the frier, for hours. I also like the way he thinks about food - he’s a true restauranteur and a visionary, not afraid to try new things, and not afraid to show his love for foods that would be below most snobby foodies. And he seems like a guy you’d love to go to a pub with (if you were on his good side, that is).

Zaiyuhasegawa / puchi.jr

The owner and chef at Jimbocho Den in Tokyo, Japan, a great restaurant we’ve had the pleasure of visiting. I haven’t met many chefs who had just so much fun with what they did, while remaining super humble about it. And he’s an avid mushroom picker. When we told him Czechs pick more mushrooms than anyone, he said it’s probably the reason why I was so tall. Who knows? Check out the account of his little dog, @puchi.jr. (Which begs the question, what happened to Puchi? I don’t want to know.)

foolmagazine

Like the magazine, love the instagram account. If you want to impress some cool friends with your knowledge of the most trending restaurants, just memorize a few from this feed, because they hardly cover anything that is below 9 on the global hip fine dining field. I must say I do love the behind-the-scene shots. It shows life that many of these glossy food magazines work hard to conceal. 

Thedogist

Because science says dogs are the cutest.

Secret tip in Prague: 

I don’t do this very often anymore, but there is something magical about playing ping-pong in the dodgy, slightly smoky pool hall in the V Cipu street behind the Palace hotel. The place looks like something from the 80s post-apocalyptic movies: just a dark, dusty, abandoned palace that now serves as a cheap pool hall with… wait for it… two ping-pong tables in the back. Just ring the bell, enter, give the clerk a deposit, collect two ping-pong paddles and a ball, and swing away. 

As a child ping-pong champion of my block (I was actually stripped of a gold medal at my housing estate championship because I was not a pioneer, which was a Communist version of boy scouts - damn those Communists!), I feel right at home in this environment. Drinking alcohol usually adds excitement… and takes away precision but that’s okay: is there anything that goes better with ping-pong that booze and second-hand smoke? I didn't think so. And hey, who else will have THAT story from Prague? See, there. You’re welcome, internet.

Prague Food Tips and Recommendations by Prague locals. Ep II: Ondra Hurtik

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If you like coffee in Prague - and you should, it’s awesome - then Ondra Hurtik needs no introduction. The reigning Czech barista champion and the runner up of the 2015 Coffee in Good Spirits competition, Ondra has been a prominent figure on the Prague coffee scene for years. And as one of the faces of the ubiquitous Doubleshot roasters, he can be mostly seen behind the espresso machine of Kavarna Misto or Muj salek kavy, unless he’s training in Doubleshot’s barista training centre in the Karlin district.

What are his favorite places in Prague? Where does he like to go and - most importantly - what is his favorite cafe in Prague? Our summer intern Nicole has interviewed him a while back, as he was training for the World Barista Championships in Dublin.    

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Five Favorite Places in Prague

The Prague Zoo
One of the biggest zoos in the world filled with so many interesting animals and exhibits. The nature and atmosphere are so nice. I really enjoy walking around there.

Prague Riverside (Naplavka)
Great parties at night, with a farmers market on Saturdays. It has gotten fairly busy with a lot more tourists coming to the market, but I still like to go to see my friends at the BrewBar. Overall, the general area around has a lot to offer.

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Pristav 18600
Another riverside but not near the center, so it isn’t as busy. Located in the Karlin district, the area is a bit smaller, but it is full of grass and trees that make for a relaxing atmosphere.

onesip coffee
I am friends with the two owners of this small espresso bar. They do it very well, and have great equipment to do so. It’s probably the café that I visit the most in Prague.

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Divoka Sarka
A great park with a large water reservoir. The nature is very nice and you can get swim there. Taken from a stream, the water is vey cold and refreshing on a hot day.

Five favorite social media accounts

@cuketka
Clearly adored by many. He is probably the first true food blogger in the Czech Republic to do it all independently. Admired for trying to do everything in depth. For example, he elaborates on something as simple as putting salt on meat. He determines when is the best time to apply the salt: before, after, during? He experiments with it all and is always a trendsetter.

@longmilescoffee
An American family who moved to Burundi to produce coffee. Ben and Kristy Carlson could see the great potential for coffee in the area. Their goal has become to show the local farmers how to improve the quality of the coffee and how it is produced. I visited them not too long ago, and they were very welcoming and friendly. At the time, I only got to see the farm and where everything is set up. I would like to go back to see the whole process of the harvest.

@lapalmayeltucan
An experimental coffee farm in Colombia. They are always trying something new and are very innovative. I like that they have an exchange program so it’s possible to go work with them and see first-hand how they produce their coffee. They also just have very nice pictures and consistently document what new methods they are trying.

@bosch
I met this guy through the coffee world, of course. His real name is André Krüger, and he is stationed in Hamburg, Germany. What he is probably most famous for is #boschholdinghands. The project, which he doesn’t do so much of anymore, was simply André finding interesting people and holding hands with them, while someone photographed the moment.

@europeancoffeetrip
(Side note: Onda was trying to pick someone who wasn’t coffee-related for the last one of his tips. He just couldn’t do it.)
Two passionate coffee fans. Run by Ales Pospisil and Radek Nozicka, the two travel around Europe, mapping the coffee scenes in different cities. They are interesting and obviously care a lot about what they do. They post great pictures, updates on coffee events, and have their own video blog for their followers.

Prague Food Tips and Recommendations by Prague locals. Ep I: Julka a.k.a. Maskrtnica

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If you have ever had any good food in Prague, the odds are you may have tasted some of the creations by Julka, otherwise known as Maskrtnica in the blogosphere. Julka has baked the first breads for the open-faced sandwiches in Sisters, and is the woman behind the Prague food phenomenon that are the vanilla custard donuts in Maso a kobliha. Throughout her "baking career", the journalism graduate was supplying bread to, and consulting breads with, a variety of great restaurants and bistros in Prague, and is one of the forces behind the Pecem Pecen project and the Sourdough Map, which have singlehandedly brought back the tradition of baking sourdough bread at home. So yup, she’s a big deal.

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And it shows: we’ve tried to meet her for weeks now, after she’s come back from her 3-month tour of the US where she went through a series of short internships and visits in various artisanal bakeries, and still could not get a proper hour to sit down and have a nice chat. In between pop-ups, festivals and consulting, she’s that busy. And no wonder. If there’s one person that embodies bread in Prague, it is her (and perhaps Tomas at the Praktika bakery). So we’re happy that she at least shared her five favorite places in Prague, and her five favorite social media accounts. Here they are:

Five favorite places in Prague

Tea Mountain. Because “here, I am human”. :) I can relax and take a break here. I can breath in the most beautiful, fine smells, and buy favorite presents. An I will hardly buy better tea elsewhere.

Sansho. I worked at Maso a kobliha next door up until recently, so I am biased and I am the biggest cheerleader for the entire trio of Paul Day’s businesses. But Sansho is a fun Asian restaurant with a fine dining kitchen that has a comfy, homey feel. And thanks to the casually informal atmosphere, it will not intimidate those who are afraid of the “better” restaurants. Extra points go for a full menu for vegetarians and an extraordinary approach to sourcing animal products.

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Bread by Praktika bakery. Given its consistency and flavor, bread by Tomas, the young baker/owner, would stand out when if the Prague artisanal bread scene weren’t as microscopic as it is today.

Novy svet café. The whole package, with the walk to and from the cafe, is a treat. Sadly, I don’t have the time to treat myself to it as often as I would like, but our friends from abroad are always transfixed by the experience, and we are, too. :)

Farmers markets. The market I like the most is my local market at the Jiriho z Podebrad square, which isn’t as busy and overflowing with unnecessary things. Given their frequency (they are open three times a week when in season), they work as the main supply for our household: we hardly need to buy food anywhere else, and do not need to alter our food plans in any way.

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And then there’s a million other things... I had to leave out bars, pubs, The Tavern, Las Adelitas, the fried cheese at Lokal, and other local favorites...

Five favorite social media accounts

@cuketka Anywhere. He’s a wealth of knowledge (just look at his Twitter feed), he’s funny (primarily on Snapchat), and we simply like him. :)

@apieceofbread on Instagram. A super-smart baker from Tasmania and a wizard of natural fermentation, sourdough breads and other baked stuff, isn’t it incredible? I must visit him some day.

@thereshecooks on Instagram. A super-nice photographer and now a flying baker originally from Poland, currently in San Francisco. She takes pictures of beautiful people, food and (her own) bread. And she’s a force of nature: I know because we met in Prague and in San Francisco.

@klarabernklau Currently a barista in Cafe Letka. I love her slightly dark humor that may be hard to understand for some foreign nationals.

@Opráski! Not sure if I should put it here: the jokes may be too introverted for the Czechs. (Opráski is an online comic strip that makes fun of, and puts a meme-fying spin on, Czech history.)

Meet a Prague local: Tomas Karpisek of Ambiente

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Photo by Honza Zima.

When we talk about Tomas Karpisek, the founder of the ubiquitous Ambiente group of restaurants, on our Prague food tours, we often describe him as the “Steve Jobs of the Prague culinary scene”. Sure, it's overstatement, but it’s not that far off. If there is anyone who sets food trends in the Czech Republic, it’s Tomas. The appearance isn’t that far off, either: we’re yet to see Tomas in something that even barely resembles a business suit. He’s more of a jeans-and-a-t-shirt guy. Also, just like the late Jobs, he’s a visionary of sorts and has a bigger plan, too. And he’s undoubtedly one of the most respected personalities on the food scene, as witnessed by our interview with Hana Michopulu, the owner of the popular Sisters bistro.

What does not stick in the Jobs analogy is the demeanor. Despite his achievements, Tomas is one of the humblest and most approachable people we know. He also clearly thinks a lot about his job, and it is hard to catch him off-guard with anything food-related. But interviewing him is fascinating: he’s very open and his twenty-plus years in the business mean he has stories to tell.

Interviewing Tomas now is more interesting than ever: the Ambiente group is now on the cusp of a generational shift marked by the openings of the Eska restaurant (this interview was held two weeks before it opened last week) and the Bokovka wine bar, both co-created and run by a young generation of chefs and managers, a trend started by the Nase Maso butcher shop over a year ago. 

We met over coffee to discuss a few things. We planned for an hour. We ended up rushing the last questions after nearly two. We talked about the past, the present, and the future of Ambiente and Tomas, too. This is what he told us. 

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Lokal

The first Ambiente restaurant opened 20 years ago. Are you happy with how the group works? Any complaints? 

A difficult question. I am happy. I am aware of our weaknesses but I also have the experience to know that what works now is only periodic, and it is due to become the weakness we’ll have to work on eventually.   

Is this what you wanted when you opened the first restaurant? 

When I was a chef in Austria, my goal was to come back to the Czech Republic and become the most famous Czech chef one day. I was 23. So when we came back with Katka Vesela (co-founder of Ambiente), we wanted to open a restaurant. A restaurant group was not our ambition back then. I just wanted to be a chef. 

And when did that change? Or did it? Do you still want to be a chef? 

I still feel like a chef. It’s the most important part of what I do. I am at a stage where I try to look for people who could assume some roles that I do and that are not even in my job description. I try to create a system of long-term, sustainable substitutability. That’s why we created the team of Ambiente’s executive chefs who steer the focus back on the fact we sell food. Cooking should still be at the heart of what we do. That’s my role. Keeping the focus on the food. If the group was run by a waiter or an accountant, it would look different. 

Are you happy with the culinary environment in Prague? Are people here ready to recognize quality? 

We’re not London, for example. People there are used to a different standard of service. But we get lots of visiting travelers, and the competition is much smaller, so the conditions for cooking are similar. And Czechs are quick learners. Look at specialty coffee. We look at what’s happening with coffee in London and Berlin, but if you look at the smaller towns, comparable in size to Prague, we are much better off here. 

But isn’t it because coffee is more accessible? 

Yes, coffee is a segment where anyone can afford luxury. Of course, people in Prague have less money for what you’d call fine dining, but there are some people who do, and if you compare Prague to similar-sized towns, we’re okay. And we should not make excuses saying that people in the Czech Republic don’t appreciate food and recognize quality. Because many do and travel for food exclusively. 

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Cestr

Is there a trend in Prague you like? And a trend you don’t like? 

I really like Bogdan Trojak and his natural wines campaign. He was ahead of the market. Today, the best restaurants in Paris serve only natural wines. He made the Authentics (an association of Czech natural winemakers founded by Bogdan Trojak) synonymous to natural wines here, to the point that he even created a small backlash against them, too. I like this campaign and we will support that trend. I was recently in Pizza Nuova (owned by the Ambiente group) and wanted natural wine. The new sommelier said nearly all their wines were natural wines. And he was right. I was really happy with the wine list. I had no idea. I was really happy that it all worked that way without my involvement. And I think natural wines will shake Prague the way they did other cities. 
It’s hard to say what trends I don’t like. I don’t like to talk about negative things. But perhaps what we miss - and what is present in other cuisines - is the principle that true value is created in the kitchen. Here chefs try to buy foie gras, truffles and other expensive ingredients, and sell them for lots of money without actually cooking that much. And we don’t have much of the trend of using waste and cheaper local products like in Nordic cuisine. Chefs should take something cheap and give it value through their own work. And we don’t see much of that around here.  

Ambiente has 700 employees now. Isn’t that too big of a commitment? Don’t you want to throw it all aways sometimes, and start again? Just cook? Do you actually cook at the meetings of Ambiente chefs?  

I do. When I know we will cook something with the chefs, I cook it at home first to make sure what I want to say actually works. But you’re right. I was driving with my son one day and he asked me where he should go for study - he learns English and Spanish in school. I told him it would depend on what he wanted to do in his life. "If you wanted to be an architect, for example, I’d go to Spain, and if you wanted to work with food and take over the business, I wold perhaps go to Spain too.” And he said: “I should probably take over after you. But it’s a huge commitment. Lots of families, right?” But it’s not a burden. It’s motivation to make something that will survive for generations to come. 
I’ve always thought that the manager should be a role model for those working with him. I’ve been working hard, day and night, getting things done. But I’ve come to realize I should also be a role model in my own life and show that there’s paradise after a life of hard work. So I am now working to reach a stage where I come to work four times a week for four hours to show that that's the ultimate goal. You should not just work yourself off. That's my direction now. I don’t want to just sell it all and open my own restaurant. 
That said, I do think about it from time to time. Exit Ambiente and open my own restaurant. I even have a name for it. I don’t know if it will ever happen actually. I do sometimes think of my original generation, the people who opened the first Ambiente. As we get older, we thought of opening a restaurant with the working title “Old School”, something of an old-folks house, where we, pensioners, would work to have something to do. Something like the legendary Cafe Hawelka in Vienna, where the old Mr Hawelka would sit around and sometimes bring coffee to a regular. 

Do Czech chefs have more social prestige now than in the past? 

Absolutely. Lord praise Chef Pohlreich (TV chef who presents the Czech version of the Kitchen Nightmares show) and all these TV shows. 
  
Does the same apply to the waiting staff and other professions in the restaurant? 
  
Sadly, no. But that applies to all crafts and professions today. We are now about to renovate La Degustation and finding a good carpenter is really hard when Ikea is selling furniture for nothing. In our profession, pastry chefs, butchers and bakers are really hard to find. Chefs have moved on but the rest hasn’t. We want to support these professions. We have succeeded with butchers thanks to Mr Ksana, but we’d love to do the same for bakers, for instance. 

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La Degustation Boheme Bourgeoise

Do you plan to open a culinary school maybe? 

Sure, we’re thinking about that. We wanted to create an elite classroom in a culinary school where we would take care of the hands-on classes. But the problem is the people entering the schools. We’d like to create a brand and choose the candidates as they are admitted, and give them care and attention. Smart kids who want to make a career in our industry. We want to create a viable alternative to becoming an arts student, an opportunity to become a personality to be seen. That’s where we’d like to start and see what happens. But coming up with a 4-year study plan is hard. 
Or maybe a 1-year, paid academy. Something like the CIA, an incubator of businessmen in the food industry. They would work their way through our restaurants, take part in an opening, and get all they need to open their own restaurant. See it hands on and turn theory into practice.  

Hana Michopulu did an interview with us and she named you as the person she respected on the food scene. Do you have an idol? A mentor? An inspiration? 

I really like Rene Redzepi. This is where I look for inspiration. What he managed to do for Denmark, or Scandinavia as a whole, with one restaurant, is something Ferran Adria or Heston Blumenthal never managed to do. They just had successful restaurants. But Redzepi has created a social movement and gave food a cultural and social dimension. Food is much more important than just entertainment. 
Another important model for me was Vito Mollica. He was a man who opened our eyes here in Prague. And he has showed me we have to focus on Czech cuisine. He did his own, Italian cuisine, but using Czech ingredients. He found a farm near Frydlant where we have a cottage, and the farmer, an older lady, would send her goat cheeses by train to Prague once a week. That easy. He showed me it does not have to be complicated. 
Czech produce is as good as any other produce. Today, Czech farmers are much more open to listen to us, chefs. I saw Vlasta Lacina having a huge impact on cattle farmers with AMaso. The first farmers were not willing to change anything. Did not trust us. But then the first farmers gave in and today we have 20 farmers who started raising cattle differently. And that has raised awareness among other cattle farmers. 
  
You have just opened Lokals in Brno and Pilsen. Was it more difficult to open Lokals outside of Prague? 

It's easy to open a pub and spend 10 millions in investments. But it’s not easy to find the right person to open it with.  

Do you get lots of franchisee applicants? 

Yes, many have the money, but they ask us to find a manager for them. That’s what we don’t want. We’ll see what regions look like in a year or so. We tested in Kunratice on the outskirts of Prague, learnt a few things, and now we’ll see whether we can replicate that in Pilsen and in Brno, and then the expansion will accelerate if it all works out.  

What about Liberec? Why the franchise failed there? 

It’s all about human stories. Liberec was our first franchise. Very good project, financed by a bank, with the franchisee owning the property. And then the wife, in charge of the restaurant, fell in love with the manager, prompting the husband, the owner of the property, to raise the rent beyond the restaurant’s means. And it was over.  

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Café Savoy

What do you see as your biggest failure? Were there any? 

Oh, there were so many! Usti nad Labem. Opened for a year only. Or Rudy Baron in Korunni in Vinohrady. They approached us whether we wanted to take over. What a mistake: I think a restaurant concept should be based on the food you’re cooking, and the pottery, the design, the size of the place, and the rest just follows. Another failure was the Vinohradsky Pavilon cafe. 
“The road to success is paved by failures that you don't repeat.” I read that somewhere and I like it. For me, the Hospoda restaurant in New York City was an economic failure but a culinary success. Perhaps people here saw it otherwise, but the positive feedback of New Yorkers and the people I met made me think it was a success in other than financial aspects. 

Would you like to return to New York City with Ambiente? 

Being global is perhaps a role for our children. We have come to the conclusion that our role is to cultivate what we have here. There is so much work to be done here. 

Now you’re opening Eska and Bokovka. Are you excited? 

I am always excited. I am also a bit scared. When we opened Lokal, the Xantypa magazine had a party there, and everybody was waiting for Vaclav Havel. But suddenly the door opened and Eva Jiricna came in, without anyone noticing. She asked me whether I was afraid when we opened Lokal. I said I was. She replied that she is afraid every single time when they open one of her buildings. I loved that. Such an icon, and she’s afraid. And I am afraid, too. 

Let’s talk about Eska. Is it a stretch for Ambiente, or natural development? Opening a great restaurant, a great cafe and a great bakery is a feat in itself. But opening all these three together?  

I don’t think about it that way. I just see lots of talent there, and my role is to create the right conditions for them. The same applies to Tereza Fronkova, our architect. The design is so naked, industrial. Nobody’s done anything like that yet here. But we did not want to imitate London. We just wanted to take the truth. “To be as truthful as a concrete panel house.” The structure is old, but all the technologies are new. In Eska, you’ll see everything: what it takes to run a restaurant. How much technology is needed to prepare a meal. 

Why did you choose Karlin? Or did you just like the space? 

We liked the space, and I personally like the community that is growing in Karlin. A small Silicon Valley in Prague, with all the tech people and journalists. We took what we learnt in Nase maso: it crams a butcher shop, production facilities, bistro, restaurant, and an e-shop in the back all into one whole. And this is similar: a bakery, bistro, breakfast place, small shop, and restaurant in the evening, all in a relatively small footprint. But it’s located in a place where many people live and they need to eat, or want to get some coffee. And at night, it will be a destination restaurant, just like Cestr or Savoy. 

How important is the bakery? 

Very important. We’ve been gathering experience with baking for quite some time, traveling to Italy or England and also working with old Czech bakers. So we have tons of information. But the bread can only be done when you first fire up the oven. And the oven is the foundation. We are still testing it out. The bread we make may not end up to be the bread we wanted, and people may be complaining for a year before we get it right. That may well happen. We’ll see.     

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Nase Maso

How about Bokovka? 

Well, that’s something very close to my heart because of all the friends involved and because of Roman (Novotny). Such a personality! He decided to leave La Degustation and move on, outside of his comfort zone. Roman grew up professionally in La Degustation. He has a bit of a tunnel vision and it was hard for him to accept a few things, the “punk" we are aiming at there. Like the glasses we use, because they are just ordinary, regular glasses, nothing fancy. We’re opening a place for the people. Like a Lokal for wines. So you may have some more expensive wines by the glass, but also buy bottles home. More of a wine shop than a wine bar. And you can buy to go or to stay and don’t have to spend a fortune.  

Are you planning to open more of them later on, just like with Lokals? 

I don’t think about it like that. So far we have one, and it’s my pet project. Of course, we don’t only build a small bar with twenty people. It’s more than than. We see the potential here in bringing new wines to Prague, finding new winemakers we could work with, opening a new e-shop. That’s Roman’s job. 

What do the original partners of Bokovka say? 

Well, they are the group that is revolting agains the Authentics. They are a bit more conservative. I spent two hours arguing with Ales Najbrt (one of Bokovka’s partners and the designer behind Cestr, among others) while we were mushrooming in the woods about natural wines, because that’s what I’d like to focus on. 

Let’s talk about your future plans. What’s in the stars for Ambiente? A specialty coffee place? Cocktail bar? Grocery shop? Something more approachable, like a chain of bistros? 

Grocery shop makes no sense. Amazon will just roll over everyone. I’ve watched the new iPhone keynote and everybody’s talking about “changing the world”. I think sooner or later people will talk about “keeping the world as it is”. Food is an anchor in the virtual world we’re heading to. That’s what Redzepi is doing and it’s contradicting the technology. I also think we can expect the return of small shops where you can have some face time with the small owner. But I’m afraid, in the nearest future, it will be Amazon all over the place.
But of course, coffee is a big topic for us. We think it’s hard to find a niche in coffee: cafes pop up organically and the investments are not as high as in restaurants. But we have lots of talent in Eska and perhaps we’ll come up with something. 

Will you focus on coffee in your other restaurants? It seems overlooked. 

Yes, I know. It’s similar to beer. We have pushed the quality of beer in our restaurants very high, and we’d like to do the same with coffee. We want to create a philosophy around coffee that we can replicate in other restaurants. But the biggest weakness in our restaurants is bread. And that’s what we'll try to change in Eska where we’ll make Czech bread. We will start baking Italian bread in Pizza Nuova. Savoy will do finer baking, baguettes and croissants. We have a few things planned for meat. Something like the old “Koruna” delis. 

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Eska - Photo archive of Ambiente.

How do you create the concept of a restaurant? How long does it take to open one?  

It takes about a year. We have a start-up meeting where I present my vision to the entire team. Then we start looking for people who will implement. And that starts a process that takes about a year. But you open a restaurant for the future. A restaurant doesn’t reach full capacity before its third year: it’s in the red for the first year, it breaks even after a year, and it keeps growing until the third year. And that’s where many restaurants fail: they don’t include the money you have to spend throughout the restaurant’s first year in the overall investment. They run out of money and can’t spend on the details. 

But the idea is always yours? Do you talk about it with the CFO? 

Yes. Dana (Daniel Krondak, the CFO) is my main partner. I tell him my ideas, and he crunches the numbers. He has a different way of seeing things. We have this spreadsheet we put it all in and see if the idea will work in real life. The details, that’s teamwork of chefs, architects, designers and so on. Sometimes they work, sometimes they don’t. But the fun and the details should never overshadow the food. That’s crucial. 

Do you still see a niche on the Prague food scene? 

We try to focus on the basics. We don't want to teach Czechs to eat good ramen, for instance. We want to teach them to eat good bread instead.  

So which of the basics Czechs haven’t learnt to eat yet? 

We have a list of basic produce we want to cover and there are still some blank spots there. Vegetables will always have it hard here, because historically we haven’t eaten much of them. We do try to sell more vegetables, but we will not turn Czechs into a nation of vegetarians. I think it makes more sense to teach people to eat fresh water fish again. That’s a huge niche. The first mention about food in Bohemia said we ate mash and herring. It was the cheapest thing. Fresh water fish is something that has a future and makes sense. 

It seems that in the last few months, Ambiente has become much younger than before. You look at the people in Nase maso, and nobody’s over thirty. And your style of communication over social media seems much younger today. Is that true? Do you target younger people deliberately? 

Absolutely. We are now reevaluating our values as a group, and we have a new one: freshness. That applies to produce, but also to people. We want to give more opportunity to young people. I am not getting any younger myself, and neither does the company. It may sound absurd, but the fact I’ve started sharing my life with such a young person (Bara, Tomas’ wife, a food lover and cookbook author also known as Bjukitchen) has had a huge impact on all this. It has opened my eyes in so many ways.  

Because the truth is, we don’t have famous old chefs, for instance. 

We don’t, really. We are the generation that creates new traditions. Our kids will be purer than we are. Bara, although very young, was still affected by Communist education. Our kids will be untouched by all this.  

Can you describe your ideal Saturday? 
  
My ideal Saturday is virtually my every Saturday. I really do live a happy life. The person I love wakes me up and serves me great breakfast. Then we go jogging or take the boys to the park. We follow with good food and so on. Good food, family and home. That’s my ideal Saturday. 

Your guilty pleasure?   

I don’t know. There’s one thing I do that goes against everything we say about beer: I mix beer with soda water. Our bartenders go crazy. But I like it and I don’t need to get drunk every time I drink beer. I personally don’t think it’s wrong, but our bartenders don’t approve. 

Is there anything people don’t know about you? 

Oh, there’s so many things! (Smiles.) I like to go fishing: I used to a lot when I was a kid, and then I’d always wanted to again. Now we go with my boys. Some parents like to make their dreams happen through their kids, right? But they do love it. The boys do all the fishing. I only put the bait on. We bought a small fishing shed. It’s a mess, but we like to go fishing from time to time. We hardly ever catch anything, though. 
  
What restaurant would you open if nobody knew it was yours or part of the Ambiente group? 

I actually plan to do that, so I can’t tell! It’s like when a member of a band does a solo record as a small side project. I could see myself being a silent partner in a restaurant. That’s very appealing to me. But I can’t tell you, obviously. (Laughs.)