We have been aware of the Grand Cru wine bar at Petrske namesti for a long time but never really visited the place. Recently, the wine bar opened a restaurant. We have heard good comments on the food and mixed comments on the service from our friends so we though we needed to check the place out, too. And, of course, whenever something new opens up, we can’t really miss it.
Our dinner at Alcron
We love to travel. For food. Whenever we are, we try to splash out on a dinner in a Michelin-star restaurant and put it in our plans to get a glimpse at the fine dining scene of our destination. And because we write for people who are like us and who like similar things, we paid a visit to Alcron, one of the two restaurants with a Michelin star in Prague. We visited the other one, La Degustation, a few months ago. You can read about our visit here.
We must admit that Alcron had to put extra effort into winning us over. You see, we are a bit sceptical of hotel restaurants. They often feel less personal to us. Besides that, we do like the other Michelin-star restaurant in Prague, La Degustation, and knew that Alcron had a different focus and offered a different experience. That said, we were really eager to see what Alcron had to offer: it has always been synonymous with haute cuisine in Prague. Saying “tastes like something from Alcron” has always meant something special.
Babovka - Bundt cake recipe
Sunday is the traditional day for cooking here in the Czech Republic. Moms and grandmas gather in the kitchen and start preparing the Sunday lunch because for the older generation, Sunday is the day for a home-cooked meal. From very early morning, you can hear the unmistakeable sound of meat being tenderized for the lunch schnitzels and smell the wonderful odors of hearty Czech comfort food. And because you need to finish your lunch with something sweet, baking is an indispensable part of the whole Sunday morning cooking tradition. And "babovka", or the bundt cake, is an undisputed Sunday lunch classic.
Meet a local: Mimi of La Femme Mimi
When you meet Mimi, the designer and owner of La Femme Mimi, a popular Czech fashion label, you see a person who is always smiling, a person who just can‘t wait to share her true passions and someone with an interesting story. We sat for an hour to talk about her past, her present and a little bit about the future. But the most important question of course is: “Where do you get the best Vietnamese spring rolls in Prague?”
10 best bites in Prague
We travel mostly for food. We guess we all do, really. Sights? Yes, sure, we are going to see them, anyway, while we walk from a breakfast spot to a cafe. An hour-long line to wait for entry in a touristy spot? We're out. An hour-long walk to a place out of the centre that serves the best ice-cream in town? Sure thing! We look for authenticity both in food and in the environment. We travel because we want to see how the locals live and what they eat. What would a local foodie recommend to us? That's the question we want answered.
And because we write this blog (and run our Prague food tours) primarily for people like us, we have decided to share something like a top ten of our Prague dishes or bites. To do the complete list, you will have to visit many different restaurants but trust us: we stand behind these dishes. Also, it does not hurt that some of these restaurants are off the beaten track, so you may get see things that are more authentic and that you would not have seen otherwise.
Hong Kong rolls at SaSaZu
Why start with an Asian-inspired dish? Because we visited SaSaZu quite recently and have this dish still in fresh memory. A confession we have to make: we could eat this dish for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and snacks in between. It is absolutely gorgeous: the combination of flavors and textures you get from the cucumber, crispy sea bass, mint and other herbs and then a dip in the apple soy sauce... we are in heaven.
Perigord sauce at Cestr
We know it sounds weird, but we keep coming back to the Cestr restaurant mostly for the Perigord sauce. Although shown above with fries, we love it with the potato mash, a star dish of the restaurant: boiled in whole milk and then combined with lots of butter, there are only a few things better than this. But the Perigord sauce with truffles and demi-glace is so good we can pour it just about on anything. For instance, it makes wonders to the already great spinach or the beluga lentils that come with their trout sometimes.
Meatloaf at Nase Mase
When Nase maso, the new butcher shop in Dlouha street, opened, the three butchers had a contest who made the best meatloaf. The master butcher, of course... lost, and now they make the other butcher's grandma's recipe on a daily basis, and they sell out often! The meatloaf is simply fantastic: with about 20% beef, 80% pork and more than 30% fat, of course it's good! You get three generous slices and three slices of bread to go with that, along with a side order of mustard. Hands down the best meatloaf we've ever had (and our's grandmas' meatloaf is pretty solid, too)!
Frgale at Simply Good
What happens when a former corporate executive opens her own bakery? Wonderful things happen. Simply good in the Karlin district has been our bakery of choice when it comes to Czech kolachees and frgals, and the latter deserves a separate trip. Which means three stars in the Michelin guide book. Just saying. Simply Good’s frgale, a Moravian pastry that resembles a sweet yeast dough pizza with plum jam, curd cheese or poppies and then finished with streusel is a Czech classic to die for.
Wild boar with rose hip sauce at Na Pekarne
Now if you are willing to travel for food, this pilgrimage will take you to Cakovicky, a village about 10 miles North of Prague, to Na Pekarne, a small pub and restaurant of Mr Fric, a famous Czech chef who will take you under his wing and will not let you go until you are fed and happy. There is a fine line between a guest and a hostage, and Mr Fric is yet to find it. :-) But you will forget the fact that you were served Slivovitz on entry and a beer when you sat down even if you did not ask for either when you taste Mr Fric's wild board with rose hip sauce: the meat is incredibly tender, and the sweeter sauce really combines well with the potato pancakes that include walnuts and raisins. Let us put it this way: if Mr Fric opened a restaurant just around the corner from us, we would be very overweight. Don't skip on dessert: the "povidlove tasticky" (potato-based ravioli-type pasta filled with plum jam and served with lots of butter, some sugar and crushed nuts) would deserve a separate entry on this list, too.
kulajda soup at essensia
The description of the kulajda soup itself might not seem very appealing: creamy soup with potatoes, mushrooms, dill, vinegar and a poached egg. But have a spoon of the kulajda at the upscale Essensia restaurant in the Mandarin Oriental, and you'll know what the buzz is all about. You know that it must be good when it deserved a spot in Mandarin Oriental's menu, which tends to be more Asian-inspired. Everybody knows that Mr Stift, the executive chef, is a master of Czech cuisine and the kulajda is the best proof: wonderfully delicate and light yet full of fantastic flavors. It may be a bit pricey for a soup at CZK 245 (EUR 9) but definitely worth the price. The downside? The staff might look strange at you when you order just one thing from the entire menu. But they don’t. (At least not to your face.)
beef rendang at Sansho
The "beef curry", served with roti bread and some rice, at Sansho is slow-cooked for long hours with many spices and it shows: every bite has a deep, yet a different flavor, and it is rare to see such richness of flavor in a single dish. In Sansho, it is served with spicy jam. The dish is a combination of the wonderful, organic and traceable Czech beef from The Reat Meat Society and the skill of Mr Paul Day, the Executive Chef. But let's be honest: it is really hard to pick just one dish at Sansho: we also love the pork belly and watermellon salad, the soft shell crab sliders or the chicken wings. Do yourselves a favor and check Sansho out.
Pickled herring and wasabi mayo chlebicek at the Sisters bistro
When we started our food tours 2.5 years ago, Jan’s friends would pick on him at the soccer games, saying, “your really take your guests for chlebiceks (the Czech open-faced sandwiches)? Have you gone completely insane?” Well, if the chlebiceks are as good as the pickled herring and wasabi mayonnaise chlebicek, our favorite, at the Sisters bistro opened half a year ago by Hana Michiopulu, you would be mad not to like them. The pickle is light and fresh and compliments the delicate bite of the wasabi mayonnaise and the slice of the sourdough bread underneath it. Unlike some other chlebiceks served at Sisters, it is not entirely Czech, but it is pretty darn good.
mini vetrnik at cafe savoy
The vetrnik is normally very big and very rich so you may not need to eat for the rest of the day, which would really ruin it for us. However, Cafe Savoy offers a mini version, which we recommend. It is one of the most popular things served during our Food and Culture Tour and although Zuzi is not big on sweets, Cafe Savoy's vetrnik is a pastry she will never turn down: a small choux pastry stuffed with luscious, rich yet very light vanilla and caramel creams and topped with a caramel coating on the top.
smoky dish at the dish burger bistro
The Dish Fine Burger Bistro, a popular burger place in the Vinohrady district, quickly won us over, and we have become regulars fast, visiting about once a week. If Jan had his way, we would be there twice as often. The Smoky Dish has everything a great burger should have: a fantastic, grilled brioche bun, a great, juicy patty, BBQ sauce, smoked chili mayo, fried onions and pickles. Pair it with their bistro fries and flavored mayos, and you'll be in heaven... and a food coma for the rest of the day.
Sweet bonus: Pistachio ice-cream at AlDolce
Jan has a particular food addiction: the wonderful, lush pistachio cream sold in some Italian specialty shops here in Prague. Because of its addictive nature, he only gets it a few times a year: for birthday, for his name day (a big thing here in the Czech Republic), and sometimes for Christmas (provided he was nice, of course). The pistachio ice-cream at Al Dolce is the closest thing to the wonderful flavor and richness of the pistachio cream sold legally on the streets. Now, there is one thing where we agree to disagree: while Zuzi likes the bits of pistachio they sometimes put in, Jan likes the creamy version better. Either way, it is still worth trying. Yum!
Prague off the beaten path: Novy svet
Let’s face the facts: Prague as a popular destination gets very, very busy during the summer season. We like to avoid the crowds when we travel, too, and that is why we give some Prague tips to the guests visiting our food tours.
For instance, we recommend that you visit the main sights early in the morning or late in the evening, and for the rest of the day visit the more residential, local parts of the town. We have already written about the Charles Bridge early in the morning earlier, or about Prague views that can be enjoyed outside of the main tourist routes.
But still, sometimes you may find yourself in a busy area and are in need of a quick escape. Where to go? What to see? We understand that you still want to see something meaningful but without all the crowds. That is why we will, from time to time, write about some Prague escapes: gems that are still in the historical centre but off the beaten track. The first of our escapes - and our secret Prague tip if you are in the Castle area - is Novy Svet.
NOVY SVET
Novy svet (which loosely translates as “The New World”) is a fantastic, picturesque part of the Castle district that is severely neglected by virtually all the tourists but secretly loved by all the locals. Dating back to the 14th Century, it is a small area consisting of just a few streets that have retained the atmosphere of a small village. If you want quiet far from the madding crowds (actually, it’s just two streets away from the main route between the Castle and the Strahov Monastery), this is where you’ll find it.
On top of that, the area now boasts a wonderful cafe that bears the name of the area: Novy svet. It’s a tiny room and a few chairs outside. Nestled in an area associated with tourism, you would expect inferior products and premium on everything. You would be wrong: they take coffee from Doubleshot, high-quality Prague-based roasters, and use an E61 Faema machine. They also serve good ice-cream by 2AD and a few cakes and snacks. The venue sits about 20 maximum but includes probably the most beautiful place in Prague to enjoy a cup of coffee: their small balcony with two chairs and a table overlooks a dense, forgotten garden.
The smartest Prague food tours. Cool rental apartment. Awesome pocket wifi device. We’ll turn your Prague trip up to eleven.
Book a tour Get the guide Rent the apartment Rent the pocket wifiIf you want to go back to the centre but wish to avoid the castle and the associated crowds altogether, we recommend you walk through the Deer Moat, a steep, lush valley underneath the castle. The beautiful walk includes the famous tunnel that allows the Brusnice stream to flow along the length of the valley. The route will eventually lead you into the Lesser Town, namely the Klarov area near the Malostranska subway stop.
Best breakfast in Prague (2014)
(Please note that this is an older post on breakfast in Prague. Click here for the most up-to-date post on the best breakfast in Prague.)
OK, so we ate lots of breakfast this week. You see, there is no better way to start a day than a good, possibly opulent breakfast. Picture this: we are writing this post from the courtyard of an unnamed hotel in Prague, having breakfast. All around us we see foreign couples and families having breakfast in the sun, looking in their guides and planning the day. Breakfast is important but it is twice as important when you travel: a good breakfast set the tone for the entire day, if not your stay. We speak from experience: breakfast spots are one of the first things we look for when we research a city, and then plan our day over breakfast.
Truth be told, the Prague breakfast scene is still in its beginnings and not all the breakfast served in Prague deserve an unconditional recommendation. But there are places we like to visit when we feel like a good breakfast. Here’s a list of our favorite breakfast spots in Prague, again in an entirely random order:
CAFÉ SAVOY
“Restraint” is not a word you would associate with breakfast at Café Savoy. The art deco interior is nice but not overwhelming and there's lots of light inside, which is something we like. This is a great place for people watching: the crowd is a mix of elegantly dressed locals and visitors from abroad. You can have a look at the pastry shop/bakery where they prepare their delicious pastries downstairs. Book a table in advance (especially for weekend mornings) and have the French toast if you feel like sinning, one of the best croissants in the city with wonderful apricot marmalade, baked brioche bread with ham and Gruyere cheese and a poached egg, or scrambled eggs - all delicious! Jan swears by the "Savoy breakfast”: some breads, ham, cheese, soft-boiled egg, bundt cake and great (and not sweet) hot chocolate - all for very reasonable CZK 200. We are not huge fans of their coffee: they take coffee from Doubleshot roasters but their baristas are super busy and don’t have the time to pamper the beans, but we hope this will improve over time.
CAFÉ LOUNGE
If coffee is an important part of your breakfast, then Café Lounge, just a few steps off Café Savoy, might tickle your fancy. As for breakfast, you can choose from several items that include sausages, scrambled eggs, ham-and-eggs, Bircher muesli, or you can build your own “Hunger Wall” (which actually runs through the patio of the café), i.e. you can create your own breakfast set. If you prefer a sweet breakfast, we recommend you opt for the Czech sweets - sweet buns or kolachees. We think they are superior to the pastries in the cooler. Fresh juices and a wide selection of teas are also available for the non-coffee drinkers. If the weather cooperates, definitely choose a table in their lovely courtyard in the back.
HOME KITCHEN
The “original” Home Kitchen is a small and intimate place that really feels like home: you sit at two communal tables, and the staff is friendly and helpful. The selection for breakfast is small but tasty and of high quality. Apart from eggs, you can also get pancakes and good bread with several toppings, or choose from a daily selection of three soups served with bread and flavored olive oil. The “new” Home Kitchen was recently previewed on this blog here. The new venue is much larger but the menu remains nearly the same. Great egg dishes and sweet breakfasts, too, with lighter meals and salads throughout the rest of the day. Both venues open really early (7:30 on weekdays and 8:00 on weekends) and the original one closes on Sundays. The only downside is that tap water is not served with your meal, but we still like Home Kitchen a lot.
MUJ SALEK KÁVY
Muj salek kavy is the flagship cafe of the Doubleshot roasters and it shows: espressos, cappuccinos, flat whites, drips, vacuum pots, cold brews - they have them all and they’re all good. Muj salek kavy is also a very popular place located in the Karlín district, now in the midst of a gentrification process after the 2002 floods, and is almost always packed, so reserving a table is a must especially for weekend breakfasts. And they are expanding: their barista centre just next door will open to the public in September and their new bakery creates good cakes and breads, including gluten-free options, which is still rare here in Prague. We both have favorites on their recently changed breakfast menu: while Zuzi likes their home-made muesli with Greek yoghurt and fruits, Jan always orders their version of eggs Benedict. We love their home-made lemonades, and we never leave without tasting one of their cakes. And we absolutely adore their non-smoking outdoor seating area in the summer.
PASTA CAFFÉ
Pasta Caffé has two branches: the one at the Vezenska street (in the Spanish synagogue building) attracts an eclectic mix of shady Czech businessmen and B-list celebrities, so it makes for an interesting people-watching session, and the location is fantastic. The second branch at Vodickova st near the Wenceslas sq is more for the regular folk. Both offer a nearly identical menu: they have recently revamped their breakfast offerings and their breakfast sets are a terrific value and consist of good-quality components. We love the soft-boiled eggs with Parmeggiano cheese or fried eggs with spinach and their granola with fresh fruits, for instance. Later in the day, they focus on lighter, pasta-based dishes and salads. They also offer a nice selection of Czech and Italian pastries if you cannot imagine your breakfast without a sweet ending.
LA BOTTEGA DI FINESTRA
This shop/bistro is a bit upscale, just like the sister restaurant next door, but their eggs Benedict are worth a visit alone. The few breakfast dishes they serve are all of very good quality, and they make full use of their own in-house bakery. The shop/bistro combo plays very well to the customer's advantage: all the ingredients are fresh and tasty. And you really can’t beat the location: both the Old Town Square and the Charles Bridge are just a few blocks away.
CAFÉ JEN
Dominka and Hanka, the Brno college friends who own Café Jen, love breakfast and are not afraid to serve it the whole day. On top of that, they offer really nice weekend breakfast specials that lure in people from the entire city. It is not just about the food: the small café (with outdoor seating in the summer) located in the Vrsovice district near the Grebovka vineyard and the hipster heaven that is the Krymska street has a welcoming, friendly atmosphere that is easy to fall in love with. If you want to have breakfast with the locals only, this is the place for you.
LA GASTRONOMICA
This recently opened bistro that belongs to the small Prague empire of the restauranteur Riccardo Lucque (which also includes La Bottega di Finestra) has nearly everything we like in a breakfast place: modern design by the Edit! studio, high-quality a la carte breakfast dishes (incl. eggs Benedict, pancakes or fruit salads with mascarpone that are anything but healthy), charcuterie, cheeses and breads to choose from, a large variety of pastries, skilled barista (although working with what we think is a slightly inferior product) and a view of the TV Tower, enjoyed especially if you sit at the outside tables. What more would you want? Wines? Yes, they have them, too.
HOTEL JOSEF
Hotel breakfast? Yuck! Not at Hotel Josef, though. With their in-house bakery that offers a selection of nice breads and steaming hot croissants, a-la-carte egg dishes, self-service juicers and a wide selection of cheeses and charcuterie, we think their breakfast is actually a pretty sweet deal, although it may be a bit on the expensive side at CZK 500 per person. But they also have a really nice courtyard in the summer (with very weak wifi, though) and you can’t beat the location in our eyes. The downside: the eating-with-locals atmosphere is simply not there.
SaSaZu
While everybody knows SaSaZu as one of the best Asian-fusion restaurants for lunch and dinner, we always recommend their Sunday family brunch, especially if you are visiting Prague as a family. The concept is simple: you come between noon and 4pm, and in addition to the excellent Asian food, there’s an army of nannies and lots of X-Box consoles ready for the kids. The small ones can also prepare crepes and other dishes for their parents. And what about the adults? They can get a back rub from the Thai masseuse present in the restaurant. Combine this with a visit to the Dox Centre for Contemporary Arts and perhaps the ZOO and you have a family day to remember.
Cestr's Beer Ice-Cream
Oh, the glory of the beer ice-cream served at the Cestr restaurant! We love it so much we even included it in our recent list of the best ice-creams in Prague. You see, some things divide, some unite. Cestr's beer ice-cream clearly falls within the latter category: our guests who do not like beer by itself love the ice-cream, anyway, saying they could easily consume beer in this form. First you get the notes of coffee and caramel, just like when you taste the roasted barley that makes the dark lager dark. Then a whiff of honey. And then it comes. The fantastic beer finish that stays in your mouth for a few moments more. It is fun watching our guests go throughout the whole tasting process.
When we first tasted Cestr’s beer ice-cream, we knew we would serve it to our guests. We actually have a confession to make: we bought an ice-cream maker to recreate it at home. We have used it twice, of course. An we failed: ours came out too sweet. And it has been collecting dust ever since. Until now. We have always tried to get the recipe, secretly, but never dared ask. But still, we have been keeping a mailing list of all of our guests who wanted to be sent the recipe when we finally get it. And that means nearly every guest who has ever joined the our Prague food and culture tour.
Source: Archiv Ambiente
Well, the time has finally come. The Ambiente group of restaurants, the owner of Cestr (and some other restaurants and cafes in Prague) has published the recipe (albeit as part of a larger dessert pictured above) in its quarterly food magazine distributed within its restaurants, and we have the permission to reprint it! So without further ado, here’s the recipe.
Cestr’s beer ice-cream
- 400g (14 oz) caster sugar
- 400ml (1.7 oz) 33% whipping cream
- 200g (7 oz) honey
- 1l (4.2 cups) Master dark lager
- 100g (3.5 oz) powdered milk
- 2 yolks
- Put all the ingredients in a pot and slowly bring to boil, stirring occasionally.
- Sieve through a fine sieve and cool down aggressively (either in an ice-cream maker or in the freezer: in that case, mix the ice-cream through every 15 minutes until it is firm).
Did you think it would be harder? We are sorry to disappoint. You can replace the Master dark lager with any dark lager of your choice, preferably from your local small or micro-brewery. Just ask at your local shop that carries beers... and enjoy! In Cestr, they serve the ice-cream with marinated plums, caramel mousse and malt biscuit crumbles. How will you serve yours?
Meet a local: Lukas Svoboda of Lokal
source: archiv Ambiente
We met Lukas Svoboda, the man in charge of beers for the ubiquitous Ambiente group of restaurants, at the beer pairing he organized in the Cestr restaurant. We immediately liked him to the point where we started planning his abduction and involuntary service in our apartment. (We do that with chefs or baristas or bartenders that we like - is that wrong?) We have also, for the longest time, thought of signing up for his draughting school at Lokal u Bile kuzelky. Six hours full of nothing but beer and food? Sounds about right.
We met him for the interview in Lokal u Bile kuzelky, his home pub. He was talking to the regulars and clearly in command of the place. It is absolutely clear that he loves beer and his guests, and it is even cleared that they love him back. And why wouldn’t you? Always smiling and talking with a slight Moravian accent, Lukas is the best promoter of Czech beer we could think of. He was, of course, having a glass of unpasteurized Pilsner Urquell from the big 500 litre tank.
When did you taste your first beer?
I may have tasted my first beer when I was fifteen or sixteen. I could not drink at home, so it was with my friends, in secret. I was not impressed. For me, it was the cheapest alcoholic drink. But I was social and alcohol was a thing associated with parties. I preferred Coke or Pepsi. Seemed more interesting. It all changed when I began working at U Pinkasu. I was intrigued by how the bartender pampered the beer and how the beer created a community of regulars.
And then my buddy and I opened Konvikt in Bartolomejska street. I was there for 3.5 years. I managed to take all the good things I learned at U Pinkasu and leave all the bad things there. It created a great community of regulars and friends. And that’s where the inspiration for the draughting school came from: the bartender should be a personality, have a relationship with the customers and have respect for the beer. We want to teach that.
source: archiv Ambiente
How did you end up at Lokal?
Mr Karpisek, the owner, had a vision for an honest Czech pub: Lokal. He started looking for people and he heard about me. It was funny: Tomas and his pals were coming regularly over to check me out, just smiling and nodding at me when I worked. He was introduced to me and asked me later to take care of the beer at Lokal. That was in 2009, about five months before the opening. I focused only on beer and on the draughting school.
I was a young gun, and now I wanted to introduce the alternative pours: the “sweet", the “snyt" and so on. These beers were available only to a few regulars at two or three pubs but not to the general public. The older bartenders did not like it: they though it was just theirs. Now it’s common place. And we keep adding more: the beer aperitifs at Cestr, and now Radlers, or Shandys, at Lokal.
What is the story behind the draughting school?
When we opened Konvikt, Mr Berka, the master brewer at Pilsner Urquell, really liked it. And he mentioned he would love to see a school where the best bartenders would share their experiences. That was 2007, and the school was opened at 2011. I had no premises at Konvikt, but I do have them at Lokal. Also, Ambiente [group of restaurants] gives me lots of freedom. At first, the school was targeting professionals but then we said no: we would open it to the public. Six hours of beer history, beer pairing and training.
source: archiv Ambiente
Our US guests say the tank Pilsner Urquell tastes completely different than the thing they get there.
When you have a beer from the keg, it is important that you drink it as fresh as possible. We buy Pilsner Urquell for our NYC pub from the local distributor and always make sure it is not older than two months. We want the kegs to be all empty within three months of production.
What is interesting that the wholesale price of Pilsner Urquell is nearly the same here as it is in the US. The difference is in the markup. Cheap beer is a Czech tradition: for nearly 50 years, the Communists centrally planned beer production and they just made two types of beer in huge numbers with a set price. Just domestic barley and hops, no imports for specialty beers. The production was motivated politically.
In the 17th century, we had 3000 breweries in the Czech Republic. Tiny ones. Every town had at least one. Before WWI, the number dropped to about 600, and at the end of WWII, we only had 200: the wars really took their toll. And at the end of 1989, we only had 48 huge breweries. Now we are seeing a revival of smaller breweries: we have 46 big breweries and about 240 smaller ones. The funny thing is that we have nearly 300 breweries but only 90 master brewers. :-)
Besides Pilsner Urquell, what beers do you like?
I love small, craft breweries. I travel around the world and try them. On principle, I like any beer that is well poured. And that’s a problem. We have good beers but the bartenders don’t know how to pour them. Antos is great, and I have liked Matuska for a long time. Well, there are many. I chose Antos for Nase maso because it goes well with the meat. Now they’ll have the 10 degree beer for the summer. It’s great.
Do you miss any beer on the market?
Many. I still miss high-quality beers. We still have reserves. We can do better. For instance, the cyclist’s 8 at Hostivar brewery is fantastic.
source: archiv Ambiente
Your favorite venues?
Whenever they pour beer well. Lokals, of course. Konvikt, Malostranska beseda, Tygr because of the atmosphere, Bredovsky dvur, U Pinkasu for one beer. I don’t have one place that would be my favorite. I like to try new things.
Your favorite Sunday or Saturday?
When the weather is bad, I like to have a lie down and read a beer-related book, or go see a movie or listen to some music. When the weather cooperates, I do my favorite pastime: downhill mountain bike riding. Otherwise I like to go to the great outdoors, especially when combined with a visit of my family in the Beskydy mountain. That’s great. Oh, and I have actually tried golf for the first time and I think I will like it!
Where do you go for beer in Prague?
I only visit venues that treat the beer properly. I primarily watch how the beer is poured, especially with my favorite, Pilsner Urquell. I am very strict about that. In that respect, I like all Lokals, Konvikt, Malostranska Beseda, Tygr etc. and then I like small craft breweries more and more – Strahov, Beznoska, Hostivar… But again, I like to try new things.
What are four beers visitors to Prague should taste?
If I were to have my four last beers in Prague, I would have Pilsner Urquell at Lokal, the dark lager at U Fleku – although the place is super touristy, their beer is great! Hostivar 15° at Hostivar – it’s damn good. And finally unfiltered Radegast at Konvikt with the regulars at their table.
source: archiv Ambiente
Our Prague to Vienna Trip
Many of our guests come from overseas and in addition to Prague, they also want to see other Central European capitals, especially Vienna and Budapest. Some of them have the comfort of a rented car, which gives you a bit more freedom and the opportunity to see something else than just cities. And if you are traveling from Prague to Vienna (or vice versa), the trip gives you a great opportunity to taste some great Moravian wines (at least for those not doing the driving) and to meet some great Moravian people, too.
And because we want you to travel like locals, we give you our model route when we travel from Prague to Vienna. You do not have to visit everything but in any case we recommend that you make a day out of your Prague-Vienna travel. You don’t have to rush (and when you take the D1 Pague-Brno highway, you won’t anyway - you’ll see when you get there) but instead enjoy some countryside in addition to the cities you will visit.
EMA Espresso Bar, Prague
Our Moravian trip always starts with good coffee. EMA opens at 8am, which is reasonable, and we always get coffee to go (cortado for Zuzi, flat white for Jan) and a sweet bun, just like “Honza”, the proverbial hero of many Czech fairytales when he left his humble home to slay the dragon.
Villa Tugendhat, Brno
If you want to see this marvel of late 1920s architecture, you should stop reading this, go to their site and book now. Because it may already be too late: they tend to be fully booked for months ahead. However, our experience has shown that their booking system is not the last resort. If they are fully booked, try to call them and ask directly. (And if they are still fully booked, try to call again in a week.) They may actually have some spots available. In any case, this is the villa to see if you love modern architecture: Villa Tugendhat offers some great views, spaces and history behind them. Even if you decide to see the villa without a reservation, you can visit the garden and see the villa from the outside.
Lunch in Brno
Despite the slight rivalry between the two towns, we actually love Brno - the capital of Moravia - and its friendly, laid-back atmosphere. Brno is also home to a few foodie places we would love to have in Prague. For a lunch on a budget, we recommend Castellana Bistro, Ruzova slepicka, Bistro Franz and Ebisu. While the former three are popular local bistros with daily specials, the latter very simple serves Japanese fare.
For an upscale lunch, head over to Koishi, Pavillon or Forhaus. Il Mercato is a sister restaurant of Aromi and La Finestra in Prague and serves Italian cuisine. Koishi serves lunch specials and focuses on fish and Asian fusion. Pavilon offers a fantastic, airy and light space in the central park and also offers quite nice lunch specials. Finally, the cooking at Forhaus pays tribute to the Austro-Hungarian tradition (think schnitzels, goulash etc.) and their outdoor seating is really nice.
The smartest Prague food tours. Cool rental apartment. Awesome pocket wifi device. We’ll turn your Prague trip up to eleven.
Book a tour Get the guide Rent the apartment Rent the pocket wifiIndustra Coffee
We absolutely love this place. Housed in an old industrial park, Industra Coffee (part of the Industra gallery) is very hard to find but when you do, you’ll reap the rewards: excellent coffee, English-speaking staff (both co-owners used to be baristas in London) and a friendly, relaxed atmosphere. You will not want to leave. At least we don’t.
Sonberk
No other winery offers a stunning view of the Palava hill like Sonberk. It is a larger winery but the wines are still pretty good, especially the Rieslings and the Palavas (the latter is a Czech crossing of aromatic grapes). If the weather is great, we can spend a lazy afternoon on the wooden terrace overlooking the vineyards, the ponds and the Palava hill.
Krasna Hora
A beautiful small winery in the Stary Poddvorov village. The winery building is beautifully integrated in the vineyard and we already plan to retire there (shhhh, the owners do not know yet). You can skip the lunch in Brno and instead call ahead and ask the lady of the house to prepare a cold spread for you. It’s all delicious, and Mr Vybiral, the husband and winemaker, will help you with the wines and share his views on just about anything.
Velke Bilovice
It is a telling sign of the size of the winemaking in Moravia when the biggest winemaking village, Velke Bilovice, sports 2,000 acres of vineyards... and 700 winemakers. We recommend that you drive to "Velke Bilovice - sklepy" where the wine cellars, some of them centuries old, are nested one next to each other under leafy trees. Drive beyond the cellars to see the real vineyards and the "Na hradistku" chapel. The view is nothing short of stunning.
Mikulov
We never miss a chance to visit Mikulov, dubbed “A bit of Tuscany in Central Europe”, on our way to Vienna. As a former seat of both the Cardinal and Moravia’s Regional Rabbi, the history of this picturesque small town just breathes at you. During Communism, the locals would go to the top of the hill to “have a look at the West”, while the recently expelled Sudeten Germans were looking from behind the nearby Austrian border to have a look at their former place of residence. Unlike many other small countryside towns, Mikulov does not suffer from brain drain and is full of lively cafes and small galleries.
Cafe Fara
This little gem of a cafe and restaurant in the Klentnice village is hardly a secret: the former parish is one of the most popular stops for many cyclists cruising the wine country, and for good reason: the kitchen grows its own vegetables and herbs and puts emphasis on using local ingredients, and you will not get better coffee within a 30-mile radius. Add the great view and the lovely courtyard and you have a winner.
People on Caffeine
After the long drive, the food (and for some, the wine), we need a serious coffee fix. And there is no better place for us to have coffee in Vienna than People on Caffeine, the wonderful small cafe run by our friend Robert. This is not amateur hour: Robert has represented Austria in the World Barista Championships and will prepare anything from a tasty flat white to drip coffee. On top of that, he's a really nice guy and it shows in the café and in the kind of regulars he gets. One of our must-visits in Vienna.