PRAGUE FOOD BLOG
The best Prague food tips and Prague restaurant guide by Taste of Prague Food Tours. For more insight in Prague food, check out our Prague food tours and our Prague Foodie Map!
Covid Situation and Restrictions in the Czech Republic, F/W 2021 edition
So here we go again. When we posted our last post about the covid situation and restrictions in late June, we may have honestly thought it would be the last one: after a slower rollout, vaccines were widely available to anyone who wanted them, our infection numbers were low, and the future was bright.
Well, some five months and one general election later, we entered a pretty brutal fifth wave in November 2021: the number of infections were breaking all previous records, and our hospitals started to fill up with mostly unvaccinated patients.
Right now it seems the peak of this wave is behind us, and the numbers of infections, hospitalisations and Covid-related deaths have been steadily falling, and some of the restrictions have been lifted.
So let’s look at what the situation and restrictions are, how did we get here, and what may be our way forward.
2021 Prague Christmas Dining and NYE Dining Guide
So after last year’s Christmas lockdown, take-out boxes and a whole lotta eggnog, Christmas dining is back in 2021. We’ve been personally eating out on Christmas Eve for years now, for one simple reason: we can’t be bothered. Spending the special day in the kitchen, alternating between swearing and drinking, and then trying to avoid all talk of politics when the in-laws get in (add more wine) and listen to them talk about how „grandma’s potato salad wasn’t done like this“? (Is there any wine left?) Thank you but no, thank you.
Now, eating out on Christmas Eve means a clean kitchen, a visit to a few relatives in their messy homes, a nice dinner and then getting back to your squeaky clean, fragrant-candle-smelling home to give and get presents. And if you’re visiting Prague as a tourist, it’s honestly the only option.
Breaking News: Our Christmas Vouchers are out!
So your partner has everything he or she may want, and you have nothing to buy them for Christmas? Wrong! They don’t have our amazing Christmas vouchers yet, do they?
Our vouchers are a gift that keeps on giving - first, it’s a beautiful letter with a personalised thank you note that glorifies both the giftee and the giver. Second, it gives your loved one(s) access to a tour or an experience they will absolutely friggin’ love some time later on.
Also, giving a Taste of Prague experience makes you 40% more attractive, as conclusively proven in a recent survey conducted by the prestigious University of Our Moms.
So how can you become Mr and/or Ms Perfect this Christmas and turn your Christmas experience to eleven? Read on.
First Snow in Prague, Fall 2021 (Photos)
Not much to write here, but we had the first snow in Prague here today, so when we woke up to it, we did what we always do - ran to the Charles Bridge to take some pictures. So here you go, enjoy if you like snowy pics of old buildings, this will be for you.
Taste of Prague’s Local Christmas Buying Guide 2021
So Christmas is around the corner and let’s be honest here: if you want to buy online but haven’t got around to it, and Christmas is three/two/one week(s) away from now, don’t fool yourself: that gift ain’t never arriving on time for Christmas. (Thank you, broken global delivery chains and Covid!)
So it’s a good idea to shop local. And that’s where we step in: we have recently recorded a podcast about Czech-made gift ideas, but it’s in Czech only, and if you don’t listen to our podcast (why not? We mean, honestly…), we figure we will also write a blog post about it. These also serve are great souvenirs from Prague, of course, regardless of season. So enough chit chat, here we go.
Taste of Prague Czech Podcast, Ep 66 - Prague Michelin Guide with Zuzi and Jan
[Note to all English readers: This podcast and its description are both in Czech. Please look for English episodes of the podcast. Thank you!]
Tento týden se vracíme k Michelinům v Praze. Kdo ocenění získal, kdo ho ztratil… a má to všechno vůbec smysl? Používáme průvodce od Michelinu? A jak by pražský průvodce Michelin vypadal podle nás? No a kdyby nám to někdo řekl před týdnem, asi tomu neuvěříme, ale rozebereme i Českého slavíka. Ach jo. V pekle právě mrzne.
Doufáme, že se vám tenhle díl bude líbit!
Prague Michelin Guide 2021
So the new Prague Michelin guide is out, uncharacteristically in the autumn, but hey - anything’s possible in a covid year.
If you follow us for a while, you may know we love to hate the Prague Michelin guide. On one hand, it undeniably helps the businesses included, and you can’t argue with the heritage, but there are some very weak points about it - the writing is average at best (try to read a few to a Prague foodie to see if they recognise the restaurant), the categories are chaotic (whatever Eska serves, „traditional cuisine“ - as suggested by the Michelin guide - ain’t it), the results and the judging are anything but transparent, and the whole guide rarely sails off the beaten path. Read the whole rant here if you care. (It also includes more standard descriptions of the restaurants awarded a star or a Bib Gourmand.)
That said, whenever the French culinary deus ex machina descends on Prague once a year to tell it how it fares culinary-wise (read this sentence again just to get a real feel for how ridiculous this is), it is an event worth noting. So despite all the criticisms, we’re jumping on the bandwagon and comment on the results. So what changed since 2020?
Taste of Prague Czech Podcast, Ep 65 - XMas Presents with Zuzi and Jan
[Note to all English readers: This podcast and its description are both in Czech. Please look for English episodes of the podcast. Thank you!]
Vánoce, Vánoce přicházejí… a vzhledem k narůstajícím problémům v globální logistice a vzhledem k nevyhnutelnému lockdownu je možná fajn letos vyrazit na nákupy dřív než 23. prosince. (Teď mluvíme hlavně k sobě.) Takže jsme se rozhodli nahrát podcast o dárcích, a to zejména z českých (a moravských) luhů a hájů. Tak co bychom si pod stromečkem přáli? Umění? Alkohol? Zážitky! Lockdown? Všechno bude!
(A zároveň probereme i minulý týden - covid, Landa, Britney, svoboda!)
Možná vám tenhle díl přijde hodně vhod a doufáme, že se vám bude líbit!
Prague off the beaten path: Vršovice district
Vršovice may not be at the top of everyone’s Prague to do list, but Vršovice doesn’t mind. This Prague neighbourhood, nestled safely behind the grab-all-the-attention Vinohrady, is a hidden gem that feels a bit sleepy / more neighbourly than most of Prague’s residential districts. Full of parks, easy slopes and great views, Vršovice is perfect for half-a-day stroll far away from the madding crowds of the historical centre, and a glimpse at what real life in Prague outside of the historical centre may look like.
First mentioned in 1088 and becoming a part of Prague in 1922, Vršovice lies just south of Vinohrady, on a south-facing slope and at the bottom of that slope. It may not have the grandeur of the Belle Epoque Vinohrady district, but we actually love the small-town feel of the district and its unpretentious nature.
Now, we take a more liberal approach to defining Vršovice - to us, that includes the Grébovka vineyard and the Grotto (albeit these may still be formal parts of Vinohrady) and anything south of Ruská street, all the way down to the to the Eden stadium and the Nádraží Vršovice train station.
Taste of Prague Czech Podcast, Ep 64 - Social Media with Zuzi and Jan
[Note to all English readers: This podcast and its description are both in Czech. Please look for English episodes of the podcast. Thank you!]
Zaprvé moc chceme poděkovat, že nás posloucháte - po roce jsme se koukli na statistiky poslechů a ty vady. Díky moc!
No nic, tento týden se se Zuzkou bavíme o sociálních sítích. Co se nám líbí, co se nám nelíbí, kolik času na nich strávíme (ani se neptejte), jak jsme se k nim dostali a jak vůbec obsah tvoříme? Bavíme se taky o followerech, lajcích pod fotkou a hejnech, taky o tom, jak si vybíráme spolupráce a na kterých sítích se vidíme do budoucna. Tak snad se tento díl bude líbit!
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