Restaurants in Prague

[anil]

Not knowing when you are going to be in PRG; I can say that in general Czech restaurants close early. Moderate czech cuisine in or around Republick namesti (near Municipal House) can be had in Patriot X (off the Sq. in V Celnici) Then there is Celnici restaurant next to a Billa supermarket? and another option is to go to the restaurant housed in the Intercontinental Hotel. Nearly all Beer hall's which are open late serve some Czech food.

[howard88]

I am going to Prague in a few months and would appreciate any suggesstions from inexpensive on up.

[WHS]

Kolkovna Group has a group of pubs and restaurants that serve good Czech food and have clean bathrooms! Try the pig's shank stuffed with sauerkraut or the stinky cheese and sausage plate. Website: http://www.kolkovna.cz

The usual list of high end places include Bellevue, Kampa Park, U Modre Kachnicky, and the beautiful art nouveau restaurant in the Hotel Pariz.

The Prague Post has extensive restaurant listings: http://www.praguepost.com/

[Gifted Gourmet]

the eGullet discussion on Prague: click here and enjoy your reading!

Lots of great suggestions on this exquisite city!

Take your Euros and tell us when you return all about the interesting things you ate!

[howard88]

Thanks for your input and I will post my experiences when I return.

[Rehovot]

Take your Euros and tell us when you return all about the interesting things you ate! 

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Change the Euros for Czech crowns, as the Czech Republic is not on the Euro (yet).

[martin_kastner]

I am going to Prague in a few months and would appreciate any suggesstions from inexpensive on up.

Are you going in the winter or is it going to be early spring? There are several outdoor places worth visiting that open once it warms up a bit.

Otherwise one thing I always have to have when I get back home is brewer's goulash with lard dumplings or stuffed potato pancakes at U Milosrdnych. And tripe soup in a bread bowl at Malostranska Pivnice

Enjoy.

[Margaret Pilgrim]

I warmly remember not a few hours spent in a hole-in-the-wall bar called Hogo Fogo . We were at least 20 years older than either servers or other imbibers, but the service was warm, servers hip, small plates delicious although cheaper than dirt, drinks and pot wine honest. This, in the depths of a chill winter, remains a lovely refuge that we remember warmly.

Near Old Town Square

Hogo Fogo

Salvátorská 4

[Schneier]

I'm heading to Prague in a week, so I thought I'd bump this thread to the top. I'll take any new suggestions, and I'll post my reviews when I return.

[Schneier]

<a href=http://www.kolkovna.cz/index.php?place=11>Restaurant Kolkovna</a> (V. Kolkivne 8; 224 819 701) was a recommendation from the concierge: a Czech restaurant an easy walk from my hotel. Big noisy bar upstairs, quieter restaurant downstairs. Had a corporate feel, though. Good beer selection, and nice array of traditional Czech dishes. I had the roasted pheasant drumsticks with bacon, red sauerkraut, and pancakes made with mushrooms and "wild spices." Tasty enough. Service wasn't all that great; I ordered a soup which never arrived, but was included in my bill. And the credit-card machine wasn't working.

<a href=http://ww.lkampa-restaurant.cz>Kampa 14</a> (Na Kampe 14; 257 530 451) was okay. (I tried for <a href=http://www.pragueexperience.com/places.asp?PlaceID=762>Kampa Park</a> and missed; don't ask.) Started with a perfectly competent onion soup with croutons, called "Bohemian onion soup." I then had the venison medallions with cranberry sauce, which was perfectly okay. No little birds on the menu; I was sad.

More later.

Edited March 24, 2006 by Schneier (log)

[Schneier]

This is a useful guide to Prague restaurants.

[Schneier]

Palac Kinskych (Tynska Ulicka 606/3, Prague 1; 224 810 750) was a really good find. The menu was in Czech, English, German, French, Italian, Russian, and Spanish. (I generally presume that the order of the languages roughly corresponds to the frequency of the language speaker.) I stuck with the Czech traditional dishes, which gave me a choice of two. Either "half of roasted duck with cabbage and traditional Czech dumplings," or "beef goulash serve the other way (sirloin of beef with gallette prepare on the minute)." I would normally have chosen the duck, but was seduced by the bizarre description of the beef. (Elsewhere on the menu, the "red rabbit in crisp basket with salad and color oil" also beckoned.) It was a hearty beef goulash, with some really tasty dumplings. I had soup to start, but can't remember a single detail about it.

U Modre Ruze (Rytirska 16, Prague 1; 224 25 873) advertises as serving game. And they do: four duck dishes, two deer dishes, pheasant, goose, ostrich, crocodile, and rattlesnake imported from Texas. The restaurant even serves fawn in the autumn, the closest to eating "Bambi" I've ever seen.

I was going to order Peter Vok's Duck: "Roasted duck on meadow herbs, served with variation of home made dumplings flavoured by fried onion and stewed sauerkraut." But at the last minute I changed my mind and ordered: "Grilled wild duck breast larded with bacon and plums in brandy served with red currant sauce." Really gamey, really tasty -- perfectly cooked, and great sauce. I started with the goose pate with pistachios, and was too full to even try dessert.

Like all but one restaurant I've been to in Prague, this one was in the basement. Are all good Prague restaurants in basements, I wondered. The restaurant's brochure gave a partial answer. The oldest known mention of a restaurant in the building is from 1364, which talks about a beer pub. At that time, the rooms of the restaurant were on the ground floor. Some time later -- I can't find a year -- the city decided to deal with the flooding problems from the Vltava River by raising the streets of the city one story. And yes, there were bricked up windows in the dining room.

In other news, I didn't go to the Kafka Museum. I wasn't sure I wanted an experience that was literally -- and not just figuratively -- Kafkaesque.

Bruce

Edited March 25, 2006 by Schneier (log)

[Rehovot]

In other news, I didn't go to the Kafka Museum.  I wasn't sure I wanted an experience that was literally -- and not just figuratively -- Kafkaesque.

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For a Kafkaesque experience in Prague, look no further than the foreigners' police. But I digress...

Another good choice in Prague 1 is the Zlaty Hrozen, on Železná 7, about 50 meters away from the Clock, off a side street. It's not in a basement/cave, but it's small and offers a good array of Czech and Continental dishes. Look for the sign with the golden grapes outside.

Very good choices you have there...

(The Dvořák, Smetana, and Mozart museums are all worth a trip, by the way...off the well-beaten path.)

[Megan Blocker]

Cerny Kohout (The Black Rooster) which is located in the 5th district, is about a 10 minute cab ride outside central Prague. The Prague Post review: “ elegant and remote. The perfect place for entertaining hard to impress visitors.”  The cab ride from the hotel cost 300 Kn - I was a bit concerned when the cab turned down a dirt road.  This restaurant specializes in game done in modern preparation - contemporary czech.  This was by far the best meal I had while in Prague. I had arranged in advanced an 8 course tasting menu.  Started off with a salad of wild duck with strawberries, orange, frisee, cherry tomatoes -  bright, beautiful presentation, perfectly balanced.  Soup of roasted zander (sweet water fish) with garlic, asparagus and carrot - clean and light.  White goose liver roasted with venison foam, served on stewed apple in sweet smelling muscatel, decorated with forest fruits and blackberry sauce - perfectly cooked and beautiful presentation. Roasted quail served on peas compote with dried plums - solid, on the mark. Baked zander with cucumber gnocchi and dill cream sauce - nice counterpoint to the meat dishes.  Roasted venison with bacon gnocchi, roasted pear, glazed apricots, raspberry sauce - rich, dense and satisfying. Dessert consisted of home made pie with forest berries on cream foam and smoked czech cheese, camembert and goat cheese baked in puff pastry - both delicious. Add to that 2 bottles of wine. And incredible meal - I recommend this restaurant highly. And the bill, including tip, came to about $80. Also the cab ride back to the hotel only cost 300 Kn.

http://www.cernykohout.cz

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I'm headed to Prague in the fall, and am just wondering if this place is still worth checking out!!! I'll check back in for more general suggestions closer to the date, definitely!

[marktynernyc]

Megan -

Cerny Kohout has moved since I ate there (back in October 2002). It is now located - I believe - in Praha 1 - central Prague.

http://www.cernykohout.cz/

I'm hoping maybe next spring to get back to Prague (and Cesky Krumlov). Let us know how it is if you decide to go.

[andrewB]

Don't forget to check us out in Bratislava if you all are in Prague. we are only a hop, skip, and a jump away!!!!

[Megan Blocker]

Hey, all!

I am headed to Prague for five days (with my best girlfriend, minus her husband) at the beginning of October, and will be there for my (gulp) 27th birthday. Any suggestions on where we should dine that evening (it's a Sunday)?

I'd like something festive, but it needn't be high cuisine - though I'm open to all suggestions. We like beer, we like wine, we like all kinds of food, and we're both pretty adventurous, so bring it on!

Plus, I'll be there for five days and four nights, so I'll need some back-ups.

[BonVivant]

fantastic beers and food at the monastery on top of the hill. luckily my guesthouse is at the bottom of the hill so i went there just about everyday at least for the fabulous beers if not eating. try the massive pork knee [probably Czech Rep's most beloved dish] served with zeli, caraway seeded bread, and always always freshly grated horseradish with mustard. how i long to go back to Czech Rep...

[ann]

My husband and I and friends from London are celebrating my birthday in early October at David Restaurant, which comes highly recommended here and elsewhere.

[Megan Blocker]

My husband and I and friends from London are celebrating my birthday  in early October at David Restaurant, which comes highly recommended here and elsewhere.

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Thanks, Ann!

I tried to make a reservation at the Black Rooster, but they're closed on Sunday, so we're going on Monday...maybe Sunday will be all about the sausage and beer!

[Nathan]

I was there only a couple months ago so I'll write a bunch of recs later.

For the record, the Black Rooster is decent enough and rather fun. It's also very empty...no ressies needed. (the food's too fussy for Praguers.)

[Megan Blocker]

I was there only a couple months ago so I'll write a bunch of recs later.

For the record, the Black Rooster is decent enough and rather fun.  It's also very empty...no ressies needed.  (the food's too fussy for Praguers.)

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Hmmmmm, interesting.

Yes, I would love your recs! We want to have fun, so rowdy places are also very welcome...

[Nathan]

ok.

Here's the thing. Prague is one of the places where you actually generally don't want to rely on the natives for advice. If you're trying to find something with local flavor they'll direct you to a tourist trap, in my experience. As well, there is fine dining in Prague (sort of -- you have the trendy places like the Kampa Park Empire and then you have places like the Black Rooster that basically use old Escoffier recipes (seriously!) but do some interesting stuff with game...you'll like it)...but the locals don't do it. Too expensive and they don't have the palates.

With that said, I had an interesting meal at Alcron, a seafood restaurant in the Radisson SAS (we were the only diners on a Friday night!)...about $160 a person for a tasting menu and lots of wine. Part of the meal was 4-star (I've never had a comparable bread service in the U.S., the langoustines with foie gras in a champagne sabayon) and part of it was, eh...blah. It'd be a solid NY 2-star, with a shot at 3.

The best meal in a pivnice (pub...literally "beer place") I've had (and I've been a couple times to Prague) was at a large place across from the mall in Andel (just take the metro to the Andel stop) ....I think the mall is called Nový Smíchov....just look for a huge pub (it has a small bowling alley in the basement!) ....had an amazing pork knee, some excellent fallow deer from off the menu...etc.

I also highly recommend checking www.praguepost.com

the English language newspaper.

as for booze:

you might want to try a herna once for an anthropological experience...a seedy, 24-hour gambling bar. They're all over the place in the non-touristy areas (the sign will say "herna").

Any restaurant where natives actually eat is pretty much just a bar...so do sample lots of the local beer and drink Frenet Stock at the end of your meal. Do a shot of Berovchka as well.

For expat bars (generally tacky pick-up spots but a must to visit nonetheless): Chapeau Rouge, Madame de Sade and Joe's Garage are the standards.

There are some interesting bars with a genuine mix of natives and tourists all on one street near the Powder Gate (and a couple blocks from Old Town Square)...I don't remember the name offhand but I'll look it up.

There's also a lounge filled with locals with a dance floor (that plays the worst music...it's fun)....near the Black Rooster...just ask them.

[ludja]

Rick Rodger's "Kaffeehaus" has a nice listing in the back of Kaffehaus's in Vienna, Budapest and Prague so I checked it out see if there looked liked any promising listings in Prague. The good news is that he says there are still some traditional places with beautiful architecture (mainly in the Old Town and New Town sections) but he says that the quality or finesse of the actual pastry lags behind. He ascribes this as a slow recovery in this area from the years of Communism.

Does anyone have any good pastry shops or bakeries in Prague that they can recommend?

(I may also start another thread on this since I am interested to hear more about this...)

edited to add: This cookbook was published in 2002 so that his impressions, right or wrong, are probably from over five years ago.

Edited August 17, 2006 by ludja (log)

[Rehovot]

the locals don't do it.  Too expensive and they don't have the palates. 

As for the first claim, you're right. Czech salaries are far less than Western European or American ones. However, as to the second claim, even "natives" who have not left the Czech Republic miraculously have managed to develop not only tastebuds, but taste. They can also smell condescension from way off.

To dismiss a whole class of people and food because they don't belong to the upper class is to miss out on the real food and flavors of a country. It's not all hernas or Kampa Park. As in the rest of the world, all you have to do is know people who will show you the hidden good spots.

as for booze:

you might want to try a herna once for an anthropological experience...a seedy, 24-hour gambling bar.  They're all over the place in the non-touristy areas (the sign will say "herna").

Any restaurant where natives actually eat is pretty much just a bar...so do sample lots of the local beer and drink Frenet Stock at the end of your meal.  Do a shot of Berovchka as well.

Becherovka. And I'd skip the hernas. You can get the same dose of second-hand smoke with a lot more insight into Czech culture at the Kavarna Lucerna, in the Lucerna Passage.