We’ve tried a lot of great food while traveling, but if someone asked me, “Where have you had some of the best food of your life?” I will confidently answer: Prague. As a large global city, this shouldn’t come as a surprise, but it still may turn some heads. After all, many people — especially those who haven’t traveled there — still associate the region with things like sausage, potatoes and beer.
My food-oriented trip to Prague wasn’t my first trip to the city, but the two trips couldn’t have been more different.
Roll the calendar back more than thirteen years ago. It was also a four-day trip, but that’s where the similarities stop. We hit Prague in December with snow on the ground, but a warm atmosphere. Christmas market stalls filled Staroměstské náměstí (Old Town Square) and a traditional lamplighter lit the lights along Charles Bridge.
I was in my early twenties and traveled on a severe budget. My friend and I stayed in a hostel and took the free walking tour where we only had to pay a tip. To warm up after trekking through the snowy streets, we ate comfort food, like potato soup in bread bowls and halušky. We washed it down with beer that cost 25 CZK ($1.33).
Since I had been there before, my expectations were low for a return visit, but flash forward 13 years, with a few more euros in my bank account and nicer weather, it was like I had never been to the city.
Summer, sunlight and a different set of friends put the city in a new light.
A mix of old and new
The architecture was stunning with a mix of old and new. Shortcuts through courtyards of old buildings transported you into secret havens, away from the bustle of the city. You could also escape the hubbub in the city’s beautiful and large parks.
Efficient public transportation crisscrossed the city, although we opted for walking, reaching almost 20,000 steps each day. At every intersection, I was impressed with how priority is given to pedestrians and cars respected pedestrians darting across traffic.
Amidst all the walking and talking with my three girlfriends, we filled our days in Prague with good food and wine, two of our favorite things. We found incredible restaurants through a mix of research, local recommendations and a bit of good ol’ luck.
The experience was night and day from thirteen years prior and almost no meals could be considered “comfort food” either in their presentation or the restaurant’s atmosphere.
So sit on back and let me take you on a culinary tour of my trip. But be warned, your mouth will water and you’ll be researching plane tickets .…
Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
Day One
On the first full day, we walked around the western side of the city, up the funicular, through a beautiful rose garden, around Petřín Tower and through the quaint neighborhood of Nový Svět.
Having worked up an appetite before touring Prague Castle and trying to escape the rain, our hunger hit just as we happened to pass a small restaurant and wine bar, called Vinobona.
Small might be an overstatement. It was tiny.
The converted house — turned wine bar — could seat a maximum of eight people in its upstairs restaurant. Its staff consisted of a hostess/server/owner and a chef and there were only two other people seated.
Looking to linger over lunch and in no hurry to get anywhere, we decided to get a bottle of wine. We went with the owner’s recommendation of a Czech wine and it was poured into stemware that was so thin I was afraid to break it.
The wine came from the South Moravia region and was refreshing and full-bodied at the same time. I fell in love with Czech wine at the first sip.
Although the Czech Republic is known for its pale lager beers (pilseners) and home to the historic Pilsner Urquell Brewery, it is also home to an under-the-radar wine region. Wine production in the South Moravia region of Czech dates back to the 3rd century and is primarily known for its white varieties, although it also has some delicious red wines.
That afternoon, I think I died and went to heaven. My expectations were zero and I was just hungry. I chose from the two menu items and the simple description of eggs with shaved truffle on brioche did not prepare me for the experience. It was nothing short of amazing.
Buttery bread that was both soft and crispy. Eggs that were scrambled to perfection. The hint of truffle. The meal was so good that we had to share the two desserts on the menu if only to try the other concoctions of the chef. We were not disappointed (except perhaps, that we didn’t order more).
After leaving the restaurant, we toured Czech Castle, walked down the narrowest street in Prague and browsed a cute, independent bookstore. We looked at the colorful and graffitied Lennon Wall and listened to musicians on Charles Bridge as we meandered back to our Airbnb.
You would think that after our impromptu lunch, we wouldn’t have room for dinner, yet after 20,000 steps that day, we were ready for our evening reservation at 420 Restaurant.
The restaurant boasts a Michelin-starred chef and is right on the main town square. Set in a beautiful, large enclosed courtyard, the setting was night and day from the intimate lunch, yet just as exquisite. The restaurant was packed and bustling.
This time we tried both white and red Czech wines and the wine was equally good as the afternoon, even if we did have heightened expectations.
The menu featured fish and meat in unique combinations. Veal marinated in a buckwheat tamari. Salted kohlrabi with fermented gooseberry and baked potato ice cream. Smoked char in a fish broth with egg yolk custard. Braised veal head with anchovy-parsley relish. These were all options for starters. Although all adventurous eaters, none of us opted for the veal head.
Day Two
After our eating extravaganza on Day One, the next day brought a morning walk along the river promenade. We mingled with locals along the waterfront with hip cafes and wandered the Saturday farmers market with fresh produce stalls and artisan food and goods. Afterwards, we headed to the St Cyril and Methodius Church where resistance members hid during WWII and found our way to the Dancing House, a famous example of the city’s modern architecture.
That night, we recharged at Červený Jelen where meat reigned. This could be the closest to “comfort food” as we got in Prague. The tenderloin and braised deer leg melted in your mouth and hearty portions filled us up.
Back to Vinobona
On our last full day, we toured the Old Jewish Cemetery and Pinkas Synagogue and hiked up the hill to the sunny Letná beer gardens with sweeping vistas of the orange-roofed-city and wide Vltava River.
We looked forward to our dinner reservation that night — revisiting our lunch experience at Vinobona Wine Bar, but this time for a nine-course tasting menu. Yes, that’s right, we loved the experience so much that we made reservations for two days later.
The nine-course tasting menu was built on fairly basic ingredients like asparagus, carrot, trout and chicken, but with additions like marrow, horseradish and wild garlic. It was full of unique combinations that complemented each other, like strawberry and basil. Who would have thought? (And that’s why I’m not a chef….)
Although our expectations were already sky-high after our previous lunch there, we were not let down and enjoyed every bite and sip.
It was a memorable end to our trip, coming full circle to our first full day. What could have been better than to round out our trip by returning to the place where we discovered how amazing Czech cuisine can be?
Don’t get me wrong. On a trip to Prague, you’ll still get pilsners, chimney cones, sausage, meat and potatoes.
Prague is a city of opposites, deeply rooted in history, yet pushing forward a new phase. Not only do old and new architecture mingle together, but also traditional hearty cuisine meets and fuses into a new style of Czech cuisine.
You can still find a glass of Czech wine in a touristy area for 90 CZK (3.60 euros), but you can also spend 40 euros or more on a bottle. So that means that you can visit the city on a shoestring budget or a full wallet (or somewhere in between, like us).
It’s clear that Prague is no longer a Soviet-era, meat-and-potatoes kind of destination.
Sure, those may be the cheapest options, but boy, are you missing out if that’s all you eat.
Travel is a funny thing. Our experiences are shaped so much by the weather, the people we are with and our stage in life that the same city can feel entirely different at two points in our life. This makes a strong case for revisiting cities and countries. It teaches us to not treat travel like a destination to be checked off of our list, but as places to be experienced over and over again.
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See more about Prague here in Dispatches’ archives.
Lane Henry is an accidental long-term expat. She is an American who came to the Netherlands for two years—or so she thought. She has now lived in the Netherlands and explored Europe for over a decade.
