Restaurants with Czech cooking
In the OLD TOWN
One of our favorites:
U medvidku
Na Perstyne 7 (just off Narodni )
Old Town
Tel 224 211 916
Outdoor courtyard seating as well as lots of indoor seating.
Casual, can be noisy when full. Courtyard is quiet
but does not serve the full menu. Sometimes there's a folk band indoors.
U Vejvodu
Jilska 4
Old Town
Tel 224 219 999
Not far from U medvidku.
Quite large, with several rooms. Casual. Quiet during off hours. Very large portions.
In the NEW TOWN
U Rumpalu
Skolska 14
Just off Vodickova, a few blocks from Wenceslas Sq.
Tel 222-231 044
Very popular, very Czech. Reservations may be needed. People stay for hours!
Novomestsky pivovar
Vodickova 20 near Wenceslas Sq.
New Town
Tel 222 231 662
A brew pub. Take the opportunity to get a beer other than
Pilsner Urquell or Gambrinus, which are now owned by a South African company
bent on monopolizing the restaurant market.
The restaurant has definitely been "discovered" by the young tourist crowd
but it is still an interesting place, not a tourist trap. Noisy, lively, often crowded.
Lots of small 'rooms' in a vertical labyrinth.
The brewery was founded in 1992. Makes lager.
Restaurants with "International" Cooking and Great Views
In MALA STRANA
Hergetova Cihelna (The Brick Factory)
Cihelna 2b
tel 257 535 534
Very modern upscale interior. Fantastic views of the river and across it.
Window table or river terrace coveted.
Artistically-arranged, innovative but casual food. Small decorative portions.
If you stand on the Charles Bridge facing Mala Strana and looking to the north, you can see the river terrace, but it is not easy to find if you are walking. Have a good map.
It is not on the street itself but inside a very large courtyard-type space, and directly on the river.
Near the CASTLE
Very upscale, a special-occasion meal, not to be rushed
U Zlate studne
Tel 257 533 322
Open7am to 11pm. All credit cards except Diners.
Owned by the same restaurateur as Palfy Palac.
Get a table by the window if you can. Fantastic views.
The restaurant and hotel are not easy to find.
If you walk, it is best to go to the Castle and walk down,
but it's still hard to find the entrance. Consult a very good map.
A cab may be the easiest way to get there
Cafes and Restaurants for a Light Lunch
Border of OLD TOWN and NEW TOWN
Cafe Louvre
Narodni trida 20
Upstairs on the first floor (second story).
The large room is a casually elegant and old-style European cafe.
The small non-smoking room is very plain, and noise reverberates off the walls.
The small back room restaurant is nice with reasonably-priced lunches, but nothing particularly special.
The food and service have both been slipping after this was designated the top cafe in a Prague Post survey. Such a recommendation is the kiss of death to anyone's favorite place!
Casual Country French place
Creperie aux Clochettes
Narodni 37/38
Old Town
tel 296 325 793
Lovely interesting salads and other tasty light dishes. The soups are often excellent.
Wine bar (Vinny sklep) next door.
Excellent for lunch. Located in a courtyard off Narodni.
On PETRIN HILL
Nebozizek
Petrinske sady 411
Petrin Hill
220-878-169
The word is getting out on this wonderful restaurant
on the side of Petrin Hill. Group tours and even wedding parties sometimes take over the place these days. Reservations at the last minute can be difficult to get, though sometimes in the off season you can just walk in.You must take the funicular to get there.
The views from the garden room over all of Prague are spectacular.
The food is still fairly good and still reasonably priced, and the service is excellent.
In summer, you can have a coffee or beer outdoors and take in the view
before walking through the park to the Strahov Monastery and Castle.
In spring, the flowering orchards are breathtaking.
Mainly for coffee, cakes, pastries
In the OLD TOWN
Hotel Antik
Dlouha 22/707
Has a small cafe and charming courtyard area
in addition to the hotel and antique shop.
Au Gourmand
Dlouha 10
Bakery and cafe
A few small tables, casual, sometimes quiet
Sinful French tortes! Small snacks. Good coffee.
The Bakeshop
Kozi 918/1 near Dlouha
Bakery originally founded by an American.
Carries brownies, muffins, breads, coffee, quiche, salads.
Seating on high stools at a counter.
Does a brisk takeout business despite being rather pricey.
Often difficult to determine prices on some items without
having to wait in line to ask. This seems a deliberate strategy
on the priciest items, such as packages of their cookies, which are scrumptious.
For coffee and pastries near the Estates Theatre
Fr. Odkolek
Rytirska 12
Really yummy pastries, good open-faced sandwiches
For coffee and cakes near Wenceslas Square
Mysak
Vodičkova 31
The supremely elegant ambiance here, in the upstairs section
of this recently restored pastry shop and coffee house is a complete delight.
Coffee and tortes are excellent, as is the service.
To preserve this quiet and elegance, large groups are not allowed. Hurrah!
For coffee and cakes on the Old Town Square
Grand Cafe Praha
Old Town Square
First floor (second story) opposite the Orloj (Astronomical Clock)
Very elegantly reconstructed European cafe
Splendid view directly at the clock from window tables
Miscellaneous: Deli, Wine Tasting
In the OLD TOWN
Wine tasting
Monarch (Vinny sklep)
Na Perstyne 15 (not far from U medvidku)
Old Town
Wide variety of wines with a few light cheese dishes
In September, try the 'burcak,' fresh, partially-fermented juice from newly-crushed grapes.
It tastes a bit like cider and packs an unexpected alcoholic kick.
For open-faced sandwiches and good deli items
Jan Paukert Lahudky
Narodni 17
Old style Czech deli, now with a place to eat inside.
Midway between the National Theatre and the My department store.
NOTE re: paying and tipping:
In ordinary Czech restaurants, payment is usually in cash, not by credit card.
You often pay the head waiter or someone other than the person who served you.
In many places, your 'bill' is just a slip of paper with tally marks (for beers)
and scribbles (for food) on it, and the head waiter decodes this and adds it up in front of you.
Service is NOT included in Czech restaurants. If you get a printed bill for your meal, the 20% figure you see
is VAT (tax), included in the price posted on the menu but listed separately on the cash register receipt. There also may be a tiny 10 crown cover charge in some places. In the casual places with the "tab" just described above,
what you see on the menu is what you pay.
Tips are very modest in real Czech places -- you just round up the bill to the nearest
even number as you pay. When you call for the check, have your wallet
handy and be ready to pay the waiter both the bill and tip immediately in one smooth sophisticated transaction.
It is best not to leave money on the table.
In pricier restaurants, especially those run by foreigners for an upscale crowd, tipping is completely different.
In those places, at least 10% is expected, and more often 20%.
Since the wage for the average Czech is perhaps $1000 a month, you can make someone very happy with a good tip in cash.
Links to other sites with restaurant information:
These days are long gone. Czechs living in Prague are proud of their
hundreds of international and ethnic restaurants. For a while, it seemed they
even looked down on their own Czech specialties. Some Czech restaurants
stopped preparing the tradition 'řizek' or pork schnitzel, or were
obviously disappointed if you did not order their more innovative dishes.
This is changing again. There is more pride in preparing national dishes
with excellent ingredients, and including a wide variety of vegetables.
Many kinds of fresh game are available in addition to duck and goose. In autumn
wild mushroom dishes are popular.
We have recommendations in 5 categories, all in Prague's historical center.