Czech Cuisine - What and Where to Try in Prague. Street food in Prague: description, photos, prices

The Czech Republic is considered a tasty country, and Prague, as a tourist megabrand, is generally a gastroray. Portions are huge, beer is delicious, restaurants for every taste and budget are at every step.

They argue about tastes, oh, how they argue! Therefore, I take the risk and still offer my subjective selection “Oh yes, food!” first approach.

I look forward to your comments and feedback, where you were, what you tried, or what you would like to try.

By itself, Czech cuisine is simple and satisfying, I would say unhealthy. Beer and fatty sausages, flour dumplings and sauces. But!

The Czechs are great adapters. Possessing such super-power as the ability to take the best from their neighbors, they wonderfully use this skill in the national cuisine.

So let's explore the menu.

Top list of Czech cuisine

What to drink?

TOP drinks

What is the first association you have with the Czech Republic? Of course, BEER. To be honest, I don’t drink beer, so all the information on beer is collected here

Not drinking beer is no excuse to search for information, so catch the recommendations of my local friends: worth a visit beer with telling names Hard Times and Fireball

Mineral Mattoni, which the Czechs are very proud of. I especially recommend with delicate notes of fragrant grapefruit. You can buy in any supermarket.

Mineral water Mattoni Kofola Mega-popular fizz Kofola(a la Baikal drink), positioned as a herbal drink. For me - Coca-Cola in Czech. Absinthe is a popular tourist trap.

What to eat?

"Little bread" - chlebicek (bread), or the story of the presidential sandwich.

While walking in the center, do not be too lazy to go to the Jan Paukert grocery store (Jan Paukert), which has been operating on Narodni trida street, 17 since 1916.

The owner invented a new one! the formula for the “Czech sandwich” recipe, which was especially favored by the first president of the Republic, Garrik Mazarik. Khlebichki instantly became a symbol of the quality of Czechoslovakia.

The “Czech Sandwich” recipe is originally a slice of bread spread with homemade mayonnaise with Swiss cheese and Hungarian salami, today offered in a variety of versions.

My Czech friend says that real bread is sandwiches with potato and egg salad, salami with cheese.

We tried the first bread rolls in an inexpensive culinary chain with a stunning, self-explanatory name Libeřské lahůdky (Lahudki is translated only as delicacy).

This place is very fond of the Czechs, and in addition to bread, you can try typical Czech salads, and pies, and cakes there. And in these shops they accept for payment.

Advice: The next time you feed the whole family a breakfast sandwich, don't forget to intrigue them with the fact that today they are waiting for bread! 🙂

Traditional beer snacks are also sausages and other drowned(drowned) - these are huge sausages with lard, filled with marinade, drowned in a huge amount of onions, spices and languishing in all this for several days.

fried cheese- another traditional snack. Unlike drowned man, I tried fried cheese, but I didn’t understand the taste. But crispy koloboks - cheese croquettes I heartily recommend.

What to eat?

If you decide to enjoy the beauty of Christmas Prague, then it is ideal to bask during walks soups.

TOP soups

The name speaks for itself - thick, fragrant, meat soup (hello from Austria-Hungary).

Try serving in a loaf of bread with a bread lid. I liked it in the chain of restaurants Potrefena husa (Wounded duck). The grid belongs to the Staropramen brewery, is quite popular among tourists, which is reflected in the price. But it has a menu in Russian and Russian-speaking officials (in the center of both points in almost any cafe and pub).

Potato soup - Bramboracka (bramborachka).

The name speaks for itself. Delicious.

If you manage to get to Prague during the “soup days” on the embankment, then you are guaranteed a belly feast.

TOP main dishes

This is a beef tenderloin, very soft meat, just melts in your mouth, served with flour dumplings (pieces of bread, in my opinion), which need to be dipped in a fatty gravy (sauce - omachka). Love for sauces is clearly a greeting from Italy. I would call this dish: “Goodbye waist!” By the way, dumplings are a typical Czech dish, they are flour, potato and even dessert - fruit.

TOP desserts

Where can you dine for 100 crowns or less?

On the site we choose a restaurant depending on the area of ​​​​Prague.

What I really like is the places where the "calorie bombs" accumulate.

Confectionery in Czech Cukrárna (Tsukrarna) from the word Cukr (Tsukr) - sugar, and the coffee house - kavarna (kavarna) from the word kava (coffee).

The most famous, historical and delicious places in Prague

My personal favorite is one of the oldest (1902) and most atmospheric gourmet cafes, the Louvre (Café Louvre) Address: Národní 22, Praha 1, 110 00<Среди именитых гостей этого кафе Карел Чапек, Франц Кафка и Альберт Эйнштейн.

Grab a gooey fragrant hot chocolate and a piece of delicious cake of your choice, or something from the traditional menu and enjoy…


Cafe Louvre. Big hall

It was in the Louvre that Prague writers came to create and there is something in it that sets you up for serene contemplation, despite the tourists ...

The date February 15, 1925 is highlighted on the cafe website. On that day, 38 writers gathered for the founding meeting of the Czechoslovak PEN Club.

PEN is an abbreviation of the English words "poet" (poet), "essayist" (essayist), "novelist" (novelist).

Karel Capek became its first chairman. The guest of honor at the club's dinner was the first president of the Czechoslovak Republic, Tomas Garrig Masaryk.


Cafe Louvre

In the ladies' salon of the Louvre cafe, for the first time, women were able to meet in a public place. Before that, they had only met at a party.

And it especially attracts me with the tradition of five o'clock. I recommend!

Confectionery "Mishak" (Cukrárna v Galerii Myšák) is a "sweet shop", which opened in 1911, quickly became popular among politicians and celebrities of that time. Address: Vodičkova 710/31, Praha 1. Expensive, but very tasty place. It is worth it to feel the spirit of the First Republic, enjoy the interiors, desserts and their serving.

Confectionery Myšák

Fans of the 30s, stylish design and the freshest mousse goodies with the finest fruity notes are waiting for Erhartova Cukrarna confectionery. Address: Milady Horákové 56, Praha 7 With an excellent children's area inside and the largest Stromovka park next door.

Prague's oldest, most bohemian cafe "Slavia" (Kavárna Slavia) Address: Národní 1012/1, Praha 1. You can still enjoy live music every day from 17-23. The main signature drink here is coffee with absinthe. Portraits of eminent visitors: Bedrich Smetana, Marina Tsvetaeva, Vaclav Havel adorn these historical walls.

Coffee house “Slavia”

A chain of confectioneries under the general name Ovocný Světozor in Prague is a dessert fast food that Czechs adore. The queues are long, the kids especially love ice cream. Decent prices and great selection. Address: Václavské náměsti 801/52

The most important fast food confectionery

Having returned from another trip to my beloved Prague, in hot pursuit, I hastily write this small set of useful (hopefully) tips for those who are just preparing to go there. As we all know, a beautiful city can be ruined by bad food, and I'm not going to sit back and wait for that to happen to you. And in Prague, believe me, it can happen.

The reason is simple and banal - tourists, hundreds of thousands of people like you and me, who rush to the capital of the Czech Republic and want to get maximum pleasure in the few days that are allotted for the trip. As a result, many Prague restaurants, pubs and gentlemen (emphasis on the second “o”) have become so lazy that they do not hesitate to offer very mediocre food for absolutely unreasonable money. As a result, the search for a decent place where you can eat tasty and inexpensive turns into a not very fun attraction. Hence the first tip.

Council the first. Avoid tourist restaurants! This is true for any city in the world, but in the tourist-infested center of Prague, the chances of running into a trap set for our tourist brother are off the charts. Avoid any medieval shows, mummers accordionists and similar amusements, designed not only to entertain, but to distract from tasteless food. Or at least know what you're getting into and be philosophical about it.

Tip two. In Prague, service is slow. Be prepared for this - sometimes slow service does not mean that you are in a bad restaurant. There is one more plus in this situation - even if the waiter does not bring hot food for a long time, he will not allow you to sit with an empty beer mug.

Tip three. Do not trust someone else's experience recklessly. For example, using the famous Tripadvisor service on this trip brought me twofold results: on the one hand, you can quickly find a decent institution nearby, on the other hand, there is always a chance that other people's reviews will lead you in the wrong direction. It is possible and necessary to study reviews, but be wary of ratings, they are often put up as if at random.

Council the fourth. Less pathos. Fat and heavy carbohydrate, heavy carbohydrate and fat - these are the four pillars on which Czech cuisine stands. Typical dishes are duck with dumplings, goulash, “boar knee”, sausages, fried cheese. Do you see here a place for avant-garde gastronomic frills, not to mention fashion trends like those when people eat moss and birch bark? That's what I don't see. As experience shows, rough food in the Czech Republic usually turns out to be the best, and delights, on the contrary, look out of place.

Tip five. Eat where the locals dine. The same universal advice as the first - and for the same reason it is more suitable for Prague than for any other city in the world. Small restaurants and pubs that have been operating in the same place for dozens or even hundreds of years do not want to lose face in front of their regulars and keep the brand. On the other hand, you should not blindly trust the tastes of Praguers either - for example, the menu of the Lokal eatery (inexpensive, simple food and crowds of Czechs, mostly young) states the following: “We do not use artificial flavors. If you wish, you can ask the waiter for Maggi seasoning. Hm.

Tip six. Prague restaurants are sometimes not very suitable for children. Apparently, the legacy of the socialist camp. The ubiquitous beer leanings and high levels of smokyness don't encourage spending time with kids (and if you do, you could be turned down by the waiters), and slow service (see above) precludes any planning that's so invaluable when traveling with kids. Choose the right places.

Tip seven. Stay on the outskirts more often. It is more difficult for a restaurant that is located on the outskirts to lure tourists into its networks - simply because there are practically no tourists here - which means that it willy-nilly focuses on the local population. Yes, the waiter may not speak English, but in any case, two Slavs will find a common language, and simple food will be very tasty: as I said above, the Czechs get hearty peasant food much better than attempts to aim at strangers heights of glamour.

Tip eight. Plan ahead. There are many resources and articles on the Internet dedicated to Prague restaurants, Czech cuisine and Czech beer - read them and write down the addresses of the restaurants you like the most. I did that last time and have never regretted it.

Tip nine. In any case, have fun. Life is worth it.

And finally - a few restaurants I have tried, which I can recommend with a clear conscience.

Tri Stoleti(Misenska 4) - a cute restaurant with a claim on the other side of the Vltava, not far from the Charles Bridge. Good selection of Czech wines, take white or rosé.

U Tri Ruzi(Husova 10) - a recently opened, and therefore not yet spoiled restaurant-brewery in the very center of Prague. Good food without much frills, although not too efficient service.

U Modre Kachnicky(Michalska 16) - another restaurant on the other side of the Vltava, not very cheap, but with excellent service, atmosphere and, of course, cuisine. Duck is cooked very well here.

Ambiente Local(Dlouha 33) - a restaurant with cheap food and the freshest Pilsner, popular with locals.

Ebel Coffee House(Tyn 2/640) - a small coffee shop in the center with a wonderful latte and good croissants.

U Zlateho Tygra(Husova 17) - An iconic brewery in the center with (according to some) the best Prazdroy, fast service and the opportunity to meet your tablemates.

U Cerneho Vola(Loretanske namesti 1) is another iconic pub, perhaps the oldest in the city. Spartan atmosphere, a society of serious men and an excellent draft Goat.

The Czech Republic is one of the few countries where they eat so much meat and drink sooooo much (more than 163 liters per person per year) of beer that few countries can compete with them in this. Of course, not without the help of tourists.
There is almost no menu without meat and almost every restaurant is also a brewery! And taking into account the flow of tourists in the city, the beer will definitely be fresh. About, .
After being a tourist, and he was not deceived on the exchange, happy, he always asks the same question: “so what to try in the Czech Republic and what to try in Prague itself?”

Boar knee (Vepřové koleno).

This is a baked pork knee (knuckle) and is served with sauces, be sure to order potatoes or stewed cabbage for it. But each establishment prepares it differently, so if somewhere you have tried a boar knee and you don’t like it, try again. It can be too oily or, on the contrary, dry, but somewhere it is cooked perfectly. Where they cook it deliciously later. Either way, it goes great with beer.
Paradoxically, the most delicious boar knee was in a bar on the outskirts of the Czech Republic, it was served on a board with potatoes, vegetables and sauces. in Prague itself, you need to look for more places and here they are usually on the outskirts, where most of the locals are. But you should definitely try it, in the evening with a beer.

Keep in mind that the knuckle is served from 700 grams on average and usually 1.3-1.5 kg, less often 2 kg. So two people can eat a portion.

By the way, in the evenings the bars will be filled with both tourists and locals, because the Czechs go to the bar to drink beer after work.
The cost is on average from 50 to 300 Czech crowns ($ 2-12).

Roasted zhabirka in honey (Pečená vepřová žebírka v medu).

There is nothing special to write here, baked ribs in honey, do not be afraid of the word honey, they will not be sweet and there will not really be a taste of honey, but the taste will be interesting. They are served in sizes ranging from 200 grams to 1000 grams. Grams will be listed on the menu. .

Bramboraky.

Boiled vegetables are grated, stuffed with meat, or they may not be stuffed, they are molded into small pancakes and fried. Something like our potato pancakes in the Czech style.
Can be ordered as a side dish. As well as dumplings - buns steamed from flour.

Drowned.

The Czechs, in principle, love different sausages and often order drowned beer with beer. Sausage marinated with onions and peppers. This sausage is very fatty and spicy (there is a lot of pepper and vinegar), so you will drink decent beer with it).

Soups (watering) Polevka v chlebu.

Czech soups are almost all cream soups. All thick and rich. In general, in his Czech style. Choose to your taste. In the photo from Prague, you see how everyone is photographed with soup in a bowl of bread, this is most likely garlic soup - the most popular in the Czech Republic.
You can check with the waiter whether this soup is served in bread, if the menu does not say that the soup is in bread.

Grilled cheese, smazak (Smažený sýr, smažak).

This is fried cheese in butter (Hermelín) Hermelin (cheese in white mold) rolled in flour, then in Czech spices, then breaded. Maybe with a filling, and since this is the Czech Republic, the filling is meat. Germelin can also be pickled. Both are excellent snacks for beer, which is in every bar.

Svichkov.

For those who do not like fatty and pork in Prague there is an alternative - svichkova. This is a beef tenderloin cooked in a special sauce. Sauces in the Czech Republic are like a separate dish, they change the taste of everything.) served again with dumplings. A very tender dish.

Pečená kachna (Pechena kachna).

Baked duck (goose). Sometimes cooked with honey and served with a traditional Czech side dish: sauerkraut, potatoes or dumplings. And, of course, beer!

Trdlo.

Well, for dessert Trdlo, trdelnik (translated as a fool). You will definitely not pass by this sweet, as they are sold on the street every 300 meters.

This is a pastry made from yeast dough, which is cooked on site on metal rods in special ovens. It is sold sprinkled with powdered sugar, and you can choose any filling: cream, nuts, poppy seeds, nutella, strawberries, etc. But you can buy without filling. A very sweet dish. It's definitely worth a try.
It costs from 50 to 120 crowns ($2-5). You can buy half.

And as they would say in the Czech Republic: Dobrou chuť!

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Desserts and drinks that welcome guests in Prague.

Prague has always been a city that is not only pleasant to see. There are a huge number of themed restaurants, tasting rooms, pastry shops and breweries, where you can spend as much time as looking at Charles Bridge or Old Town Square. Cuisine from all regions of the country is represented in the Czech capital, so you don’t have to leave the city to try Karlovy Vary waffles or Velkopopovecky Kozel beer.

What to try in Prague from the main dishes

"Voles" - or similar cream soup "bramborachka". In the first, the aroma of garlic is clearly felt, in the second, potatoes with mushrooms and smoked meats. An addition to the meal, and at the same time a plate, is a dense bun into which the soup is poured. Cheese and onion soup "tsibulachka" can be attributed to the same category.

Puree soups are the pride of the Czech Republic!

The shank of a young boar, which is cooked on a spit. This is the most delicious meat dish in Prague, which is prepared in all self-respecting restaurants. A huge knee is quite suitable for a whole company of hungry guys, so ask the waiters how much the finished knee will weigh.

Czech shank - dedicated to fans of meat dishes!

Pork ribs in honey sauce. High-calorie and very fatty dish, so if you are on a diet, it is better to give preference to baked duck with fruit.

What other dish to try in Prague? Order pork ribs in honey sauce - honestly, you won't regret it!

Knedliks - balls of potatoes or flour. This dish is unique in that it can be an appetizer, side dish and dessert. It all depends on what it is poured with. As a side dish, dumplings are poured with fatty sauces, as a dessert - they are stuffed with nuts, fruits and poured over with syrup.

Dumplings are often served with meat and other hot dishes.

Beef tatarak from minced beef , garlic mustard, which is decorated with raw yolk on top. Since the minced meat is raw and the egg is raw, the taste of the dish is unusual. It is customary to spread it on toast and drink beer.

It looks like a classic Tatarak, which is worth ordering in Prague

Fried cheese "Germelin" with white mold. It is rolled in breadcrumbs and seasonings, fried, and then served with fresh vegetables, cranberries or french fries.

What to try in Prague from desserts

Apple strudel. The most popular dessert to try in Prague, made from soft dough and fragrant apples. Sold wherever you can get something to eat.

What to try from desserts in Prague? Of course, strudel with ice cream!

"Payments" - thin round waffles with a variety of fillings. Waffles can be bought in bakeries, supermarkets, where they are packed in special sealed bags.

Waffle iron with a traditional "imprint". This is how Czech "payments" are obtained!

"Trdlo" - a bun in the form of a curl, in which there is no filling. Instead of filling, there is a powder of powdered sugar, nuts and cinnamon. This is a popular "street food" that you can eat in Prague.

Trdlo is often sold on the street. But you can also buy it at the bakery.

What to try in Prague from drinks

Beer, beer and more beer. In Prague, the cult of this drink, which is sold everywhere and in all forms. Beer restaurants and private breweries can be found at every turn, so a tourist simply has to visit at least a couple of such establishments. If you want to try classic options, then you should go to the brewery. They have the freshest and tastiest beer. Exotic lovers prefer beer restaurants, where up to 300 types of intoxicating drink are presented, including green, red, pink, blue with the aromas of berries, vegetables, wine and Becherovka.

How to find all these establishments in Prague and, most importantly, be among the locals, and not tourists with exorbitant prices? Everything is here, as always - you need to know the places!

• You can go on an excursion - this is a thematic 3-hour route with a local resident Vyacheslav;
• Or - also a good individual route from Evgeny, who has been living in the Czech Republic for several years. The walk includes visiting three breweries in 3.5 hours.

No one has left Prague without tasting the local beer!

"Becherovka". Exclusively Czech drink, not produced anywhere else in the world. This is a strong tincture from a bouquet of medicinal herbs, which can hardly be called tasty. But to visit Prague and not try it is definitely impossible.

They say that Becherovka is not so much alcohol as medicine!

Wine. Despite the beer dominance, there are also wine cellars in the Czech capital, where they offer tastings of different varieties. They approach the process very responsibly, so in some establishments you can even order live music for wine. For example, in "Alla Stella Nera". There are also cellars that offer Moravian and Burgundy wines, as well as all sorts of Chilean, Australian and Argentinean exotics.

Moravian wines are mostly dry wines. Be prepared for this before you order and try them in Prague 😉

Gastronomic tours to Prague 2019

What dishes to try in Prague, they can tell you on thematic tours. Beer routes are very popular here, where the tourist himself can choose the places he wants to visit, and the beer guide will tell you about the features and history of the beer they offer. Tourists also like to go to medieval taverns, for example, "At the Spider", where the atmosphere is completely immersed in the Middle Ages, and not only externally.

*During food tours in Prague, mainly traditional fire-cooked dishes are served. At the same time, they have to be eaten by hand.

Excursions in Prague at the best prices

The most interesting excursions in Prague are routes from local residents. They are created by creative people who know how to beautifully present interesting places and captivate guests. All tours are conducted in Russian.

Summarize

Hearty and fatty Prague food is not for everyone, but the choice of dishes is so large that you definitely won’t have to go hungry. Now you know what to try in Prague, but this is only a small fraction of what you can see in street cafes and private bakeries. Czech chefs and confectioners are real masters who even from ordinary flour balls in sauce could create a cult dish for the Czechs!

Video tour: delicious street food in Prague

Publication date: 2013-04-22

“A piece of fried ham, soaked in brine, and with potato dumplings sprinkled with cracklings, and with cabbage! Real jam! After that, beer is drunk with pleasure!... What else does a person need?

"The Adventures of the Good Soldier Schweik" by Yaroslav Gashek

The annual pilgrimage to the Czech Republic by millions of tourists from all over the world is associated not only with a rich historical heritage and unique ancient architecture. A full-fledged attraction of this country can be called national cuisine.

A brief excursion into history

The geographical location of the Czech Republic predetermined its culinary traditions. For many centuries, the gastronomic habits of the Czechs were influenced by their neighbors - German-Austrian cuisine in the west, Hungarian in the south and Slavic in the east. Western neighbors enriched Czech cuisine with all sorts of sausages and various types of cabbage, from the south - she got thick rich soups, goulash and the tradition of generously seasoning dishes with spices, and porridges, dishes from meat offal and pastry can be considered the contribution of the east.

At first glance, Czech cuisine is quite simple and uncomplicated. It is based on dishes from meat and poultry, potatoes and flour products, ideally combined with the main Czech drink - beer. But the devil, as they say, is in the details. Upon closer examination, one can see that the success of Czech cuisine is based on the use of selected meats and other products of the highest quality, their skillful preparation and a generous selection of various sauces, spices and seasonings.

The Czechs themselves like to say that their national cuisine is based on the trinity: “meat-dumplings-beer”.

It is difficult to call the Czech Republic a paradise for discerning gourmets (after all, it does not have such exquisite dishes as, for example, in French or Italian haute cuisine), but for lovers of hearty, tasty and, what is important, inexpensive food options are simply endless. Portions in the Czech Republic are huge (and the farther from the tourist centers - the more), the prices are moderate, and you can skip a glass of freshly brewed beer with a traditional set of snacks in any establishment literally at every step - from a simple bowl to a popular restaurant.

Czech cuisine will be of particular pleasure to meat-eaters - most of its dishes are based on the use of meat (mainly pork) and poultry (ducks, turkeys). Fish in the Czech Republic can be found, but rarely. Czechs eat mainly freshwater fish. The main Czech fish is the carp. Baked in sour cream and garlic sauce, it is a traditional Christmas dish.

An important place in the Czech national cuisine is occupied by soups and, of course, dumplings - boiled or steamed flour products that vaguely resemble wet bread. Plentifully poured with sauce, they are served with various dishes as a side dish.

Traditional Czech soups

Soups, or in Czech polevky, occupy an important place in Czech cuisine. Czechs prefer thick, fragrant soups with meat broth and mashed soups with an interesting sweet and sour flavor range (sauerkraut, sour milk or apples are usually added to soups for "sourness"). Cooks do not skimp on seasonings, adding caraway seeds, marjoram, thyme, ginger, bay leaf, pepper, paprika and fresh herbs in large quantities - dill, parsley. For density, egg yolks, semolina, flour, mashed vegetables, cream, butter are added to them. Because of their thick consistency, many Czech soups are easily confused with sauces.

Constant delight among tourists coming to the Czech Republic cause soups in bread. The soup is served in special bread "pots", inside of which the crumb has been removed. The crispy pot is topped with a pre-cut bread lid. Such a serving is typical for meat goulash soup, mushroom puree soup, thick potato, onion and many other soups. As a rule, each Czech restaurant has its own recipe for soup in bread. And it is so delicious that you yourself will not notice how you will eat not only the contents, but also the crispy pot itself, soaked in thick meat flavors and aromas!

As light first courses, meat and chicken broths seasoned with garlic, cheese and croutons are most often found.

Traditional Czech soups include:

bramborova polevka or bramboračka - thick potato soup with smoked meats and/or mushrooms according to an old Czech recipe. Dressed with sour cream mixed with flour. Often served in bread.

gulašova polevka- goulash soup. A popular thick soup based on pork, beef, poultry or rabbit meat. In addition to meat, offal, chicken and duck giblets can be added to it. It is thickened with flour fried in butter or lard, semolina or mashed potatoes and vegetables. It is also traditional for him to serve in bread.

česnekova polevka- garlic soup, can be prepared as quite thick (then beaten eggs are added to it), and more liquid.

koprová polevka- dill soup with sour milk according to an old recipe. It is generously flavored with sour cream and fresh herbs. And although the head hurts extremely rarely after Czech beer, but if you interfered with it the night before with absinthe, liquor, slivovitz or Becherovka, this is the best hangover remedy.

cibulova polevka- onion soup with croutons and cheese. Prepared in meat or bone broth. Onions are fried in lard. It has a rich, pungent taste.

hovězí polevka s játrovými knedlíčky- beef soup with liver dumplings. The "highlight" of this soup is dumplings, kneaded from slices of bread soaked in milk and minced liver.

kulajda- kulajda or South Bohemian potato-mushroom soup - an old recipe for a first course from southern Bohemia. It is rightfully considered one of the masterpieces of Czech cuisine. Prepared with milk or cream. It has a thick texture, white color and rich mushroom aroma.

zelna polevka- sauerkraut soup. We can say that this is cabbage soup of Czech cuisine. It is prepared plain or with the addition of milk (cream) and thickened flour fried in butter.

dršťková polevka- tripe soup. A thick rich pork tripe soup, a traditional dish of Czech peasants. Generously seasoned with paprika, garlic and other spices (marjoram, cumin, pepper).

prompt: if you want to find an inexpensive hotel in Prague, we recommend that you look at this section of special offers. Usually discounts are 25-35%, but sometimes they reach 40-50%.

Main (second) dishes of Czech cuisine

Boar knee, svichkov, ribs in honey - those who were lucky enough to visit the Czech Republic, only at the mention of these names will sweetly pinch in the side.

As second courses (hlavní chod), Czechs prefer meat and chicken dishes with side dishes. The first place in popularity is held by pork, followed by chicken, in third place is beef. Duck, turkey, goose, pheasant dishes are also common. Fish is much less popular, although in big restaurants you will always find a few dishes of trout, carp or cod. It is usually fried, baked in the oven or grilled. The traditional Christmas dish is baked in the oven. carp. It is baked with sour cream and garlic or cheese and garlic sauce.

Since the Czechs are meat-eaters, they cook meat dishes excellently. The meat is pre-marinated (in the Czech beer loved by all), sprinkled abundantly with spices and generously flavored with sauces of a wide variety of tastes - from spicy garlic and onion to sweet and sour fruit and berries.

The main methods of preparing second courses are stewing, frying and baking, including grilling (charcoal). Czechs prefer meat cut into large pieces, whole (such as roasted duck or pork knuckle) or smaller pieces for goulash. Minced meat dishes are not typical for Czech cuisine, with the exception of wieners and sausages (drunks), which the Czechs themselves refer to as beer snacks rather than main dishes.

In the preparation of second courses are generously used seasonings and spices- onion, garlic, mustard, horseradish, marjoram, paprika, cumin, ginger, thyme, sage, coriander, cardamom, basil, sage, dill.

And of course, it should be mentioned separately sauces. sauces, or omacky, occupy a special place in Czech cuisine. They are served with second courses, appetizers, side dishes and dumplings. Czech sauces are mostly thick, with rich flavors and aromas. Traditions of their consumption date back to the Middle Ages. The basis for the preparation of ancient sauces was the frying of flour in fat, diluted, depending on the belonging of the eaters to one class or another, with water, meat or vegetable broth, wine, milk, cream and even beer. They added spices, roots and herbs. Since that time, the technology for making sauces has changed little.

Sauces traditional for Czech cuisine are: garlic, tomato, cucumber, dill, onion, mushroom, creamy, tomato, lingonberry, cranberry, blackberry. To improve the taste properties, butter, cream, milk, sour cream are added to them.

- group tour (up to 10 people) for the first acquaintance with the city and the main attractions - 3 hours, 20 euros

- a walk through the little-known but interesting corners of Prague away from the tourist routes to feel the real spirit of the city - 4 hours, 30 euros

- bus tour for those who want to immerse themselves in the atmosphere of the Czech Middle Ages - 8 hours, 30 euros

Main second courses

Baked pork knee (Pečené vepřové koleno)

A dish with which most tourists associate the Czech Republic. The main dish of Czech cuisine is prepared from fresh pork knuckle - the part from the middle of the leg to the middle of the thigh. The shank can be baked in different ways. The conceptual difference between most recipes is the absence or presence of a boil stage. According to the traditional recipe, the shank is first boiled in broth or beer with the addition of various roots (celery, carrots), onions, garlic and spices, and then grilled. Served with sauerkraut or stewed cabbage, potatoes, pickled cucumbers, garlic and herbs.

Baked pork ribs in honey (Pečená vepřová žebírka v medu)

The "highlight" of this recipe is a special marinade based on honey. Before baking, the ribs are marinated for a long time, and then baked for a long time over low heat, which is why they practically melt in your mouth;

Vepro-knedlo-zelo (Vepřo-knedlo-zelo)

Another old Czech dish of baked pork, dumplings (a special Czech "bread" side dish, but more on them later) and stewed sauerkraut. According to the glorious Czech tradition, it is richly poured with thick gravy.

Svichková on sour cream (Svíčková na smetaně)

Stewed young beef or veal tenderloin with sauce. For this dish, the meat is selected especially carefully, and marinated in spices for 1-2 days before cooking. Sauce plays a key role in the taste of the finished dish. It is prepared on the basis of vegetables stewed in meat broth, which are then whipped to a puree state. For taste, milk, cream or sour cream is added to the sauce. The addition of berry sauces or even jam from sour berries - cranberry, lingonberry, blackberry - gives a special piquancy to the dish. Well, a few slices of dumplings, served with the dish, will help you soak up the whole sauce.

Other second courses

veprovy rizek - breaded fried pork chop. It is a Czech variety of schnitzel or escalope. The dish got into the national Czech cuisine under the influence of close proximity to Germany and Austria-Hungary.

rečena vepřova játra - baked pork liver. It cooks very quickly so that the inside of the liver remains soft pink. Served with fried onions and thick flour sauce.

Goulash with dumplings

hovězí gulaš s knedlíkem - beef goulash with dumplings. A traditional recipe for stewed meat in thick gravy. "Migrated" to Czech cuisine from Hungarian neighbors. And so that not a single drop of fragrant meat gravy is wasted, several pieces of potato or flour dumplings are attached to the dish. There are a great many recipes for making the “correct” Czech goulash, the only unchanged ingredients are pieces of juicy meat, onions and tomatoes (tomato paste). Everything else (garlic, pepper, paprika, ginger, coriander and other spices) is at the discretion of the cook.

Duck with dumplings

pečene kachna - roast duck or goose. Belongs to the category of festive dishes of Czech cuisine. The whole baked bird is served with sauerkraut and dumplings. To get a crispy fragrant crust, the bird can be smeared with honey or a specially prepared honey mixture with salt and spices.

Lamb with rosemary

jehněčí na rozmarynu - lamb baked with rosemary. A delicious dish of rare lamb on the Czech table. Fresh sprigs of rosemary add piquancy to the dish. For baking, various pieces of lamb can be taken - the vertebral part (hřbetu), ribs (žebírka), neck (krk) and leg (kýta). Various variations of the recipe allow the use of garlic, olive oil, lemon and even marmalade. Often a sauce of sour berries (lingonberries, cranberries) is served with the dish. Another variety of lamb dishes is bohemian meat. To prepare the dish, soft lamb is cut into rectangular pieces, fried and stewed with onions and potatoes.

traditional smaženy kapr - baked carp. One of the few fish dishes of Czech cuisine, which can be called the main Christmas dish of the country. Traditionally served at the festive table at Christmas. Carps on this occasion are fattened special - large and fat. The fish is baked with sour cream and beer sauce, onion and lemon. The abdomen can be stuffed with browned onions, carrots, champignons. Before cooking, experienced housewives soak carp in beer for 1-2 days (necessarily in the dark). It is customary to wear scales from the Christmas carp in your wallet all year round - it is believed that they attract money and wealth.

pečený pstruh - baked trout. Another one of the few fish dishes in Czech cuisine. The fish is baked with lemon and spices - rosemary, thyme, garlic, pepper. Fish is baked in various ways - on the grill, on coals, in foil.

Czech side dishes

Describing Czech side dishes(přílohy), the story can be divided into two parts - about dumplings and everything else.

Indeed, in almost no country in the world there is a dish that even remotely resembles Czech knedlik(knedlik). It stands on some special step between bread and side dishes, replacing both for the Czechs themselves. Although, if you make a short digression into history, you may be surprised to find that dumplings are not at all an invention of Czech culinary specialists. They came to the Czech Republic from Germany and Austria. And the name of the dish itself has quite German roots and comes from the German “knödel”. However, knodels, used in southern Germany and Tyrol and being siblings (or, to be more precise, great-great-grandfathers) of Czech dumplings, could not be promoted to the status of a “brand”, and remained an inconspicuous phenomenon of regional significance on the culinary map of these countries. Czech dumplings have received the official status of one of the main national symbols of the country, and every self-respecting Czech hostess knows at least three recipes for the most “correct” home-made dumplings: potato, flour (bread) and sweet.

So, what is a classic Czech dumpling? Here comes the biggest problem. There is absolutely no possibility to classify dumplings into “correct” and “wrong” ones - there are many options for their preparation, in each region (what a region - in every family!) The recipe for dumplings is different and, of course, the most authentic and delicious.

Basically, all dumplings have one thing in common - steaming or boiling a dough-like mass mixed from a variety of ingredients. The composition of the "dough" may include mashed raw or boiled potatoes, flour, starch, an egg, pieces of stale bread or a roll soaked in milk. A variety of products can be added to this base: cottage cheese, corn or semolina, liver, bacon, cheese, vegetables, mushrooms, herbs. When sugar, fruits and berries are added to the dough, sweet dumplings are obtained, which are used in Czech cuisine as a dessert. They can be served with sweet sauces, ice cream, fruit, poppy seeds, nuts and chocolate.

Depending on the recipe, the dough for dumplings can be yeast and yeast-free.

The beauty of dumplings lies in the fact that, having an inexpressive taste in itself, due to their consistency, they perfectly absorb all the flavors of the main dish. Therefore, they are perfect for thick soups and various sauces for which Czech cuisine is famous.

From traditional side dishes Czech cuisine includes:

• bramborová kaše- mashed potatoes. Perfect with meat dishes with thick sauces and fish;
• bramborove hranolky- classic french fries. Czechs are generally very fond of potato side dishes, so you can find potatoes in a variety of options on the menu. - boiled, baked, with fried bacon, garlic, dill, etc.;
• krokety - croquettes. Deep fried mashed potato balls. They can take the form of small sticks, roses and others;
• dusene zeli(stewed cabbage) and dušene kysane zeli(stewed sauerkraut) - prepared from sauerkraut. Another popular Czech side dish. Served both on its own with second courses, and as part of complex side dishes. It pairs perfectly with pork knuckle, drowned fish, baked ribs and other traditional Czech dishes. It can be prepared from white and red cabbage, with the addition of bay leaves, cumin, cranberries, lingonberries, carrots, apples;
• fazolove lusky- boiled or stewed green beans.

Beer snacks

A story about Czech cuisine would be incomplete without mentioning traditional beer snacks. Drinking beer in the Czech Republic is a centuries-old national tradition, which is supported by millions of tourists who come to the country with pleasure. In every drinking establishment you will find an impressive list of snacks that can quickly starve the hungriest worm and from the best side emphasize the taste merits of numerous types of beer - dark, semi-dark, ruby, light, bitter, sour, smoked, wheat and many, many others.

The goals of any proper beer snack are twofold: to emphasize the unique taste of the foamy drink and to create a thirst, leading to the order of the next glass. Given the second, the bulk of Czech beer snacks are distinguished by an abundance of salt and all kinds of spices.

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Main snack dishes

Marinated hermelin (nakládaný hermelín)

Hermelín means "ermine" in Czech. This is the name of a variety of soft, fatty cheese made from cow's milk, with white mold on the surface. Germelin is similar in taste to French Camembert. Served as an appetizer with white wine. As a beer snack, it is served marinated. To do this, the cheese is soaked for two weeks in a special marinade based on vegetable (rapeseed) oil with the addition of spices - onion, garlic, allspice and black pepper, chili pepper, bay leaf, thyme and marinated hot pepper "feferoni" (pálivé feferonky). As a hot appetizer, hermelin is served deep fried in breadcrumbs ( smažený hermelín) or grilled ( grilovany hermelín). During heat treatment, all facets of the taste and aroma of cheese are revealed. Outside, the cheese is covered with a delicious crispy crust, and inside it has a gentle fluid content that literally melts in your mouth. Served with garlic, cucumber-dill, cranberry or lingonberry sauce.

Drowned people (utopenci)

Drowned people - translated from Czech as "drowned people". Fatty meat sausages (marinated in a sour marinade for about two weeks) with an original serving - each sausage is cut lengthwise, circles of tomato, pickled onions, sweet peppers, pickled cucumbers, pickled pepperoni peppers, etc. are put into the cut. Sprinkle generously with fresh herbs on top.

Beef tartare with toasted bread (hovězý tatarák s topinkami)

Tartar with bread

It is a variant of the famous Tatar snack of raw ground beef with egg yolk. Served with crispbread and spices - red and black pepper, garlic, pickled onions, olives and various sauces. It is better to try tartare in proven places, with guaranteed meat quality. Remember that minced meat is completely raw and has not been subjected to any heat treatment.

Olomouc curds (olomoucké tvarůžky)

A kind of Czech snack "for an amateur." It is a kind of ripened curd cheese. They have a sharp specific smell and taste. It is recommended to use with toast with butter. Those who dare to try this old "delicacy" of Czech peasants from the village of Lostice, in the vicinity of Olomouc (they began to produce it there back in the 15th century), say that if you do not pay attention to the smell, then according to your taste and delicate texture, cheese is more than something like smoked halibut.

Classic Snack Dishes, which you will surely find in any Czech pub or restaurant:

• tlacenka - tlachenka. This name hides the well-known brawn from pork knuckle and meat offal. Served with pickled onions, horseradish, mustard and white sauces;
• grilovane klobasky - grilled sausages. Delicious grilled meat sausages with a crispy crust. Served with various hot sauces and mustard. To form a more crispy crust, they can be cut crosswise on one or two sides;
• Tatarský biftek z lososa - raw salmon tartare. Served on lettuce with toasted toast, lemon, pepper and salt;
• pivni syr oblozeny - beer cheese. Bread with an original snack of beer cheese, salted sprat, onion, butter and a drop of beer.

Given the culture of mass consumption of beer, in every drinking establishment you will be offered fried toasts(topinky) with various fillings (minced meat or fish, cheese, anchovies, bacon, garlic, onions), as well as meat(masové prkenko) or cheesy(sýrové prkenko) assorted.

Salads

Despite their love for hearty meat and potato dishes, the Czechs do not forget about lighter snacks. Although, also with a touch of local culinary flavor. For example, one of the most popular Czech salads is potato salad - bramborovy salat. In addition to boiled potatoes, it includes carrots, celery root and parsley, red onions, pickled cucumbers, bacon cracklings and other ingredients of the hostess' choice. This salad is often served at the Christmas table. The “poorer” option includes, in addition to potatoes, onions, greens and mustard dressing with vinegar or wine (served warm). Another good example of the gastronomic passions of the Czechs is the Vlach salad ( vlašsky salát) from potatoes, green peas and a set of meat ingredients - sausages, ham, veal, tongue, etc. (such a Czech analogue of Olivier salad). A peculiar echo of the common history with Austria-Hungary is a salad of sweet pickled peppers, onions, celery root and smoked meats.

Desserts, pies

As a rule, travelers returning from the Czech Republic rarely mention local desserts. And absolutely in vain! Of course, this is largely due to the fact that the majority of tourists, absorbed in tasting varieties and brands of Czech beer, lean on beer snacks. Naturally, in this situation, the majority is no longer up to desserts. However, those with a sweet tooth will discover an astonishing variety of Czech desserts and pastries, which have a distinctly Austrian touch in their flavors, and the buns have definite Slavic roots.

We will not dwell on popular international desserts that can be found in any country in the world - tiramisu, cheesecake, napoleon or brownie. In the Czech Republic, they also know how to cook them, and the degree of this skill depends on the particular institution. We will talk about unique Czech desserts, which you are unlikely to find outside the country.

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Trdelnik, trdlo (Trdelnik, trdlo)

The most common street pastry in the Czech Republic. Tents with trdelniks can be found on every corner, and you can unmistakably determine their location by the breathtaking smell of cinnamon, vanilla and fresh muffin that spreads throughout the area. They are hollow tubes of rich yeast dough wound on a rolling pin, sprinkled with a mixture of sugar and cinnamon, sometimes crushed nuts, poppy seeds or coconut flakes, smeared with honey, chocolate or hot caramel. Baked on an open fire. Without trdelniks, it is impossible to imagine any folk festival, fair or street festival in the Czech Republic. It is interesting that the Slovak village of Skalica (and the cook of the Hungarian writer Josef Gvadani who worked there in the 18th century) and the old Cesky Krumlov argue for the right to be called the creators of the most popular Czech delicacy. Supporters of the latest version argue that trdelniki was invented by a city baker who decided to trade his products at a large fair. In those years, according to tradition, every merchant or artisan, in order to draw attention to the product, put pretty girls-relatives behind the counter. The baker's daughter was not particularly beautiful, but she spun beautifully. To draw attention to his product, the baker decided to have the girl bake dough tubes, winding them on a wooden spindle and sprinkling sugar and cinnamon right in front of delighted customers. Considering the fate of the new delicacy, we can say that the baker's idea was a resounding success, and his marketing move turned out to be extremely successful. By the way, trdlo in Czech means "idiot" or "fool".

We have already described dumplings in detail in the section on. Sweet dumplings are distinguished by a richer dough; cottage cheese, soft cheese, vanillin, cinnamon, lemon and orange peel, candied fruits, nuts, fruits and berries are added to them. Served with sour cream, butter or custard, poured with butter, chocolate, jam or jam. A popular variety of sweet dumplings are szilvas gomboc(Hungarian) or knedliky se švestkami - dumplings with plums. They are round balls of potato or cottage cheese dough stuffed with plums or other sweet and sour fruits. Boiled in boiling water and then rolled in breadcrumbs, powdered sugar, coconut flakes, poppy seeds or crushed nuts.

Bakery products based on rich yeast dough of various shapes with fillings from fruits, berries, nuts, raisins, dried apricots or cream cheese. Examples are: kalach(koláč) - a small round bun and bath(vánočka) - an elongated braid.

Zavin - Czech strudel. It is almost a copy of the Austrian strudel. It is baked in the form of a roll of thin puff pastry stuffed with apples, berries, cottage cheese, poppy seeds, chocolate. Czech confectioners serve strudel with whipped cream, ice cream, chocolate or vanilla sauce, garnished with berries and young mint or lemon balm leaves.

Věnecek- a small custard cake in the form of a ring. It is the Czech equivalent eclairs. Its larger "brother" - windnik. It starts with whipped cream, custard, butter or protein cream, poured with glaze, decorated with whipped cream, nuts or berries. Another variety of it is an oblong-shaped eclair, apparently named by a lover of black humor. "rakvička" - coffin.

Palacinky- sweet thin pancakes. Czech confectioners make them especially delicate and openwork. Served with ice cream, whipped cream, marmalade, syrup, jam or melted chocolate. Sprinkled with berries, almonds, powdered sugar.

Oplatky- thin round stuffed waffles. Derived from the word "poplatek" - fee. This name was most likely due to the external similarity with coins. They are baked with a relief pattern on the surface, have a pleasant golden yellowish color. They start with chocolate, nougat, whipped cream, pieces of fruit. The taste is reminiscent of the famous Viennese waffles. The birthplace of payments is Karlovy Vary, where they appeared on the tables of local housewives at the end of the 18th century.

Pernik - gingerbread. They are baked according to old recipes in various regions of the Czech Republic. The most famous - Pardubice gingerbread(Pardubický perník) in the shape of a heart and Stramber ears(Štramberské uši), baked in the form of sacks of thin gingerbread dough.

Street food and Czech fast food

Prague, like almost the entire Czech Republic, is a place actively visited by tourists from all over the world. Therefore, it cannot do without lively street trading. In addition to those already described trdelnikov, popular street food in the Czech Republic are hot dogs (párek), fried sausages with side dishes from cauldrons - potatoes with pasta and stewed cabbage. A peculiar version of Czech shawarma is bramborák - ham, bacon, salami with herbs and vegetables wrapped in a potato pancake. On the central squares, skewers with the famous boar knee and even a whole carcass of piglets tease with their seductive aromas. Hungry (and not even so) buyers are attracted by their unusual appearance, spirals of deep-fried potatoes strung on wooden mini-skewers - such peculiar chips. Well, the undisputed leader in terms of the maddening aroma is smoked Prosciutto di Praga(famous old Prague ham). In terms of its taste properties, it is in no way inferior to Italian prosciutto or Balkan prosciutto. It tries to compete with the smell of fried cheese (smazhak) and langosh (from the Hungarian lángos - fiery) - fried crispy flatbread with cheese, garlic sauce or sour cream.

Fast food in the Czech Republic also has its own national "zest". In addition to the traditional McDonald's, Burger King and KFC, it is represented by the famous European brand Nordsee (perhaps the best fast food with seafood dishes), national analogues of Fasty's, Bageterie Boulevard and Express Sandwich (the Czech analogue of Subway). The menu of international networks takes into account the increased interest of Czechs in meat, so you can find dishes with national flavor there. For example, at McDonald's visitors are offered a Maestro Bohemia burger made from Czech beef and a large portion of bacon. You can find a large selection in local eateries. Khlebitchkov- the Czech version of sandwiches, the most popular of which are bread with ham, cheese, various smoked meats and salmon. For taste, lettuce, greens, beer cheese, mayonnaise sauce, and butter are often added to the bread.