WHICH CRAFT? The most famous Czech export – apart from the Škoda car – is beer (pivo). Beer is also fondly known as “liquid bread” locally, hinting at its importance to Czech culture. And Evan Rail, author of Why Beer Matters, says that “Prague is probably the best city in the world to sample traditional lager.” The honey-coloured pale lager
(světlé pivo) is the most common and originates in the industrial West Bohemian city of Plzeň, hence the name “Pilsner”. Dark beer (tmavé pivo) is also available, but these days it’s less common. Although big names such as
“Te improved Czech economy is making the public more demanding”
Havlíček suggests it is best to visit
a pub (hospoda) at lunchtime, when they offer good value meals. Local office workers opt for the lunch menu (polední menu) of soup (polévka) and a main course (hlavní jídlo). Goulash in various versions forms a staple of the latter, as does svíčková na smetaně, beef sirloin bathed in creamy vegetable sauce with dumplings. Crisp pork or chicken schnitzel, other favourites, come with a heſty dollop of the ever-popular potato salad. But even this traditional world
is changing – thanks to the food revolution. Prague dining is constantly improving, but Havlíček explains that quality and variety have rocketed especially over the last five years, fuelled by greater consumer awareness of food. Social media is also raising the stakes, as meals are posted on Twitter or Instagram. “Diners demand more and want better quality ingredients and an experience,” he
busin e s s t r a ve lle r . c o m
Pilsner Urquell or Staropramen are most familiar to visitors, Rail urges them to sample the many new ales, including craft beers. “Prague’s beer scene is exploding. Just ten years ago we had only nine breweries in the whole city. Today we have 36, with more on the way,” he enthuses.
LEFT: Coffee Room ABOVE: Eska restaurant, café and bakery BELOW: V Kolkovně’s frontage, and draft pilsner
explains. British chef Paul Day, owner of Maso a Kobliha and Sansho, also notes Czechs’ fondness for travel and exposure to other cuisines. At Divinis, Zdeněk Pohlreich, the Czech Republic’s most famous chef, provides a third explanation. “I believe that it is the improved Czech economy that is making the public more demanding.” And the healthy forecast continues, with 3.2 per cent economic growth predicted for 2018. Pohlreich and other chefs are one
factor driving the transformation. Tey are most strongly influenced by French and Italian approaches to cuisine, but Radek Kašpárek, executive chef at Field, contends that Prague cooking is simplifying. “Restaurants are no longer combining cuisines, and fusion is waning.” At Eska, chef Martin Štangl, is
inspired by Nordic cuisine, and he argues that globalisation has helped his profession in the Czech Republic, and is thus transforming Prague dining. “People travel more, and it isn’t as difficult to land an internship in the world’s best restaurants as before.” Additionally, Radek Kašpárek states that “young chefs with lots of potential are arriving, and the old →
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IMAGES COFFEE ROOM, FILIP ŠLAPAL FOR AMBIENTE
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