Prague/Vienna/Budapest--3 (+) restaurants in 3 cities

I thought I’d start a new thread here based on a recent trip, since most of the discussions of Bohemian Europe are several years old. So, I’ll begin with:

Prague
We opened with two restaurants perilously close to the touristy Old Town Square. Nevertheless, the first, Mincovna, met all of our positive expectations with a simple but spacious interior and friendly service, and a variety of interesting offerings based on Czech classics. Some of the most memorable flavors here (and elsewhere in Prague) were found in the potatoes accompanying the meats, in this case a buttery puree surrounding my beef ribs and my wife’s chunky bacon-y mash to support her moist pork tenderloin. Unfortunately, the second of these restaurants, V Kolkovně, was one of the few disappointments on our trip. Although my rabbit was well-cooked and the dual paté opener more than sufficient, the wild boar in the ragout was as tough and tasteless as if it had been sitting in the freezer exposed for too long, a fact that the overly vinegary, tomatoey sauce could do little to disguise. The tastelessness of the bacon dumplings (and “tasteless” and “bacon” are two words that should never be paired) and the “Prague” ham (no better than the “Chicago” ham found in our local Jewel) persuaded me that, although the kitchen was probably competent, considerable cost-cutting had been taking place among the ingredients. For our final night in Prague, we went to the more upscale U Modré Kachničky II. This is the sister restaurant of “The Blue Duckling I,” and although slightly more casual than its dowager sibling (for a true taste of Imperial dowdiness, Modré Kachničky I is the place to go), the food was just as carefully cooked and presented, with duck—in a multitude of guises—being the specialty and the thing to order. We also had a sampling of some terrific sausages and beer at Lokal, and although this Czech version of a brewpub was uncrowded at lunch, it might be wise to reserve for dinner.

Restaurace Mincovna,
Staroměstské náměstí 930/7 ,
+420 727 955 669

V Kolkovně
V Kolkovně 910/8
Phone:+420 224 819 701

U Modré Kachničky II
Michalská 434/16,
Phone:+420 224 213 418

Lokál Dlouhá
Dlouhá 33,
Phone:+420 222 316 265

Vienna
We arrived in Vienna late on a Sunday evening, so our choices were limited, and we wound up at Artner auf der Wieden, which I recommend highly for its steaks (both for quality and value) and other grilled meats, which are its specialty (there also seems to be a lot of interest their hamburgers). But when in Vienna, I particularly enjoy the Austrian version of the neighborhood gastropub, the beisl, and we’ve now added Gmoakeller to our list of favorites. My first night there, I was not especially blown away by the food (the versions of pike and wild garlic soup we sampled later at Meierei, in fact, were superior), although my wife did appreciate her Easter ham in pastry, but the general atmosphere here was so pleasant and accommodating, we reserved for a second night (and reservations are recommended, since customers were still pouring in when we left at 10:00 on Monday); our faith was rewarded by an excellent steak in Madeira sauce (a pub rather than steakhouse preparation) and perhaps my best opener of the trip, a simple Matjes herring, accompanied by potato and beet salads, that will now be my standard for all future herring openers. Meierei, known primarily for its breakfasts and light lunches, and beautifully designed with an overlook of the City Park and the Vienna River, is an offshoot of the Michelin two star Steinereck. The good news here is that it probably uses the Steinereck kitchen for its limited dinner offerings. The bad news here is that it probably uses the Steinereck kitchen for its limited dinner offerings, and perhaps may not be given top priority when the dinner orders are placed. In short, we had to wait a considerable time for our excellent versions of pike and pork tenderloin, leaving us with insufficient time to sample their excellent selection of cheeses—which had drawn us there in the first place. But still a highly recommended venue if you’re looking for a light scenic meal and have plenty of time to wait for it.

Artner auf der Wieden
Floragasse 6,
Phone:+43 1 5035033

Gmoakeller
Am Heumarkt 25
Phone:+43 1 7125310

Meierei im Stadtpark
Am Heumarkt 2A
Phone:+43 1 713316810

Budapest
In Prague and Vienna, we accompanied our meals mostly with beer, and certainly did not regret the choice. In Budapest, we switched to the local Hungarian wines, many of the vintages with a connection to the establishments where we were dining. The Tokays, of course, were quite good, both the before and after dinner versions, and my wife discovered a worthy competitor to her favorite grappas in some of the local pálinkas. But the real revelation for us were the Cabernet francs, the best of which we found at Doblo, a wine bar in the Jewish quarter, which also supplies excellent cheese and charcuterie accompaniments. Of all the restaurants we visited, Aszú probably had the most varied wine list. I would also give it high marks for its friendly service, moderate prices, and elegant atmosphere (particularly if you’re fond of live music), and its foie gras, but, unfortunately, I was hoping here to be served a quintessential chicken paprikash (all the elements seemed to be in place), and received rather a substandard block of dry chicken breast with just a hint of paprika sauce (more like a congealed lining to the chicken). From my observations of the dishes other people were ordering, it seemed that the kitchen was enthusiastic about its more elaborate offerings and gave far less attention to the traditional Hungarian items that may have been placed on the menu for the benefit of us tourists. Aszú ‘s dreadful paprikash was balanced by the excellent pork version I had at Zeller Bistro, with hints of pork-fat and onion in the abundant sauce where succulent chunks of of pork floated among the braised cherry tomatoes and splotches of sour cream. Here the wild boar ragout was also fresh and satisfying, with sauce and spaetzle fortifying the flavor of the meat rather than hiding it; in addition, the duck breast smoked at the family farm and the local salamis and cheeses that opened our meal were fine starters. This is a small, extremely welcoming restaurant, and very popular, so reservations are essential. Our final meal was at the Bock Bistro, also a popular restaurant where reservations are advised. Here we decided on pheasant soup (with dumplings), a selection of foie gras “sushi,” a duck breast in vegetable cream, and a venison stroganoff with duck foie gras, all tasting as good as they sounded. I decided not to try the “bizarre ice cream selection (tobacco, goose foie gras, sausage),” but most of our desserts, pastries and the like, were confined to the wonderful cafes—too numerous to mention—we visited during the day in all three cities. (One further critical note for Budapest: The huge Cenrtral Market is often mentioned in guidebooks, but unless you’re fond of meat and vegetable/fruit stalls, along with flea/souvenir markets, it’s not worth a special trip in my estimation. But if there are any “fairs” scheduled with collections of Hungarian street food stalls, go.)



Zeller Bistro
Izabella utca 36-38
30 651 0880

Bock Bistro
Erzsébet krt. 43-49
Phone:+36 1 321 0340

Aszú Étterem
Sas u. 4
Phone:+36 1 328 0360

Doblo Wine Bar
Dob u. 20,
Phone:+36 20 398 8863

As a final note, I would like to recommend the hotels we chose for all three of our destinations. Reasonably priced, in proximity to (but not in the middle of) the center, with easy access to public transportation, all three were in walking distance of most of the above-mentioned restaurants. They are:

Hotel Clement Prague  
Klimentská 30, 110 00 Praha 1, Czech Republic
Phone:+420 222 314 350

Hotel Am Konzerthaus
Am Heumarkt 35-37, 1030 Wien, Austria
Phone:+43 1 716160

MaMaison Residence Izabella Budapest
Budapest, Izabella u. 61, 1064 Hungary
Phone:+36 1 475 5900
(This last is a suite hotel, particularly useful, if nearing the end of a trip you want to opt for some in-house meals. Breakfasts are available in the Residence, but a good café—Eco Café—is also nearby for cheaper, less substantial breakfasts.)

When I have more time I will be adding to this post because my wife and I did Budapest to Prague back in June/July. I do have time though, to post about my favorite meal in Budapest at Belvarosi Disznotoros (Downtown Pig Slaughter). We went to the one on Kiraly St, it was excellent. Blood sausage and some other form of sausage, with some purple cabbage and potatoes on the side.

Belvárosi Disznótoros
Király utca 1/d.
1075 Budapest
Hungary
http://www.belvarosidisznotoros.hu/about/

other location...

Belvárosi Disznótoros
Károlyi utca 17.
1053 Budapest
Hungary

Headed to Prague and Budapest in a couple of weeks and none of the other threads seem very recent. Any additional recommendations would be most welcome. If you don't know me, I like to experience everything, from the most basic of street food to elevated fine dining. Thanks in advance.

Was in Prague not too long ago, but I'm embarrassed to see that I appear not to have reported (Salzburg and Munich, too).

Definitely hit one of the Lokal pubs. The one in Mala Strana, near the bottom of the hill with the Prague Castle, has a medieval basement cantina that is very atmospheric. Terrific cold Urquell served like 10 different ways (from all foam (sweet) to no foam (bitter)) and ALL YOU CAN EAT DUMPLINGS to go with your goulash, schnitzel or sausages. A very cool, localvore hipsterish chain in an otherwise old fashioned town.

Hit one of the over-the-top Belle Epoque cafes. The most baroque we tried was Cafe Imperial. Vast menu with uneven execution. Stick to desserts, coffee and booze. The breakfast buffet was wrapping up when we stopped in, and it looked pretty spectacular.

The Strahov Monestary is off the beaten path, maybe 15 minutes away from the old town by rental car or taxi. It houses a groundbreaking brew-pub that generally doesn't make any Czech-style beers and focuses on New World and UK styles. Very cool place with decent pub food.

A new beer place, Beergeek, opened after our visit. It gets rave reviews.

The Hemingway Bar, which is kind of below the main street level on the old town end of the Charles bridge, is a great place to waste some time having a classic cocktail and cigar for an absurdly small price given the quality of the place. What they lack in variety of booze they more than make up for in ambiance and skill. It's also steps away from a hotel that I can wholeheartedly recommend, the Leonardo. Airy apartments with small kitchens and French doors open onto a courtyard, for dirt cheap.

Lots and lots of decent if not mind-blowing cheap eats all over, especially doner and pizza, always with good cold beer that is, literally, much cheaper than water.

If you insist on eating in the tourist epicenter of Charles Square, Mincovna stands out as the best.

You'll see lists for the top gourmet restaurants, which are in hotels and are French and Italian, with a smattering of Asian fusion. My family went all-in on pork, gravy and 4 kinds of dumplings, so we couldn't tell you about any of that. Didn't really see anyone trying to elevate or modernize Bohemian food. Lokal comes close by using top ingredients but the prep was strictly traditional. In our brief observation, the classics remain the province of big old-fashioned places with formally-dressed staff, which was fine by us.

Excellent assistance (including from the OP) - thanks!

JeffB wrote:
The Strahov Monestary is off the beaten path, maybe 15 minutes away from the old town by rental car or taxi. It houses a groundbreaking brew-pub that generally doesn't make any Czech-style beers and focuses on New World and UK styles. Very cool place with decent pub food.

This, a billion times this. Loved that place.

BR, you can get there on the tram very easily. Take Line 22 which stops at Castle Hill (Prazsky Hrad) two stations past that one to Pohorelec. When you walk into the monastery grounds look for Klasterni Pivovar Strahov. It is on your left. I am assuming that is the place JeffB is talking about (I think there are a few restaurants within the grounds). It was one of the few places I had some hoppy beer on our trip, the other being Hops Beer Bar in Budapest.

If you do go and you take the tram (it goes everywhere, we walked or trammed it everywhere) and you need a ticket you have to go one more stop away from the Castle (Malovanka) to find a shop to buy a ticket in, if you do not have one.

Cool - thanks much!

It is a quiet day at work and I found some emails I sent to friends heading to Prague and Budapest with all the restaurants/beer places, so no need to consult my journal. I will start with Prague.

Klub Arkitecu
Betlémské nám. 169/5A, 110 00 Praha 1, Czech Republic
http://www.klubarchitektu.com/en/index.php#

Had our first dinner here, it was good. Modernish take on Czech classics, you are in the basement of a really old building which was cool.

Švejk restaurant "U zeleného stromu"
Betlémské nám. 6, 110 00 Praha 1, Czech Republic
http://www.uzelenehostromu.eu/en/

A complete tourist trap but right near our hotel. Plus I had read The Good Soldier Svejk prior to the trip. It is the national novel of the Czech Republic. The pub that Jaroslav Hacek hung out in (and that appears in the novel) is still around. U Kalicha (The Chalice). We did not go there, heard it was even more of a tourist trap and they are really pushy. The waiter at this place was very surly, he did not want to serve me beer cheese, or pivni syr, which you should research and order any chance you get!

Oliva Nera
Betlémské nám. 10, 110 00 Praha 1, Czech Republic
http://www.olivanera.cz/en

After lots of meat and potatoes, we needed something else, decent Italian food if you want to mix it up

Kmota
V Jirchářích 1285/12, 110 00 Praha-Nové Město, Czech Republic
http://www.kmotra.cz/en/

Good pizza, one was enough for 2 people. We went here our last night for something cheapish and quick since we had to pack and sleep for our 3 AM wake up and 6 AM flight to Berlin.

U medvidku
Na Perštýně 7, Staré Město, 110 00 Praha 1, Czech Republic
http://www.umedvidku.cz/

Fantastic beer hall with traditional Czech food, stick to your ribs stuff, meat and potatoes.

U zlatého tygra
Husova 228/17, 110 00 Praha - Staré Město, Czech Republic
http://www.uzlatehotygra.cz/cs/

We did not go here but my friends raved about it, not sure if they ate, or just had beers. Said it was a lot of fun, filled with mostly locals even though it is really close to the Old Town Square

Budapest:

The following are all places within the Gozsdu Court. We stayed at the Gozsdu Court Aparthotel so it was really convenient

http://visitbudapest.travel/local-secre ... courtyard/

Blue Bird Cafe

Had a breakfast here which was excellent, and a dessert. Cool place to hang and people watch.

Yiddishe Mamma Mia
http://ymmrestaurant.com/

Needed an early respite from meat and potatoes

Kolor
http://visitbudapest.travel/arts-entert ... ife/kolor/

Good beer list and food, traditional Hungarian dishes. Had our first meal here and just watched the endless parade of people walking down the pedestrian Gozsdu Courtyard


Spiler
http://spilerbp.hu/original/en

Good beer list for Central Europe

Szimpla Kert
Budapest, Kazinczy u. 14, 1075, Hungary
http://www.szimpla.hu/en/about-us

Back in the '90s Budapesters (?) decided to put pubs in ruined buildings. This is the original and best. Building still looks ruined, pub is awesome. They have food, but we did not eat. No one else was eating when we were there and we were not 100% there was even food. Instead we had a beer, then ate at the Street Food Karavan (http://www.streetfoodkaravan.hu/), and then went back for more beer.

Hops Beer Bar
Budapest, 1077, Wesselényi u. 13, 1077 Hungary
http://welovebudapest.com/clubs.and.nig ... rite.place

Around the corner from the Karavan and Szimpla Kert, for when you want someone besides lager.

Menza
Budapest, Liszt Ferenc tér 2, 1061 Hungary
http://www.menzaetterem.hu/

Might've been my favorite meal in Budapest. Traditional dishes (goulash, paprikash, etc.) in a funky modern space. It is on the nice tree lined Liszt Ferenec Ter.

Cafe New York
Budapest Erzsebet krt. 9-11, 1073 Hungary
http://www.newyorkcafe.hu/

Great place to get coffee and a dessert

And as I mentioned above, Belvárosi Disznótoros

I appreciate all of the recs guys . . . these will come in handy.

Adding Vienna in case you are going there too, or for anyone else who is.

First up are the cafes. You are going to go to at least one of them when you are in Vienna, it is just what you do. Get a Wiener Melange, something sweet, and just enjoy the down time.

Cafe Sprel
Gumpendorfer Str. 11, 1060 Wien, Austria
http://www.cafesperl.at/

Conveniently located near the Naschmarkt. Very neat looking interior

Cafe Central
Herrengasse 14, 1010 Wien, Austria
http://www.palaisevents.at/en/cafecentral.html

Our favorite. Very old school. Had a light lunch here with some coffee afterwards. Just a cool place to hang out in.

Cafe Hawelka
Dorotheergasse 6, 1010 Wien, Austria
http://www.hawelka.at/cafe/de/

Check out the inside, but a great spot to sit outside and people watch. Definitely get some Buchteln, maybe even a few orders. They are amazing. Great back story behind this place as well.

Food and Drinks

Salm Brau
Rennweg 8, 1030 Wien, Austria
http://www.salmbraeu.com/home/

We actually ate here twice. It is located near the Lower Belvedere Palace (The Klimt paintings are at the Upper Belvedere. Traditional Austria cuisine, try to sit outside. They also make their own beer, which was excellent. The pork knuckle was the best of the bunch, and the pork knuckle for 2 is really enough for 4 people. It looked like we had not put a dent in it.

Zum Schwarzen Kameel
Bognergasse 5, 1010 Wien, Austria
http://www.kameel.at/en_index.php

Located just off the main square/poshest street in Vienna, this place has a full sit down restaurant that you will probably need reservations for. However, if you go in their is a wine bar you can sit/stand at, as well as a counter near the front with finger sandwiches and desserts made from the same kitchen pumping out 35 euro main dishes. We did that, enjoyed two glasses of wine and some small plates for about 40 euro total for two.

1516 Brewing Company
Schwarzenbergstraße 2, 1010 Wien, Austria
http://www.1516brewingcompany.com/

Probably as close to American Bar food that you can get in Vienna, was a nice change of pace from what we had been eating and the beer was fantastic

Gigerl
Rauhensteingasse 3, 1010 Wien, Austria
http://www.gigerl.at/

This place is a heuriger located right in the center of town. A heuriger is a wine tavern and usually located out of town in the countryside. I thought the wine was ok, my wife thought it was horrid. The apple strudel was great though!

7brau
Siebensterngasse 19, 1070 Wien, Austria
http://www.7stern.at/en-gb/

They make their own beer, it is all really good. Great courtyard that you get to by walking through the restaurant. I think I had the sausages, which hit the spot and my wife had the ribs, which fell off the bone. Not smoked, probably boiled/steamed, but still good.

Loos American Bar
Kärntner Durchgang 10, 1010 Wien, Austria
http://www.loosbar.at/

Enjoyed a 4th of July cocktail here while sitting outside. Definitely check out the inside though. Designed by its namesake Adolf Loos a pioneer of Modernist architecture and the Vienna Secession

Bluto11 wrote:
Back in the '90s Budapesters (?) decided to put pubs in ruined buildings. This is the original and best.

Just a slight nitpick: it was in the early 2000s, although some will say 1999 with the opening of Pótkulcs. Szimpla Kert opened in '01. (I lived in Bp. from '98 to '03 and remember Szimpla's original location on Király utca. It started out as a cafe, and then opened up an outdoor location as a romkocsma, or "ruin pub.")

Binko wrote:

Bluto11 wrote:
Back in the '90s Budapesters (?) decided to put pubs in ruined buildings. This is the original and best.

Just a slight nitpick: it was in the early 2000s, although some will say 1999 with the opening of Pótkulcs. Szimpla Kert opened in '01. (I lived in Bp. from '98 to '03 and remember Szimpla's original location on Király utca. It started out as a cafe, and then opened up an outdoor location as a romkocsma, or "ruin pub.")

I stand corrected, thanks for the info. Loved everything about Budapest when we were there.