by Amber H. | Jan 1, 2018 | Czech Republic, Europe, Food
Most people travel to Prague for beer and traditional Czech food. But, when travelers stay a little longer, and, even better, explore outside of Prague, a whole new world opens up. Travelers learn that Czech Republic food is not just beer and dumplings. Although, there’s some of that too! Because Czechs and travelers both can enjoy traditional Czech food, and some amazing contemporary options. >>Find the Best Czech Restaurants in Prague – Updated 2018<< Powered by GetYourGuide. Become a partner. Traditional Czech Cuisine I, like most people, probably think of three things when wondering about what Czechs eat: meat, potatoes, and beer. Similar to the traditional cuisine in Ireland, this has been the case for Czech food. And, when I am in the Czech Republic, particularly when it is only for a week, I want to find traditional Czech food. Our first few days in the country, we did just that. At Pivovar Národní, enjoy a humongous roasted pork knee (known as pork knuckle in other countries, including Poland). It doesn’t get more traditional than pork knee in the Czech Republic. Crisp skin on the outside, tender on the inside, and as huge as can be. Most pivovar, or breweries, serve a mix of Pilsner Urquell and Kozel, two of the most famous Czech beers. Pivovar Nardoni serves its own local draft beer. Not being a craft beer person, their unfiltered beer was pretty good. I was there more for the food. And, Nardoni might not be considered one of the best Czech restaurants in Prague, but it’s popular and consistently good. In addition to to our pork knee, served...
by Amber H. | Aug 11, 2016 | Czech Republic, Drinks, Europe
Our main goal when traveling to the Czech Republic this year, was to explore the Czech wine scene. We wanted to highlight that there’s more to traveling in the Czech Republic than drinking beer and eating meat and potatoes. I think we proved that. But, it was still hard for us to take a week long trip without drinking a little Czech Beer. Just a little. Each time we travel to Prague, though, we learn something new about the beer culture. In the Czech Republic, people take their beer very seriously. The tips below just scratch the surface of the information needed to travel to the Czech Republic for beer. It’s not meant for beer aficionados, just for people who like beer. Powered by GetYourGuide. Become a partner. What is a Pivovar? Pivo is a beer. A pivovar is a Czech brewery. Generally, these are beer halls or restaurants that brew their own beer. An example is Pivovar Národní in Prague. We drank their unfiltered draft beer, along with beef tartare and an enormous pork knee. That’s the difference between a pivovar and a bar: there is always something to eat. Unlike in the US, there is no significant markup on beer in the Czech Republic. Beer halls make little money on the sale of beer, which is how the price is kept so low. Instead, they make their money on food, or minimally, on beer snacks. What is Tank Beer? At it’s most simple, tank beer is draft beer, served from a tank. Most draft beer is delivered to a pub or bar in a barrel. It is usually...
by Amber H. | Jul 21, 2016 | Czech Republic, Drinks, Europe
It seems that no trip to the Czech Republic is complete without a round of cocktails at one of the many Brno cocktail bars. When in Prague, drink Czech beer. When in Mikulov, drink Czech wine. When in Brno, apparently, drink cocktails. Here’s our suggestion for three fun Brno cocktail bars. We sampled cocktails from three completely different Brno cocktail bars: The Bar That Doesn’t Exist, Super Panda Circus, and Runway Bar. Powered by GetYourGuide. Become a partner. Brno Cocktail Bars – The Classy Place to Drink in Brno In this case, our friend Charlie, and everyone else we met, kept talking about Bar který neexistuje, or the Bar That Doesn’t Exist. I was expecting a speakeasy. Someplace dark and hard to find. Someplace exclusive. Their website even gives the impression of a dark, ancient, mobster style hangout. When we walked up and saw the bright windows displaying row upon row of shiny liquor bottles, I immediately thought, this couldn’t be the place. This bar does, in fact, exist, on a street corner, in the center of town. From what I saw, speakeasy it wasn’t. The Bar That Doesn’t Exist, though, was a classy cocktail joint. Pretty packed on a weekend night, we found a small cocktail table in the heart of the bar. I think Charlie may have called ahead to reserve the table. There was no way it would have magically appeared in the crowds otherwise. High ceilings, fancy VIP style tables along the wall, The Bar That Doesn’t Exist definitely gave off an air of a classy place for drinks, particularly in a country known for...
by Amber H. | Jul 5, 2016 | Czech Republic, Europe, France, Podcast
A Podcast All About the Goats I never thought I would love goats as much as I do. And, this week, we are about goats on the blog. Welcome to Goat Week! On this week’s episode we talk about our first time meeting a goat, with our friend Chef Marc in Catalunya. It was a night of eating and drinking, and ultimately, a run in with a goat in a kitchen. After that experience, I sort of put goats out of my mind, until our last trip to Europe. Over a one month period, traveling in both the Czech Republic, and in France, we had two amazing experiences with goats, that just made me fall in love. It made me start to use the hashtag #GoatLove. It made me want to take one (or more) home with me to our tiny Bangkok apartment. I realize, completely, that is not a smart move. Instead, we’ve dedicated a week on the blog to videos, photos, and yes, even a podcast, to talk about goats! #GoatLove indeed! And, don’t worry, this week we are in love with goats as we learn about making goat cheese in Europe. No goats were harmed in publishing goat week. Check out our post that debunks 5 Cruise Misconceptions. Here is my unsuccessful goat selfie. I am nothing if not glamorous. And, check out our video about French Goats: Mentions on This Week’s Food Travel Podcast Czech Food – What Czechs Eat – Yes, part of that is goat cheese Viking River Cruises – The cruise that we took in France, from Avignon to Lyon A French River Cruise...
by Amber H. | Jul 4, 2016 | Czech Republic, Europe
Most of our blog posts focus on food and culinary travel, with perhaps some posts related to wine travel, or luxury travel thrown in. It’s just the nature of our niche, and how we like to travel. But, sometimes we have an experience that falls just outside our niche that we just have to share. When we spent time in a barn on a farm in Moravia, and hung with some Czech goats, this is just the type of story to share. In this case, we visited Jáňův dvůr, a goat cheese farm and home stay just outside of Mikulov, where we were exploring the Czech wine scene. Yes, goat cheese falls within our culinary travel niche. And, we tasted some extremely fresh goat cheese, less than three days old, along with some local wine. But, much like when we visited a buffalo cheese farm in Langkawi, showing photos of the finished product just did not do the experience justice. As a result, I published a post entirely about cute buffalos. And, trust me, they were cute! Similarly, when we hung out with a goat in a kitchen in Catalunya, we had to share that story as well. Most of these stories are solely driven by a series of animal photos, or in the last case, a single goat photo. Perhaps I have a thing for goats. Enter: The Czech Goats After we tasted the goat cheese, and drank the wine, we got to hang with the Czech goats. We entered the barn, and they all came running towards us. At first, it was a little overwhelming. They swarmed around us,...
by Amber H. | Jun 30, 2016 | Czech Republic, Europe, Food, Luxury
During our time in Prague, and for the most part in Mikulov as well, we focused on traditional Czech foods. We scratched our itch for hearty Czech meals of meat and potatoes, accompanied by a cold Czech beer. By the time we visited our last Czech city, though, it was all about luxury dining. If looking for a luxury meal in the Czech Republic, a stop to eat in Brno is a must. Powered by GetYourGuide. Become a partner. Where to Eat in Brno – Chef Jan’s Pavillon We met Chef Jan Kaplan a year before during our last visit to Prague. We shared a beer at a quiet beer garden in the old part of town. At the time, he was eager to have us visit his restaurant in Brno, Pavillon. We tried to squeeze it in, but we didn’t have enough time, or the energy, for a two and a half hour train ride to Brno, simply for a meal. Dining at Pavillon in Brno was one of the highlights of our Czech food tour. We don’t pay much attention to styles of architecture, at least not since my art history class during college. Pavillon is set inside a functionalist building, with wine open spaces, high ceilings, and contemporary furnishings. The original functionalist building was opened between the first and second world wars. It was white, with glass walls and red framed windows, which opened the restaurant up to a patio overlooking a park. It was “lost to the inhabitants of Brno” during the Communist reign, but now hosts one of the most elegant dining spots in...
