Czech Restaurants

"The difference between involvement and commitment is like ham and eggs. The chicken is involved. The pig is committed." Martina Navratilova

I’m on the record as not being the biggest fan of Czech cuisine. That doesn’t mean I dislike it. I enjoy a good svíčková na smetaně, vepřová krkovice or řízek s bramborovým salátem now and then. It’s just that I’ve lived here for a long time and have eaten plenty of the heavy stuff. So I don’t regularly seek it out.

When Expats.cz asked me to put together a list of Czech restaurants, I told them I’d just pass along what I tell my friends when they ask my opinions on the subject. And I always have plenty of opinions.

Here, then, is my list. It is not a “best” list or a “Top 10” list in any particular order. In fact, it’s just a survey of what I know after having lived here a long time. And it barely scratches the surface. If you know a place worth recommending, especially something beyond the usual suspects, feel free to share.

Lokál
This is one of the most popular Czech restaurants in Prague. They do great řízek s bramborovým salátem (schnitzel and potato salad) and many other simple, classic, well-executed dishes with very reasonable prices for the center of the city. The Pilsner Urquell from tanks is great. I’ve often found the service to be friendly and efficient. But it’s a very long, often noisy and chaotic place and reservations are usually required in the evening. It’s not for everyone; I recommended it to an acquaintance who brought a group of guests there and he hated it.

Čestr
Like Lokál, this place is run by the successful and well-managed Ambiente Group. The restaurant is all about the meat, with a particular focus on beef. Then even have whole sides of cows in a windowed fridge. There are a wide variety of steaks, cooked a wide variety of ways, all from Czech beef. It’s not as good as South American cuts, but still pretty good. They also have tank Pilsner.

Kolkovna, Celnice, Olympia, Demínka, Kulaťák, Bredovský dvůr
These are all Pilsner Urquell Original Restaurant franchises. Yes, menus can vary slightly among these restaurants, but they pretty much look the same with brass fittings and brown furniture. I never found them to be exceptional, but I’ve also had some decent meals.

Café Mistral
This is perhaps the least typical of Czech restaurants, but it is one of my favorite spots for a good, relatively inexpensive meal in the center. Yes, they do some more international dishes like pumpkin and ginger soup. But they also do beef tartare, grilled duck breast, and schnitzels. They also have svíčková na smetaně, but I don’t recommend it here. I found it too sweet.

Budvarka
I didn’t really like the food here. But I would recommend it for one reason: I think their Budvar kroužkovaný ležák or yeast beer is delicious. I love its clean, crispy flavor and its lovely, delicate carbonation.

La Degustation Bohême Bourgeoise
Probably the most expensive Czech restaurant on the planet. And yet everyone who’s eaten there says it is worth it and many feel it deserves a Michelin star. In my dreams, a wealthy cougar will wine and dine me there.

U Medvídků
I know a few people swear by this place for good, classic Czech food, decent prices for the center, and usually, but not always good service. They pull in a lot of tourists so it can get hectic. You can drink Czech Budweiser there (no relation to the American version), but the real highlight is the production from their microbrewery. I like the Old Gott Barique. Watch out for the X Beer 33 – it is 12.6% alcohol.

Plzeňská restaurace v Obecním domě
You don’t hear much about this restaurant, but I asked around and found a few people who have eaten there and they liked the food. The prices are definitely on the high side for basic Czech fare like goulash, pork medallions, and duck. But the main reason I put it on my list is I think it is one of the more unique-looking and historic Czech restaurants in the city. That’s because it is in the basement of Obecní dům or Municipal House and the style is in keeping with the Art Nouveau grandeur of the rest of the building.

Café Louvre
Speaking of history, this restaurant has it up to the rafters. It was a favorite hang for Franz Kafka, Albert Einstein, and Karel Čapek. The dining rooms have also been nicely restored to capture the atmosphere of the early 20th century. The food can be basic to quite good, the prices are quite low, they do breakfast, lunch and dinner, you can shoot pool, spot Czech celebrities, journalists, and politicians, and the hot chocolate and desserts are amazing. This is one of my favorites.

Perpetuum - Prague Duck Restaurant (*CLOSED)
Czechs are usually great with duck, and my favorite place to find this fowl is at Perpetuum. These birds have style and their menu features a good number of creative cooking variations. There’s duck ragout, duck-stuffed crepes, duck stuffed with apple, drake with foie gras, soufflé, and blueberry foam. I feel like Bubba in “Forrest Gump” but with duck. I could go on and on. I haven’t tried all these preparations, but the last time I went, everyone loved it. (This restaurant closed in 2012)

Café Savoy
This great-looking and popular restaurant does a number of international dishes, but they also have my favorite versions of some Czech cuisine. First, I love their ham and cheese omelet made with beautiful chunks of real, top-quality Prague Ham. Second, I think the make the best řízek or schnitzel in town, either with veal or pork. I also like the little silver-domed dish with homemade cranberry compote. And if you eat there, don’t forget to look up and check out the beautiful ceiling.

Café Imperial
This restaurant is run by one of the country’s most famous TV chefs, Zdeněk Pohlreich. While I loved his other restaurant, Divins Wine Bar, I was never greatly impressed by the Czech menu at Imperial. I’ve heard others say nice things, so maybe I had bad luck during my visits. But I do think it is one of the most stylish and interesting dining rooms in the city. The tall walls and high ceilings are completely covered with Art Nouveau ceramic tiles and mosaics dating back to the Imperial Hotel's construction in 1914. Pretty spectacular.

U Vejvodů
U Vejvodů is usually packed, with crowds of tourists mixing in with locals. The Pilsner Urquell can be great and the beer price is decent for the center. It's a big, interesting-looking place. They cook the classic Czech menu, not always well. But check out many online reviews and read story after story about rude service, charges for the dry pretzels left on tables if you are uninformed and bite one, and waiters not returning returning change or tacking 15 to 20 percent service charges on bills. My overall impression from my last chaotic and smoky visit was of eating barely adequate Czech food in a big, busy, bus station.

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The Burgers of Prague

I try to do a fresh burger survey every year -- here's a newer one.

"Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely." Auguste Rodin

Where can you experience the best hamburger in Prague? A juicy question. But perhaps a waste of time.

The question, I mean.

Who can seriously answer that? A lot of good burgers are served up in this town. But who has tried them all?

The Prague Post has had an article the past couple of years on Prague's best burgers. I had sampled the offerings at a few of the places mentioned. But so many good burgers were not included in that competition.

So, I have my own list.

What follows are not necessarily the best burgers of Prague. I will not even say the list is objective.

It is, in fact, only a list of all the hamburgers I've eaten over the last year. I've put them in the order that I like them:

Czech Inn Hostel: (NOTE: Unfortunately, the Czech Inn has stopped serving burgers) Call me crazy. Call me unconventional. I put this one at the top. This home-style hamburger is the one your mother would make (if she made really good hamburgers).

It was not flashy. It was not gourmet. It was just right and hit the spot. The patty is large, a little crumbly, like Mom's, with just the right amount of fat and salt. The bun is big, dusted with flour, and doesn't fall apart.

It came with lettuce, tomatoes, and a square of melted American-style cheese. There was no bacon. A fried egg on top was an option. It came with a hefty amount of fries and mayonnaise on side for 150 CZK.

My only quibbles? The Heinz ketchup was served in large packets instead of a bottle. And on one visit, the fries were not cooked in the freshest oil.

The Czech Inn is an upscale hostel, a few tram stops outside the center. Its pub has a very nice look, with great, artistic plaster work on the walls and ceilings.

There is also an English-language trivia/quiz night every Monday at 8pm. Big fun.

Potrafena Husa on Vinohradska: This hamburger was close to perfect. The high-quality meat had a great smoky flavor from the grill.

It had bacon, cheese, lettuce, tomato, and onion. All the toppings are thoughtfully cut to fit under the bun. You rarely see this kind of attention to detail.

The bun was very good bread and toasted. The fries were great.

I had only small issues with this burger. One was that the ground beef was actually too lean. It was on the dry side after cooking.

Because of this, I order it rare, but it always comes at least medium.

Then, there's the price. It is now 312 CZK, up from 290 CZK when I last wrote about. Ouch!

The cost does take some of the pleasure out of it for me.

This place, which serves Czech and American-style dishes, is often full of Czech urban professionals and expats. It appears they are willing to pay any price.

Fraktal: This burger is a favorite of many, and it has been one of mine. The burger patty itself was thick, round, and nicely charred on the outside.

The ground beef sat on a sturdy, poppy and sesame seed roll. There was generous amounts of bacon and cheese.

The burger came with lettuce, red onion, sliced sweet pickles, a mayo-based sauce, and a side of fries and mustard. I also got a bottle of Heinz ketchup.

I had the small, 125 gram version for 175 CZK. The larger 200 gram version was 195 CZK.

Small criticisms here: the tomatoes were sliced wedges -- not exactly the best shape if you want to throw them on the burger. The fries were large and good, but needed salt.

The dark, subterranean space is not my favorite place for a meal. The floor often smells of beer and it can fill with cigarette smoke.

I do like to sit at one of the few tables outside in the summer, if one is available.

El Barrio de Ángel: I'd give this burger the award for the best ground beef. It traveled all the way from Argentina. There was a wonderful flavor, made even more delicious by flame grilling.

The patty was well-seasoned, with a perfect amount of salt. The low fat content makes it very dense and even a bit dry in the middle, like Potrefena Husa's.

Still, juices dripped on the plate -- the chef brushes the burger a lot on the grill.

It came out with lettuce, tomato, onion, and mayo already on it. It was well-constructed.

My Argentine friend, Max, the Beer Philosopher, told me that this is the standard way burgers are served in his country. I'm not a big mayo-on-the-burger fan so I wished I'd had some choice in the matter.

Fries came on a separate plate. The cost is 149 CZK, which seems fair, considering the quality.

The biggest problem was the bun. Although nicely toasted, it was a flaky little thing that was dwarfed by the big, thick patty.


It appeared to come from a supermarket. It fell apart. This fine beef deserved better.

Ultramarin: I'm glad I went back to try this burger again recently.

It also had bad bun issues only a few months ago. But it has gotten an upgrade and moved higher on my list.

They call it the "Elvis King burger." It came with Irish bacon, sweet onion jam, fried onion, and a grilled mushroom cap. I really liked the onions.

The burger was served with housemade french fries with the skins on. They were very greasy and cooked to an orange-brown color. I liked them, despite the large amount of excess oil.

Mayo came on the side, and bottled Heinz ketchup was also available.

It costs 220 CZK. That's up from 175 CZK when I had it with the bad bun in November 2007.

Cafe Bar Wigwam: This is the hamburger I eat most often. I am a regular at this place.

The "Classic Burger" is usually nothing too special. It has a bad, supermarket bun. They use decent beef, usually cooked to well-done.

There's lettuce, tomato, good bacon, red onions, melted cheese, and tons of mayo on top.

What do I like about this one? It is 115 CZK with fries included. The best bargain of the bunch.

There is also a strangely endearing aspect to this hamburger, at least for me. It seems it is never made the same way twice, week after week.

The shape and size of the patty is always changing. Sometimes it is a wide and flat. Sometimes it is a small lump. The toppings vary from time to time.

It's never great, and only rarely bad. These weekly changes keep me from getting bored with it.

Mozaika: I know this burger is much loved, and this is one of my favorite restaurants.

Still, I really haven't loved the Mozaika burger. It was the least conventional, but I didn't downgrade it for that reason.

It came on a big, spinach bread bun, with baked mushrooms, sweet onions, mayo, tomatoes, and lettuce.

The beef patty was quite large. It is heavily seasoned and very good. However, the toppings just didn't work for me.

Both times, I've had it, they mixed together into something of a mess inside the bun. They fell out of the bottom after a few bites.

It was very messy and hard to eat with your hands. The bread itself didn't hold together so well, either.

It came with fries or a small salad and goes for 199 CZK.

Hergetova Cihelna: This was the most expensive hamburger I've eaten in Prague.

In summer, you might consider that you are paying for the view of the Charles Bridge from the terrace. In the winter, you're just paying for the burger.

The beef patty was big and char-grilled. On the side were pickles, onions, tomatoes, coleslaw, ketchup, and mayo. The sesame seed bun was big, and perfectly toasted. The bacon was great. The fries were thick and crunchy.

But.

The tomatoes were cut into awkward-sized chunks rather than slices. The slaw had way too much mayo. The meat was very fatty, and had an odd, rubbery quality.

It tasted good, but the texture bothered me.

And I was really bothered by the price: 395 CZK. Wow! I won't be doing that again.

T.G.I.Friday's: If you want a real American-style hamburger, what better place than an American restaurant chain? Well, to be honest, there are better places.

I had the WORLD FAMOUS FRIDAY'S® BURGER. I went for the smaller 150 gram version for 160 CZK. The larger 250 gram burger is 210 CZK. Neither come with any side item like french fries.

The large, thin patty had a nice, but familiar flame-broiled flavor. It came on a large, sesame seed bun, pre-loaded with great, thick bacon, American cheese, lettuce, pickles, tomato, and onion.

After a few bites, I realized why the flavor was familiar. It tasted almost exactly like Burger King's Whopper. I do like Whoppers, But if I want one, I'd rather go to BK and pay less (there's a rumor they are coming to Prague).


The only difference between the two in my mind was that the WFFB had better bacon and didn't come with mayo like BK's.

The faults of the Friday's burger? Too much melted cheese that overwhelmed at times. Also a bun that was big enough, but was too soft and barely held together.

I had it with onion rings for 35 CZK, which were almost completely flavorless. I loved their chocolate milkshake, but it was 85 CZK.

One other thing worth mentioning. I would never go to the T.G.I. Friday's on Na Příkopě, only to the one at Anděl. The prices are drastically different.


At Na Příkopě, there was only burger size on the menu (they didn't give the weight), and it went for 290 CZK. The ribs are 380 CZK there, but only 240 CZK at Anděl (though 50 grams less).

U Dědka: There was nothing very wrong with the hamburger at U Dedka. It was just my least favorite.

The meat was a big, round lump with melted cheese and bacon on top.

The burger came with toppings on the side: sliced, white onions, pickles, jalapenos, lettuce, annoying tomato wedges, liquidy coleslaw, mayo, and ketchup.

The ground beef ball was too rare for me.

Also, the meat had a very distinctive and different taste. I really couldn't make out what kind of seasoning was the source of this flavor (or if it was definitely from a seasoning). I didn't like it. Also, the bun was not toasted.

It was 140 CZK, but unlike many of the others, it did not come with fries.

And those are all I've tried. And not a single McBurger in the past year (though I did have a fine Angry Whopper in Munich).

Since some of these hamburgers were eaten many months ago, I must mention this caveat: There may have been changes since my visit.

If you know of some good burgers or would rank them differently, I'd love to see your Burgers of Prague list.

And some day, I'd like to take a look at the Burghers of Calais.

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My Favorite Things

Marty DiBergi: Why don't you just make ten louder and make ten be the top number and make that a little louder?
Nigel Tufnel: [pause] These go to eleven.

"This is Spinal Tap"

I was in a reflective state of mind today, and I started thinking about my all-time favorite food and drink in Prague. And the thoughts put me in a good mood.

So I thought I'd share.

I wasn't thinking about specific restaurants or bars. Often, it is one specific dish or drink that makes me feel good and makes me return, whether everything else is good or not.

Here are my top ten favorites with just a little bit something extra. This list goes to eleven:

1. Risotto alla pescatora at Kogo at Slovansky Dum.

As someone who craves variety, I am always surprised how much I love this dish and how often I order it. The seafood is always fresh and plentiful. Shellfish galore. There is tomato, wine, and plenty of garlic. I love the leafy parsley thrown in the mix. I always think I'll make myself order something different at this restaurant, but I rarely do.

2. Entrecote at Cafe Savoy.*

The cut of beef is usually good, but not that special. It is not so large. But the demi-glace that comes with it is a rich, smile-inducing treat. The fried string onions on top soak up more of the sauce only add to the feeling of decadence. And I order a side of fries to go with it to clean up any sauce that remains. None ever does.

* Update -- I'm sorry to say that this version of this dish is no longer on the menu. They still do an entrecote, but it is done with herb butter and grilled vegetables. It is nice, but without the demi-glace, it doesn't do it for me anymore.

3. Nasi goreng at Zahrada v opeře (Garden in the Opera).

The Indonesian rice, seafood, and chicken combine into a wonderful melange of flavors. But it is dominated by finely chopped Kaffir lime leaf. This is among my favorite seasonings in the world. It comes with lime wedges for squeezing, so it has a pleasant tartness, and there are chopped, relatively mild red chilies for a little kick. It is up to you how much you want to mix in.

4. Hot chocolate at Cafe Louvre.

The inspiration for this post. The drink is thick, rich, and almost pudding-like. It comes in relatively small cups that always leaving me wanting more. So today, I ordered two at once to go with my club sandwich. I enjoyed the second cup even more than the first.

5. Steak sandwich at Rocky O'Reilly's.

It ain't cheap these days, and I don't want to go when a big game is on TV, but this sandwich is close to perfect for me. They use very good quality steak. It comes on a long, crunchy-toasted, buttered roll. There are fried onions and mushrooms. And no cheese. Some may miss this, but I don't. I sometimes throw a little sweet Soja sauce or ketchup on top.

6. Carolina wings and ribs at Ambiente on Manesova.

These wings are delicious on their own, with crispy-sweet skin. But then you add the fantastic mango chili sauce that comes with them and they go to a whole new level for me. It's sweet and spicy and I love it. I could drink that sauce straight. The ribs have never been dry and the meat is easy to pull from the bone so you can dip it in the sauce. The best ribs in Prague, I'd say. There is an all-you-can-eat option, but I've never gone that far.

7. Bacon cheeseburger at Potrefena Husa on Vinohradska.

Maybe the best burger in Prague. It has a great, smoky-grilled flavor, good bun, and very well constructed. The only failure is that the high-quality beef they use isn't fatty enough and it can be dry, especially because they tend to overcook them. Not cheap, but the place I go when I need some comfort food.

8. Chocolate gelato cone at Cremeria Milano.

An intense chocolate experience. Better than all but a few fancy restaurant desserts I've had in my life. Made with Cream & Dream gelato, which can be found at a number of other places around Prague. I associate it with Cremeria Milano because that's the first place I tried it.

9. Mojito at La Bodeguita del Medio.

This "European" mojito comes in a big glass filled with crushed ice. Sure, this drink has become a cliche and the most-ordered concoction (a bartender told me), but there is a reason. Many bars are often in a hurry to make this work-intensive drink, and La Bodeguita is no exception. But more often than not, they get they combination of lime juice, mint, rum, brown sugar, and soda water just right. I used to sit at the bar and have one while snacking on a goat cheese and spinach salad, but I must admit it's been too crowded for me lately.

10. Complimentary green salad at Hanil.

The sushi is OK, nothing too special, but reasonably priced for Prague. But one of the things I most look forward to at this Japanese/Korean restaurant is the very simple green salad they serve all diners at the start of a meal. It has a soy vinegar dressing that, yes, I did once drink from the bowl when the lettuce was all gone. I love it that much. The waiter told me the secret ingredient, but if you want to know, you have to ask yourself.

11. Brownie at Passion Chocolat.

Actually a soft cookie made with high-quality chocolate, nuts, and candied orange. I eat a few of these every week. Yes, there are three entries on this list that involve chocolate, one of the great loves of my life.

But these are just my tastes. And on a different day, I might make a different list. In fact, I'm sure I would.

So how about you? Crisp apple streudels? Schnitzel with noodles? What are a few of your favorites things?

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The Palladium Mall

"I want to explore the world. I want to watch TV in a different time zone. I want to visit strange, exotic malls. I want to live, Marge! Won't you let me live?"

-Homer Simpson

A strange, exotic mall has opened in the center of Prague.The Palladium mall is certainly big. It is certainly an eye-popping architectural expression of modern design, a vast amalgam of concrete, escalators, and glass.People will argue about whether this is a great addition to the Czech capital. Or a tragedy.

Does Prague need more H&Ms, C&As, and Marks & Spencers? That's a debate for another time and place.

I'm here to talk about food and drink.

So, after you walk into the Palladium, hop on one of those escalators. And then another one. And then another one.

And they are not all next to each other, so you have to do some walking. Past some shops, of course.

The top floor of the Palladium is where you will find the restaurants and most of the food. I hesitate to call it a food court.

The Palladium website calls it "Patro Gurmán," meaning Gourmet Floor.

For the most part, these are not fast-food places. In fact, you will have a hard time finding a cheap meal at this high altitude.

There are mostly a lot of sit-down restaurants with ambitious aspirations. And at many, you will pay fancy, sit-down restaurant prices. I saw more than a few main courses in the 300 CZK range and full meals at many restaurants could easily hit the 500 CZK mark.

Here's an exhaustive and exhausting tour of what you will find.

At the top of the escalator is Tretter's Cafe. This is an outpost of the trendy and expensive Old Town cocktail bar.
This Tretter's is for people who have graduated from the original bar's pickup scene. There is actually a small play area for children.

If drinks and coffee at Tretter's feel too upmarket for you, then head over to Harley's Cafe Bar.This is a miniature, mall version of the subterranean den of late-night drunken dancing on Dlouhá. But something tells me they will be serving more cappuccinos than caipirnhas. And I believe they'll have much less dancing.

There is another place for coffee and cakes called Daylong Cafe. At the back, it has a disco, but I walked by once in the evening, and it was packed with teenagers.The main decorative features here seem to be blue lighting and crudely cut sticks lined up around the cafe.

There is a fancy buffet restaurant called Taste the World.

It has a salad bar where you can serve yourself, a grill station, a pasta station, a bread station, and a dessert station.

The salad bar had a lot of different offerings, not just basic stuff, and wasn't too expensive. But I wouldn't eat it. I know they've just opened, but the lettuce and rucola was sadly wilted when I was there.

The grill station offered a pork steak for 199 CZK and included potatoes or grilled vegetables. A beef steak was 249 CZK. The dessert station said the sweets were "homemade." In a mall? Seemed like they were playing a little fast and loose with the term. All the cakes looked a little too uniform and perfect.

Anyway, you throw in a dessert and a drink here, along with your grilled meat, you are looking at a pretty substantial tab.

There always seemed to be big lines at a place called L.A. Finger Food. This was probably because it is one of the cheapest outlets, making a variety of fried items, sandwiches, and wraps.The line at the counter was also probably a result of the fact that only one or two people seemed be putting together the food for everyone.

A little further along, there is a Mediterranean restaurant called Uno.I had a brief look at the menu. It was a fairly short document, and not too much jumped out at me.

There is an Indian restaurant called Chanchala.It is fairly small inside, but like many places, there is more seating out in front amid the crowds.

Amid white, hanging curtains is a restaurant called El Emir, which serves Middle Eastern cuisine.Lamb is a specialty here. So are some fairy high prices, with some over 300 CZK . But there are a few sandwich/wraps that are more affordable.

An Italian place called La Piazzetta looked quite popular.Most of the menu is devoted to pizza, but there are also a few pasta dishes and other Italian basic choices.

There is an Uruguayan steak house called Las Ruinas. The restaurant looks like something you might find at Disneyland.Angry, stone-faced gods stare down from the walls, demanding that you eat your meat.

The steak prices don't look too crazy at first, especially for imported beef. But I noticed that almost everything from the sides to the sauces have to be ordered separately, and they are not cheap.

A full meal will cost you mucho dinero.

Las Ruinas may also have some potential competition nearby. There is an Angus Burger-Angus Grillhouse just a few meters away.

Despite the name, this appears to be a Czech owned and operated establishment. The website links to a Pension - Angus Farm and Steakhouse in Nepomuk and the Aberdeen Angus Steakhouse in Plzeň.

For seafood, you can drop in on Nordsee. I noticed a wider variety of offerings than I'd seen at the Nordsee at Flora mall.Many items here are sold by weight, so it is another place where things can get expensive fast. V saw a man with a small tray of food pay 500 CZK. I saw a plate of lobster tails that cost much more than that.

The Asian restaurant Makakiko was quite popular. I'd attribute this the fact that it offers a fair number of Thai, Japanese, and Chinese style meals for 100-200 CZK.There are dishes like chicken teriyaki, red curry chicken with coconut milk, and fried rice or noodles.

There is also sushi. A single piece of salmon nigiri is 55 CZK. There is not a wide selection.

I tried a couple of hot main courses. It was decent food, but nothing too special. Just know that the take-away box they gave me was leaky.

If you decide to eat in, there is a quite a view from Makakiko's mall-side tables.I ate there once already. The service was frustratingly slow. I discovered that one reason for this was that my food was freshly prepared. So, I relaxed a bit. However, getting the bill was an ordeal.

There is an eye-catching conveyor belt sending hot and cold items around the restaurant. It is 298 CZK for all you can eat at lunch, 398 CZK for dinner.

You cannot eat a la carte from here, which confused at least one person I saw. I looked carefully at the various items on the belt and, honestly, it didn't look worth it to me.

If all these international choices get your head spinning, and you don't know where you are anymore, Kasárna might remind you. This restaurant and pub serves actual Czech food.There are classic dishes like pork knee (koleno), and the prices are a bit more reasonable than other restaurants in the mall. They serve Staropramen, Stella Artois, and Hoegaarden.

But there is more to the food and drink at the Palladium than just the top level. If you are having a caffeine withdrawal crisis, a cup of coffee will always be a few steps away. There is Fashion Cafe, Face Cafe, and Taboo Cafe.

The only one that mildly interested me was the Yessi Cafe.This is a mini version of a place with the same name just down the street on V Celnici.I like that place because it has sandwiches made-to-order with lots of really nice ingredients to choose from. The one in the mall has some decent looking sandwiches, but no made-to-order option. Too bad.

There are a few places worth noting at the very bottom level of the mall.

Au Gourmand is a French bakery and pastry shop that is connected to the place with the same name on Dlouhá.There were lots of nice looking cakes, croissants, quiches, salads, and sandwiches.I'd say this would be a favorite place to go, except the prices are pretty steep. I lusted after a piece of Black Forest cake, but the 98 CZK price tag put me off.I did notice later that the cake is the same price at the Dlouhá shop. For comparison, a slice of fancy cake at the Half & Half shop on Wenceslas Square goes for 60-70 CZK.

There is small a wine and spirits shop. The limited selection of wines tended to be on the expensive side.What caught my attention here was the large selection of single malt scotch whiskeys that took up one whole wall. There were several varieties of Macallan, Lagavulin, Talisker, and Glenmorangie, just to name just a few.

Fresh fish are not the easiest commodity to find in Prague, and I saw a pretty nice-looking fishmonger in the Palladium's bottom floorIt's called Seafood Shop. The fish I saw there were very clear-eyed, indicating freshness. There were also clams, mussels, and a variety of oysters. Some were 60 CZK each.The shop was also selling meats like a whole rack of lamb.

For somewhat more pedestrian tastes, there is Centrum Delikates.Here, you'll find your hams, salamis, sausages, salads, cheese, chlebíčky, which are Czech open-faced sandwiches.

Finally, there is an Albert supermarket on this level. Albert is not my favorite chain in the city, but it will do in a pinch if I need to pick up some basics.

When you are all done shopping, you can easily jump on the metro to get home. The Náměstí Republiky metro station for the B Line is right under the mall. Plenty of trams stop nearby

But I figure a few people who eat at the Palladium will have their driver fetch them out front with the limo.

The Gulfstream V and exotic malls await.

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