Argument Restaurant-Cafe

"I argue very well. Ask any of my remaining friends." Dave Barry

What made me want to try Argument?

Two things: I liked the name, and I heard they had really nice lamb chops. Sometimes, that's all it takes.

We went for an early dinner.The restaurant was only about a five minute walk from the Hradčanská metro station.

The interior reminded me of my grandmother's place. That was actually a good thing.My grandmother was a very stylish, Dutch-born woman, who surrounded herself with modern art, bright colors, and clean lines.

The banquettes looked just like my Oma's couches. She liked orange chairs, too, but maybe that's a Dutch thing.I felt very at home in this restaurant. That's said, this style can be polarizing. V thought the fabrics were too bright and rough.

The waitress brought out bread. They charge 20 CZK for that. It was cold baguette slices, no butter or olive oil.

For a starter, I had the tuna tartare (160 CZK). It was shaped into a cube and was a generous amount for the price.There were bits of avocado mixed in, but unfortunately, they were not ripe. The tuna itself was fairly salty and didn't need the extra soy sauce on the side.

I didn't like it so much at the beginning. But then I discovered that the rucola underneath had a very sweet dressing. When the salad and tuna were combined on the fork, the flavor balanced out, and I enjoyed it.

V had the Burgundy snails (135 CZK). Six of them were covered with plenty of butter and garlic.The snails themselves were OK, but didn't impress. They had more of that garden flavor than those you'd find at Cafe Savoy, her favorite snail source.

I had a .3 liter glass of Pilsner Urquell (38 CZK each).V had a couple of Mattoni mineral waters (35 CZK) and a shot of Jägermeister (55 CZK).

Yeah, I thought it was an odd choice, but she said she had a taste for it. To me, it tastes like medicine.

For a main course, I gave V the honor of ordering the lamb chops in a honey crust (355 CZK). They were all I'd hoped and dreamed.There were two double chops and one triple on the plate. They were cooked perfectly as requested, medium rare. They were oh so tender.

The delicate lamb sat on a lovely sauce that tasted of plums and wine, but we weren't exactly sure of its composition. We wished there was more sauce. We wiped the plate clean.

There was also rucola with cherry tomatoes. Even the crust was just right.I can easily imagine a big name restaurant in the center charging double the price.

I was in the mood for a steak. The menu has them divided by tenderloin versions, called svíčková, or a more ordinary cut called roštěná.

I went for the beef tenderloin, topped with bacon, and a thyme demi-glace. (360 CZK).There was grilled corn on the side.

I got a separate order of fries to go with it (45 CZK).I asked for some ketchup and was surprised when they told me they had none in the restaurant.

I was even more surprised when I tasted the house-made frites and discovered they were the best I'd had in a long time. They were terrific all by themselves, which is pretty rare in my book.

However, the steak itself was disappointing. It wasn't bad, just very unremarkable. It wasn't tough, but not too tender. They did cook it to my requested medium-rare.There was no stand out flavor. The demi-glace was dominated by too much salt, with the other flavors hiding too far in the background.

I'm sorry to invoke Cafe Savoy again, but they used to do a demi-glace for their entrecote that inspired love in my heart. They don't make it anymore, and this one didn't come close to requiting that lost love.

The bacon on top was a total disaster. I'm not sure how they cooked it, but it had the consistency of plastic. It was like eating a smoked credit card.

On the plus side, the grilled corn was good. We enjoyed passing it back and forth to nibble on the niblets.

We ordered the chocolate fondant for dessert (95 CZK).It was pretty average and could have used a more intense chocolate.

Don't get me wrong -- even an average fondant is still enjoyable for me. But it didn't impress like the one at Buddha Bar or Maze (R.I.P.).

I should add that the menu says it comes with ice cream, the receipt mentions ice cream, but when you examine the photo, you will not see ice cream. We weren't in a complaining mood, so we let it slide.

The bill came to 1371 CZK. Not a cheap dinner. And for that money, I wouldn't go out of my way to go back for most of it.

However, I'm the type of person who can fall in love with one dish, become obsessed with it, and have to go back just for that.

And that's what those little lamb chops have done to me.

I'd argue, as I often do about restaurants, that Argument is worth trying just for those alone.

I'd even recommend them to my remaining friends.

Argument Restaurant-Cafe
Bubenečská 19
Prague 6
Tel. (+420) 220 510 427

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Sami Grill

"I shall make that trip. I shall go to Korea." Dwight Eisenhower

I've never been to Korea. I've rarely even eaten Korean food. One of the few times was at Hanil in Prague, which we usually go to for sushi.

So I barely know kimchi from bibimbap.

Still, I was intrigued when I saw that Sami Grill opened up in the Vinohrady space formerly occupied by the Thai restaurant, Tiger Tiger.The interior was changed with new lighting and a white and light green color scheme. It was too bright for us.They have special tables with built-in gas grills imported from Korea.

There was another unique feature. The tables have buttons you can push to call the waitress. Push it and you hear an electronic "ding-dong" in the other room.We had two half-liters of Krušovice (40 CZK each) and a .33 liter bottle of Mattoni mineral water (40 CZK).The menu had no real appetizer section to speak of so we went straight to the main event.

We really wanted to try out the grill. I took a peek under the protective stainless steel cover.There were a few pieces of charcoal, with flames fueled by a built-in gas can with a control knob.

V asked for the duck, but was told it was not available. She didn't want the pork, so she ended up ordering the pricey grilled rib eye (390 CZK).

The unmarinated meat was well-marbled. The waitress cooked it on the grill along with mushrooms, onions, and garlic.It was a somewhat awkward procedure.

We were given side dishes. There was a dish with bean sprouts, kimchi, another kind of pickled cabbage, and a little seaweed salad.There was another little dish with sesame oil and a very salty soy sauce-flavored paste.And there was a salad with a lot of onions and what tasted like a rice vinegar dressing. The waitress said there was wasabi in it, but I didn't really taste it.The beef itself? I'd be hard-pressed to identify it as rib eye in a taste test. It wasn't tough, but it wasn't rib eye tender, either.

The flavor was pretty unremarkable. Disappointing. I dipped it in the salty soy sauce paste or the sesame oil to keep it interesting. The vegetables were only lightly fried and had nothing special going on.

When they said it was grilled over charcoal, I was really looking forward to that smoky taste. It wasn't there.

When the food was removed later, I saw that the charcoal under the grill had barely burned at all. The food was mostly cooked by the gas flame and the heated ceramic blocks.

I ordered the bulgogi (280 CZK), which a table next to us recommended. I had, in fact, heard of this dish before. I have a friend from L.A. who has spoken of his love for it.

It was brought to the table raw.There were onions, carrots, mushrooms, and sesame seeds mixed in with marinated beef.

The waitress/chef threw it all into the wok at the table and fried it up. The beef was not the highest quality, but it was pounded hard and shredded to the point that it achieved a certain tenderness.It tasted pretty good, but perhaps it was a little too sweet. As I was eating and thinking this, I realized it would have been much better with rice. It did not come with any, and none was suggested.

Halfway through. I ordered a side of rice (35 CZK), and it really helped. However, it brought the price of this course up to 315 CZK, which was really more than I thought it was worth.

Whether it was a good iteration of this dish, I don't know. I have nothing to compare it to. Perhaps a Korean foodie can say. It was nice, but didn't excite me enough that I'd dreaming of having it again.

The service was friendly, but chaotic. The waitress/chefs were moving in and out of the rooms, alternately stirring the food in a wok, clearing plates from another table, running out, coming back, taking an order, and then stirring some more.

The cooking was not getting the attention it deserved. I also had trouble getting clear descriptions of the food from the waitresses.

There was also a humorous moment.

A couple in the same small room as us didn't like the bright lighting, either. They realized they were sitting next to the dimmer switch and turned it down to a more romantic level.

They looked over at us, wondering if it was OK, and we encouraged them to leave it low.

We all had a little laugh.

A short while later, the waitress came in, took care of some things, and walking by the dimmer on her way out, pushed the lighting all the way back up again.

We all had a big laugh.

Our final bill was 825 CZK without tip.

They bring some complimentary pealed apple slices with it.

One could certainly eat more cheaply by avoiding the rib eye (which I would).

But it wasn't so cheap for basically two courses, a couple of beers, and a water.

There are several other places that combine Japanese and Korean cuisine. A real Korean food expert will have to tell you how Sami Grill compares.

The Prague Post critic brought one for a meal there, and the review had a more positive perspective on the place.

We were on our own. I can relate our experience as Korean food novices.

Sami Grill wasn't bad, but nothing special for us.

I shall probably not make that trip again.

Sami Grill
Anny Letenské 5
Prague 2
Tel. (+420) 222 524 666

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Cheesy

"The early bird gets the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese."

My father was born in Amsterdam, so I have an inbred need for cheese.

Quality cheese. The kind you won't find at Tesco.

Getting the good stuff recently got a little easier for us since a Cheesy shop opened up near Náměstí Míru.V's known about it for a few months and took me the other day.

It's a little hard to find because the place is not well-marked. It's at Jugoslávská 23. This Cheesy is connected to the shop of the same name at Letenské náměstí 6 in Prague 6.

The Anglická location is also a relatively small place, with big wheels along the wall.A lot of it is Dutch. There was also Italian, Swiss, Spanish, and Balkan.Some of it is well-aged. If you are interested, the shop assistant might offer you a sample.

There were display cases full of cheeses blended with herbs and spices.We tried a cilantro-flavored cheese that was quite good. There was also a very green pesto cheese that V liked and I did not.

There were a number of goat cheeses. They even have goat and sheep yogurt.Cheesy was selling a variety of Trappist beers, but be warned - it wasn't cheap. Some .375 liter bottles were around 90 CZK. There were a few in larger bottles that are 150-230 CZK.They also had fruit flavored beer. We bought a bottle of cherry for a friend who likes it.

They also have a French wines from Gérard Depardieu and Pierre Richard.Anyway, I just thought I'd share the find with the cheese lovers out there who didn't yet know about the addition to the neighborhood.

I thought about finishing with some kind of contrived joke about the all second mice out there who should check it out.

But in the end, I decided against it.

I hate that kind of cheese.

Cheesy
Jugoslávská 23
Prague 2
Mon-Fri 0900-2000
Sat 1000-1500
Closed Sunday

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