The best of Otto’s rambles around Prague in the Czech Republic, birthplace of lager. So were to start, when so much has already been written? You can get a 3 day ticket for around £6 which gives you unlimited travel within a 20 mile radius of the city, on all forms of transport, trams are the only way to travel they are every 10 minutes from 4am to 12pm and even then there is a night service. Beware Taxis in Prague they will rip you off! Big style!
The Jewish quarter is a good place to visit for 300Kc you get to go into the old grave yard, 3 Synagogues, a museum and a new exhibition about the persecution of the Jews by the Nazis with actual people telling their story on file and audio.
Charles Bridge is good, but very crowded. The castle is a good day out and if you walk back down through the town you can find some really good bars. The old square is very nice, it has an astronomical clock and a really gothic church, its best not to eat and drink in these areas as they are a tad more expensive, but still very cheap compared to the UK, yet not the same as going into the back streets or on the outskirts of town.
There a now 5 brew pubs in Prague. Eat and have a beer at the Pivovarský Dum, Jecná a brewpub just out of town.this is a must do micro. Starters and main meal for 4 + beer for the night was only £28.00, a bargain.They serve a fantastic tmavé (dark) and svétlé (light) plus a wheat and sometimes a seasonal, plus other stuff such as cherry, coffee, banana Stick to the basic beers, plus the food. If in a group get a beer bong a 4 litre tube of beer on a copper brew kettle!
We also found Pivovarsky Klub, Kriizikova 17, Karlin apporx 300 yards from Florenc Metro station very good. It’s a sister pub to Pivovarsky Dum it serves two of its own draught beers plus four guest micro beers and has a selection of over 200 bottle beers with over 150 from Czech Republic, good food and in my opinion better than Pivivarsky Dum !
If you are visiting the castle why not go upto the Klasterni Pivovar,first. To get there, take the 22 or 23 tram from Malostranská, that go, up the fantastic hairpin bends of Chotkova past the castle, and alight just before the monastery on Keplerova. Walk straight ahead following the tram, cross the main road, and then walk up the small lane that heads uphill to the right. At the top, turn left through the large arched gates in front of you into Strahovské nádvori, The standard beer is a dark 14° which is average to good. There is also usually a special on. Good food is served here, and you get to visit the monastery in the same trip, then walk back to the castle. 3 for 1 good value.
Another must do visit is U Fleku, on Kremencova. , Famous as the world's oldest brewpub? ,Catch it when it's quiet, early evening and you can enjoy the single dark 13 degree beer which is excellent. There is also a beer museum at the back, beware the shorts that the waiters try to force on you, and cost the earth. Stick to the beer.
Novomestský Pivovara, Vodickova 20. The entrance is pretty hard to spot it's down a shopping arcade-like strange passage. The place is geared to food. Mind you don't get lost, it's like a warren. The 2 beers, pale and dark, are flowery and malty.
There is a new beer museum in the U Medvidku pub which is the Budvar tap in the city selling both light and dark beers.. The museum is housed in the pub's former brewery buildings, and among the many exhibits is a working micro brewery The beer produced is available in the upstairs bar, and is call OldGott it is a semi-dark 5% beer You can also get a room here for 35k a night. They also have a shop in the basement selling all types of beer related stuff from Czech republic.
Another pub of note is the Marquis De Sade on Templova 8, this microbrew and music pub, does microbrew beer tastings at 14:00 and 17:00. To be honest it is better to do it yourself. They have approx 8 different lagers on draft, including Herold dark. Also on offer in their shop is a vast amount of bottles. Worth a visit if you are in the area. A tad expensive.
A new find on this my second visit wa the Richter Brewery located in the Pivovar u Bulovky pub which is at Bulovka 17. take tram 24 to Bulovka stop. Cross the road at the end of the tram stop and it is down the hill approx 100mts. The beer here is German style as the brewer is a German Regular beer is Richter Lezak – Cesky type larger, On our visit there was also A hefeweiss @4.9% and an excellent Octoberfest ale @6.5%. Note they also do am Extra Stout @ 6% in the winter. All beers brewed according to the Reinheitsgebot, unfiltered and unpasteurised. Good food here as well but if going in the evening better to book in advance as can get very busy.
Also if you are wondering what to do on a Sunday morning and are at a loose end why not go to the football? Victoria Zizkov -http://www.fkviktoriazizkov.cz/, is based at the Viktoria Žižkov Stadium, Seifertova trída, Prague 3 (tel: 22272 2045). At around £1.20 to get in they are at the top of the 1st Division at the moment and have a good fan base and you can get 2 types of beer and the best sausage in the league for around £1.00 A great way to spend a Sunday morning, (and I dont watch football!)
Otto says get to Prague now before all the stag and hen parties spoil it.
