Prague’s Neighborhoods

Vršovice is quite an interesting place, a mix of true alternative culture and art, smug hipsters and your average Prague resident. The locus of the action over here very clearly rests around Krymská street, an area that has garnered quite a reputation. One of the best places for a great lunch or dinner and a pint (or three) is Café Sladkovský, an unprejudiced alternative café using local products and house made food.

Lya Beer Café on Krymská 39 is our very own bottle shop and beer café, with a carefully curated selection of Czech and international beer. Specializing in sours (lambic!) and serving local specialty coffee, sweets & snacks. Just accross the street is Xao, a multilingual bookshop/gallery with exhibitions on graphics, illustrations and book culture.

For vegetarian/vegan cuisine done well, check out Satsang and/or Plevel, who also happen to serve some decent beers. Bad Flash Bar, with more than 10 taps, is a decent place to go and meet people. Patra is the new kid on the block, an LGBTQ-friendly gallery/cinema/cultural space that has a café with a rotating tap of microbrewed beer, whereas Café Šlágr is the place to head for a sweet fix with vintage Czech décor, delectable cakes, and good coffee. On the corner of Norská and Ruská is Neklid, a local favorite, with Únětické beer on tap.

Beyond the beer, Vinotéka Baryk is a fantastic little wine shop, offering quality Czech and European wines. As a bonus, not technically located in Vršovice, but right on the boundary, is Havlíčkovy Sady – one of the best places for a view and housemade wine in a beautiful park.

Overlooking the Vltava and Prague’s historic center, you’ll find Letná Park, one of most popular green spaces, with good reason! To top it off, these lovely gardens include a scenic beer garden (a must-go place) and the giant metronome, formerly one of the largest statues of Stalin. The neighborhood of Letná is nestled rather cozily in between this park and one more, Stromovka. Stromovka, a lush green expanse, is one of the most tranquil places in the city, well worth a visit on its own, it does have a some nice beer gardens as well, including Tiskárna na Vzduchu, with Únětické beer on tap and a fun, buzzing atmosphere.

The Farm is known for their all day breakfast menu, and they serve mimosas, obviously a dangerous combination. Café Letka is a nice place to sit, have a beer from Matuška, a cake and coffee and relax. Prague’s Trade Fair Palace (Veletržní palác) hosts an impressive modern art gallery as well as the wonderful Café Jedna, with fairtrade coffee and beer from Vinohradský Brewery, a local microbrewery.

Onigirazu is a lunchtime treat, making what we’re inclined to call, but told not to call, a ‘sushi sandwich’. Bio Oko is a homely cinema screening independent films and keeping its clientele’s creative minds fed with great microbrews for years in their wonderfully chill, retro-Czech environment. Also tapping beer from the Vinohradský Brewery, Mr. Hotdog serves fantastic “grease-is-good” cuisine, hotdogs and sliders in the American style with daily and weekend specials, whereas Milada Bistro caters to a different side of the spectrum, offering haute cuisine from well known local chefs.

On the eastern side of the train tracks you’ll find all sorts of young people at the Cross Club, but better to go to Pivovar Marina, a brewery in the harbor making some rather nice beers with a cozy atmosphere.

Some of Prague’s most popular neighborhoods, Dejvice and Bubeneč’s tree-lined streets provide us with numerous cafés and noteworthy restaurants. Beyond serving their locally-roasted coffee, Kavárna Místo also has a menu of nicely prepared food, don’t forget the natural wine or beer to go with it. The recently renovated (yet still classic looking) Na Slamníku serves Únětické beer and remains one of the neighborhoods most lively and famous places.

One of our favorites is Café Lajka, a must visit for their coffee and beer, if nothing else. Just around the corner is Base Camp, a friendly bottle shop worth seeking out for their great selection of Czech and international beers with very fair prices. Pivovar Bubeneč is offering some beer of their own, as well as rotating taps of other micro-breweries’ beer, whilst their brother bar next-door has a few taps of their own.

Krkonošská hospůdka is one of those places to happily disappear into for hours. Another great place to have some Únětické beer is Hospůdka U Pětníka. Located in the National Technical Library building of the school is Café Prostoru, serving students locally-roasted coffee and a fresh pint of Únětice with a side of wholesome food and culture. This Café also has a rotating tap and is a great place to stop after Saturday’s farmers’ market on Vítězné Náměsti.

Nusle is a rather large neighborhood with a few exceptional establishments packed into a small radius. Zlý Časy is a legendary pub with three floors that pour 48 taps of local and international microbrews, as well as some wonderfully fattening pub food. Just next door is Pivkupectví, with an ample and very well-curated selection of European and New World bottles, this is an easy place to quickly fill up a backpack.

Just around the corner is Sousedský Pivovar Bašta, a fine neighborhood brewery famous for its semi-dark lager and duck, although all of their beers are noteworthy; the beautiful Interior is partly wooden, and covered with hops and antiques without feeling cluttered or forced. Next-door, and by the same owner, is U Bansethů – a classic Pilsner pub serving fresh tank beer and a fantastic history.

Baretta bar has some very nice pizzas and a comfortable garden, while just couple minutes up the street towards Vinohrady is Mozzarellart, purveyor of handmade cheeses and wonderful foods of many sorts. Just across the train tracks is Zubatý Pes, a multi-tap bar with some beers of their own; technically located in Vršovice, but close enough to deserve a mention.

One of Prague’s richest Art Nouveau neighborhoods, Vinohrady, or The Vineyards, boasts tree-lined streets that are both eye-catchingly beautiful and house some spectacular cafés, eateries, and pubs. The former municipal brewery on Korunní street recently re-established itself as Vinohradský Pivovar, a strong contender in the food/beer scene. The square at Jiřího z Poděbrad comes alive with one of the city’s best farmers’ markets every Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, full of fresh flowers, produce, food and some rather nice beer and wine.

Just there off the square is BeerGeek Bar, possibly the best modern multi-tap bar with a large international selection. Just around the corner, on Slavíkova street, is the best Vietnamese bistro (so far) Tuan & Lan, and their daughter project, a fusion Viet-Czech café. Just north from here you’ll find BeerGeek Pivoteka (bottleshop) with a stunning array of beers from Czech and around the world and a couple taps. Possibly one of the best things to do is get a beer or two here (bottle or draught) and take it to Riegrovy Sady (Rieger’s orchards) park for a relaxing amble and beautiful views.

South down the hill from the park is Dno Pytle, a Bavarian-Franconian-Czech pub with great beers on tap, a small stock of bottles and, the cherry on top, the occasional gravity cask of lager. Dish on Římská makes our favorite burger (and supposedly some of the best burgers in Europe!) and has Únětické beer on tap, but if you’re wanting something sweet then head next door to Momoichi Café for Japanese-inspired bakes and a special sakura beer, high-quality saké, natural local wines, or some very tasty cocktails.

Right there on Náměstí Míru (Peace Square) there is a fantastic homemade ice cream stand, Vanille. Meanwhile, Kavárna Pražírna is a simply wonderful coffee roaster and cultural space with some of the best lagers around and homemade bread, while here make sure to try the marinated cheese! If the weather’s nice, stroll over to Havlíčkovy Sady (Havlíček’s Orchards) for our favorite park, complete with a mini-winery (and vines that are still producing) that serves you a wine to take into the park and sip while sitting among the still-producing vines with views of the Nusle Valley below. If that’s not enough, the park also has a beautiful Villa, a grotto, loads of red squirrels (it’s important, okay!) as well as a café, a gazebo, and playgrounds.

Václavské Náměstí, Prague’s modern square is a gritty mix of shopping and tourists, dabbed with history. Finding a good bite and beer is perplexingly not the easiest of tasks. Four notable breweries reside in New Town. U Fleků, the only brewery in central Europe to be brewing continuously for 500 years, serves exceptional dark lager and gives a great historic brewery tour; Novoměstský Pivovar brews light lagers, Ferdinand has a flagship restaurant, and U Medvídků is known for their strong lagers.

Just on the edge of the center, you’ll find Nota Bene, a modern restaurant serving cuisine made from farm fresh ingredients with 6 notable beers on tap. Just down the street is Aliance P.I.V member Kulový Blesk, with 14 taps that keep up with the newest beers from noteworthy Czech brewers. If dining on the finer side of things is up your alley, Sansho makes a fantastic menu of Asian fusion cuisine, and Čestr serves Pilsner Urquell and steaks to perfection. Náplavka, on the stretch of river bank from under Palackého Bridge along Rašínově Nábřeží, is lively river-walk, hosting events and a farmer’s market, and home to Bajkazyl, a DIY bar/bike shop.

Surrounded by the old castle walls, the fortress of Vyšehrad overlooks the Vltava, complete with a beautiful church, park, a few restaurants, and a beer garden. One of the most pleasant places for an afternoon stroll.