This January, my dear food blogger Chilli Julie asked me whether I wanted to write restaurant reviews for local supplement of Mladá fronta DNES, the most-read serious (well, semi-serious) newspaper in the Czech republic.

How could I say no? So there you have the 10 reviews of local restaurants I wrote this year:

Klub cestovatelů | 65 %

www.hedvabnastezka.cz/brno, 14 Veleslavínova st.

Meal called the Lunch of a Levant peasant

It is always hard for Czech cooks to prepare Indian or Levant meals – in Klub cestovatelů, they are quite successful with some recipes, less successful with the other ones.

Pontos | 85 %

reckarestauracepontos.cz, 22 Křížkovského st.

Yoghurt, honey, nuts. I loved this!

A Greek restaurant with simple, affordable, usually almost perfect meals. Really recommended.

Española | 55 %

espanola.cz, 19 Botanická st.

A piece of tapas made of eggplant.

You can’t cook meals based on fresh tomatos, seafood and other seasonal/regional ingredients in Brno in March. The chef does not get it. However, the place looks nice and the waiter was great.

Makkabi | 70 %

8 Velenova st., Boskovice (only out-of-Brno review)

A trout with horse raddish.

Located in the small jewish quarter of Boskovice, Makkabi is the only Jewish restaurant in the region. Don’t expect bagels – actually they offer traditional meals from the central Europe, influenced by the Jewish cuisine. Not bad at all, but also not particulary great.

Zorbas | 65 %

restauracezorbas.cz, 4 Sokolská st.

The fishes were OK, but the plate looked like a big mess.

Excellent pita but other meals had smaller or bigger imperfections.

Sitara | 60 %

Located in Tesco shopping mall in Královo Pole

Non-veg thali

Unbelieveable quality/price ratio! Good chicken vindaloo for CZK 60 (€2,50).

La Chapelle | 80 %

la-chapelle.cz, 2c Černovická st.

Raspberry cream with vanilla foam

An interesting restaurant offering both terrible “Czech classics” based on ketchup and pork, but also surprisingly good French meals. My girlfriend enjoyed a perfect steak for reasonable CZK 140 and a breathtaking dessert (on the picture).

Chutné štěstí | 70 %

chutnestesti.sweb.cz, 38 Lidická st.

A black egg

Considered by some to be the best Chinese restaurant in Brno, I think it is just a “better average”. I enjoyed a great service.

Avatár | 45 %

avatar108.com, Mendlovo sq. 10

A plate carring almost everything Avatár offers

One of the few vegetarian restaurants in Brno. I liked their halva and their “think globally, act locally” attitude. However, most of the meals were plain bad, even cold.

Dragon II | 65 %

10 Náměstí svobody sq.

Phở gà

This place is awful! However they offer probably the only phở you can get without travelling to a Vietnamese market. And it tastes really well.

Show your friends the best pubs in Brno!

The Pocket guide to beer, pubs and alehouses in Brno contains information about various types of beer made in the Czech republic and about more than 35 best pubs in Brno.

For only €1,99 (cheaper than two beers!), you can download a PDF file and a simple map. You may print the guide and keep it in your pocket, or read it at the computer, in an iPhone or in a Kindle ebook reader.

“In recent years, many excellent micro breweries have been established in the region,” says Michal Kašpárek, the blogger behind Brno Now and author of the guide. “I wanted the visitors of the town to drink the best beer they can get in Brno and enjoy the town like locals do,” he explains why he has written the book and why it is so cheap.

Pocket guide to beer, pubs and alehouses in Brno can be downloaded from http://brnonow.com/beer-guide/.

A garden of Hansen restaurant (source: hansen-restaurant.cz)

I got a lovely letter last week:

Dear Kasparek,

I’m an expat in Brno. I was wondering if you could recommend me some restaurants for a romantic evening. The kind of food actually doesn’t matter that much. A wide variety of choice is appreciated.

Thank you for your consideration. Keep up the good work!

Hello! K——

If you sometimes ask your friends a similiar questions, you may find handy my answer:

My girlfriend loves Greek restaurant Pontos (22 Křížkovského st.), but someone might mind the sharp light there. On the other hand, it is a budget-friendly place. I think Hansen (corner of Husova st. and Komenského sq.) may also be a good choice – they even have live jazz in the garden these days!

Later, some more tips came to my mind:

• U Kastelána (51a Kotlářská st.) has a beautiful interior and it offers top-quality Czech meals with some French and Italian influences. Prices are above average.
• La Bouchée (33 Údolní st.) is located in a quite romantic cellar and meals like “snail caviar served with toast, butter and salt” may be good aphrodisiacs, I guess.
• Rialto (125 Veveří st.) is among the most expensive restaurants in town, but they try really hard to offer exclusive meals. The menu is frequently updated with fresh and seasonal ingredients.
• Momo Sushi (13 Solniční st.) is one of the best sushi bars in the town (there was a boom of these venues last year).

What is your favorite place to go when you want to spend a lovely evening with your spouse or lover? Let us know in the comments.

If you feel like you are melting away, try one of these ice-cold beverages sold in the streets of Brno:

Legránž

Fresh legránž in café Falk

Homemade lemonade

Several cafés are serving homemade lemonade – last week I had a great one in Priority café located in the garages at Moravské náměstí sq. You may enjoy a nice glass of lemonade in café Trojka, too.

Cider

Cider is not really popular in the Czech republic – but you can get it from a tap in The Immigrant pub at Veveří st. for €2,5.

Kofola

Kofola, developed in the 1960s by Czechoslovakian chemists (source: Wikimedia Common)

Beer

Check out the list of pubs with great beer here in Brno.

I have spent some time – maybe too much time – in the pubs of Brno last year and here is my personal choice of the restaurants, pubs and bars with best draught beers that you definitely should try out (I am sorry about the quality of pictures – I am leaving my DSL camera at home when I go out for some fun):

Betlém

I dare to call Betlém the best pub of the year. Excellent Dalešice beer, great (even though expensive) meals and a funny rule that allows you to drink after the closing time, just for 20% higher prices.

Betlém at Krkoškova st.

Once we were given a big bowl of cracklings when we ordered our 5th beer.

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Bláhovka

Legendary old-school pub with probably the best Pilsen on the tap in Brno. Usually you have to drink it standing if you come after 1 p.m. and drink it standing outside if you can’t make it before 3 p.m.

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PUXpub

A recently opened pub at Jaselská st. offers a new beer every week – sometimes you can enjoy Polička, sometimes Richard from Brno-Žebětín, sometimes Opat. There are always great waiters and waitresses.

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Zelená kočka

Dalešice again! This time in the very centre of the town. What I love about Zelená kočka is a big garden (closed during winter, of course), great meals and excellent service.

The old school interior of Zelená Kočka.

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Pegas

Excellent homebrew beer – however the experience is somehow damaged by rude waiters that don’t get they are not ruling the guests but serving them. Give Pegas a try anyway!

Pegas at Jakubská st.

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Veselá vačice

“Happy opossum” regulary offers Dudák but has several other beers on tap. Sometimes you can get my favorite Polička.

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Starobrno brewery

Well, I am not a big fan of Starobrno beer, but if I am to drink one (or two, three, seven, eight), Starobrno brewery is a clear choice. Good beer, huge garden, tasty meals and nice atmosphere!

Cheese rolls at Starobrno brewery.

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Hluchá zmije

Non-smoking pub at Jugoslávská st. is close to being as legendary as Bláhovka.

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U srdcí

This underground pub in Královo Pole is a dent of old hippies and young pot-smokers. You are not going to forget this night – because you will not ever remember it anyway.

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Domácí club Gurmán

This tiny pub with family-like atmosphere has several beers from small breweries on tap, including Polička and Pelhřimovský Poutník.

My friend Ondra enjoying a glass of Poutník.

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Tell us about your favorite pubs and beers

So – you know about my favorite restaurants, now leave a comment to let me and other readers know about yours!

You don’t have to travel to Madrid to taste some of the great spanish snacks (or antipasta) called “tapas”. Ristorante Rialto offers a special Tapas menu from March 12th, 6 PM, until March 15th.

The menu has 15 items, inspired by spanish, greek and even japanese cuisine. I consider these to be the most atractive:

• Warm goat cheese on a potato waffle with pesto and tomato chutney (CZK 160, € 5.80)
• Gambas Ajillo – spicy prawns (CZK 250, € 9)
• Tuna sashimi with orange-mustard dip and fresh mint (CZK 280, € 10.10)

Visit the homepage of Ristorante Rialto for further details.

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