Related articles

The Czech Republic has taken a step against the anti-smoking flow in the rest of Europe. While anti-smoking bans have spread across the continent in recent years, Czech MPs have proposed a relaxation of the current rules for smoking in pubs and restaurants. Anti-smoking groups say they have caved in to pressure from the powerful tobacco lobby.

Last weekend was a special one in the Czech capital for lovers of good food, as thousands of people attended the third Prague Food Festival. For a special discounted price, this annual event offers visitors a chance to sample many of the culinary delights offered by Prague’s restaurant industry, which still seems to be thriving despite the challenged posed by the current economic crisis.

Less than six months ago, a disastrous fire reduced an entire wing of Prague’s historic Industrial Exhibition Hall to a pile of twisted metal and masonry, but the building has made a remarkable recovery. In a few days’ time it will be housing the Czech Republic’s biggest annual book fair, Svět knihy or Bookworld, which will be taking place for the fifteenth year running, and seems remarkably unscathed either by the fire or the rages of the world economic crisis. To find out more, I managed to steal a few minutes with the busy and energetic Bookworld

Dům u Rotta is one of the most famous buildings by Prague’s Old Town Square, with a facade dating back to 1890 but foundations going back six hundred years. For a century-and-a-half the Neo-Renaissance building was the home of the famous Rott hardware store, but later was turned into a delicatessen and then a glassware and crystal seller. Now, an announced change: the site will soon reopen as a famous international franchise, the Hard Rock Café.

Marks of the Czech Republic’s EU presidency can be found all over Brussels, from David Černý’s controversial sculpture ‘Entropa’ hanging in the council’s Justus Lipsius building, right down to the food on offer in the European Parliament’s canteen. On Thursday, parliament employees were treated to the first in a series of special Czech dishes – I went along to wish them a bon apetit, or should that be dobrou chut’?

Wednesday sees the release of Michelin’s Main Cities in Europe, a guidebook which rates Europe’s best restaurants. Last year Prague’s Allegro, located in the Four Seasons Hotel, became the first in a post communist country to clinch a coveted star. This year it retained its position, while numerous other restaurants were in the running. Another that clinched the prestigious star was Maze, in the Hotel Hilton, until recently run by celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay.

A second Prague restaurant has received a prestigious Michelin star, it was announced on Monday. The Four Seasons Hotel’s Allegro restaurant maintained the Michelin star it was awarded last year, and was joined by Maze, which was set up by celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay just over a year ago. Ramsay has just announced, however, that he is pulling out of the Prague venture, which is housed in the capital’s Hilton Old Town Hotel. Two other Prague restaurants were said to be in contention for a Michelin star, but both Aromi and La Degustation Boheme Bourgeoise came away empty handed on Monday. The Michelin restaurant guide will be officially released on Wednesday.

What first comes to mind when someone mentions Czech cuisine? The most common answer would be – knedlíky (dumplings), goulash and knedlo-zelo-vepřo (dumplings with sauerkraut and pork). None of it too healthy, nor particularly attractive looking when served up on a plate. I’d say it’s not the food but the country’s famous beer that attracts foreign visitors to our pubs and restaurants.

While the Czech Republic continues to ponder the threat of recession, the country’s tourist industry and its attendant services have taken a nosedive. One of the areas in no doubt of hard financial times is the restaurant industry, which has found itself faced with spiralling numbers of patrons, particularly in Prague.

French chef Marc Veyrat has earned numerous Michelin stars for his molecular cuisine, and reviews of his restaurant in Annecy, France, run in the New York Times. Now, the top chef is planning a new venture - in the middle of the Czech countryside. Veyrat plans to open an ‘eco-lodge’ serving his haute cuisine in a forest near Beroun, central Bohemia.