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December 2nd, 2008
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Regional excursions

Touring Italy in Prague and other area culinary wanderings

By Dave Faries
Staff Writer, The Prague Post
February 14th, 2007 issue

VLADIMÍR WEISS/THE PRAGUE POST
Local restaurants break from their routine to focus on Italy's regions.
Several regulars at Jáma, struggling to stay awake through last week’s culmination of the American football season, the Super Bowl, decided international soccer could benefit from a little New World sports technology. Imagine, if you will, World Cup games with an instant replay system: “After further review, nobody touched the Italian player. Therefore, he should not be writhing in pain. The ball belongs to France.”
If Italian football stars are fond of overacting, the country’s chefs prefer to keep things simple — and fresh. Traditional recipes vary from region to region, generally relying on local ingredients. Thus chefs in the northern area of Ligure blend highland herbs with an abundance of seafood. Puglia, on the other hand, showcases olive oil and flavors most Westerners consider “Mediterranean.” The American label Chef Boyardee made Bolognese — or a pale imitation thereof — famous throughout the States.
From now until early April, a group of kindly restaurateurs will allow you to sample Italian regional specialties in a kind of culinary pub crawl. Aromi kicked off the event with a menu of favorites from the west-coast marshes, followed by “cucina Veneta” prepared by Don Giovanni.
Unfortunately, both restaurants have wrapped up their portion of the proceedings. However, there are still a few days to catch Da Emanuel’s take on Tuscan cuisine (Charlese de Gaulla 4, Prague 6Dejvice; tel. 224 312 934). La vita e bella (Elišky Krásnohorské 5, Prague 1Old Town; tel. 222 310 039) serves Sicilian dishes through Feb. 25. Other upcoming offerings include:
DaNico (Dlouhá 21, Prague 1Old Town; tel. 222 311 807) offers a list from Campania, birthplace of the pizza and mozzarella di bufala, Feb. 19–March 4.
Il Conte Deminka (Škrétova 1, Prague 2New Town; tel. 224 224 915) has items from Lombardy in northern Italy Feb. 26March 11.
Incontro (Jungmannovo nám. 19, Prague 1New Town, tel. 224 948 650) dishes out a different kind of northern cuisine from Ligure March 518.
Vino di Vino (Vězeňská 3, Prague 1Old Town, tel. 222 312 999) follows with rich and varied samples from Piemonte March 1225.
Černý Orel (Malostranské nám. 14, Prague 1Malá Strana; tel. 257 533 207) revisits popular Tuscan recipes such as pappa al pomodoro March 19April 1.
Rossini (Chopinova 26, Prague 3Vinohrady; tel. 222 729 041) wraps things up with a culinary tour of Puglia March 26April 8.
The cost of doing business
During the recent Black Truffle Days escapade at CzecHouse, chef Roman Paulus had to visit every guest who ordered the foie gras terrine because, as he explained (over and over and over), a brand-new line cook who didn’t know better stuck his prized creation in the freezer.
On a more upbeat note, particularly for those who live or work in or meander through New Town, Pivní Pohoda on Navrátilova street pours Gambrinus and Pilsner Urquell at Prague 16 prices. To wit, 21 Kč (97 U.S. cents) for Gambrinus and 29 Kč for its highly regarded cousin. You have to put up with gut-wrenching bar food, though.
U Dělového Kříže has kicked things up a notch — pricewise, that is. The restaurant’s roast duck with almond stuffing and all the usual Czech trimmings (and perhaps the best presentation of this pub fare dish in Prague) once cost 195 Kč. Now it’s a whopping 225 Kč. Of course, the portion is more than enough for two.
Meanwhile, the upscale Continental/Asian restaurant inside the Mandarin Oriental, Essensia, is in the process of revising its menu to scale back on Asian dishes, per customer preferences. Seems the monied set ignored some pretty fiery curries and recipes refined from Thai street fare in favor of more familiar French and Mediterranean items. Oh well, nice try.
In Prague 5 (still Malá Strana), vinárna Zlatý had presents a multicourse meal (and vegetarian option) paired with some interesting wines for three evenings this month (Feb. 19, 20 and 22) starting at 7 p.m. The culinary bacchanalia costs 600 Kč. Call 251 512 063.
Final (slurred) words
Passing by Rocky O’Reilly’s … oops, Reillys recently, I watched a manager lead two liquidated young British males from the restaurant side to the bar with the following assurance: “In there — you can fart, sing, drink.” ’Tis soon the season.

Dave Faries can be reached at dfaries@praguepost.com


Other articles in Night & Day (14/02/2007):

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