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Ordering inn

Food from down the street, plus a few other odds and ends

By Dave Faries
Staff Writer, The Prague Post
August 15th, 2007 issue

VLADIMÍR WEISS/THE PRAGUE POST
Internet access and a little take-away are enough to for the denizens of Czech Inn.
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The mainstays of danceable pop music long ago dropped any pretense of actually singing during a live performance. Not even a creature rebuilt by cutting-edge scientists — say, Michael Jackson — could possibly quickstep through intricate footwork and belt out tunes at the same time.
Sooner or later, restaurateurs were bound to notice this trend.
Enter Czech Inn. Behind the cutesy topical name is a cool Vršovice hostel offering the benefits of a slightly off-center location, Wi-Fi access and a corner patio. The café boasts a menu of Tex-Mex favorites — all prepared by a neighborhood joint called Barracuda.
Here’s how it works: You place an order, and the Czech Inn staff phones Barracuda. Fifteen minutes later, a waitress strolls in toting a plastic bag stuffed with Styrofoam containers. Czech Inn’s bartenders merely plate everything and bring it over to your table.
I’ll say this: Barracuda prepares a fair approximation of middling, mass-market Tex-Mex. There are some interesting touches, such as an apparent blend of pickling juice from preserved jalapenos with guacamole, lending the pastel green paste a stinging, sour character. Tacos gringos replace the crisp tortilla wedge with a cup resembling miniature versions of edible salad bowls. The meat, sautéed in toned-down Southwestern spices, yields robust, earthy heat to a rich, vegetal mélange and almost candied finish.
As for the café itself, thoughtful touches include a pitcher of water at the bar, and a list of beers available by the pitcher on the menu. Cans of Gambrinus are available for those heading out on the streets. It’s a no-frills hangout that still feels new, hip and comfortable.
This is a cooperative venture that works. Czech Inn satisfies young travelers with familiar dishes and a connection home. Barracuda tacks a few more crowns onto its bottom line.
And guests don’t have to exert themselves for a modest meal.
Cat nips
For those who didn’t catch it, Three Lions officially dropped the numerals from its name a few months ago. Now known simply as Lions, the British pub has made a few improvements to go along with the shortened name: ex-ing Krušovice in favor of Staropramen (for 30 Kč/$1.50), and relegating stag partiers to the basement. Yep, that means the street-level room with all those monitors is available for boys not in uniform.
In another unforeseen development, Černá Kočka Bílý Kocour (or Black Cat, White Tomcat) closed down. Too bad — the placed served decent wings. Looks like it will be replaced by a much-needed herna bar.
Without much warning, building owners padlocked the doors at De Brug recently, putting staff out of work and imprisoning all that North European ale. Bartenders say they were taken completely unawares. They showed up for work and found the place barred, so to speak.
Something fishy
Le Patio has hired a sushi chef to launch a new menu line starting in September.
The new Metropol across from Tesco on Národní can’t seem to get its story straight. On one of my review visits, the front desk mentioned a fifth-floor restaurant space that wasn’t quite finished. All those dinner tables scattered around the lobby would eventually be moved upstairs, I was told. In its review, Czech Business Weekly wrote about the fifth-floor dining room as if it were already open for business. But when one of our staff called last week to check on progress, he was told that the fifth floor houses only a terrace for guests. And so it goes.
Final (slurred) words
Couldn’t help but notice two very early-twentysomething American women at Ultramarin recently. Aside from the contrived babbling about the restaurant’s courses — “What a delicious medley of flavors!” in a pronounced Lon Giland or 90210 accent (I can’t tell them apart) — what caught my attention was the parade of multiple plates, the pills one of them was popping between courses and the repeated trips to another room. Ah yes, Americans abroad …

Dave Faries can be reached at dfaries@praguepost.com


Other articles in Night & Day (15/08/2007):

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