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Modestly great

Alexander's sticks to the basics - and that's a good thing
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By Dave Faries
Staff Writer, The Prague Post
February 27th, 2008 issue

Alexander's

U Kanálky 14
Prague 2-Vinohrady
Tel. 222 210 582
Open Mon.-Fri. 11:30 a.m.-11:30 p.m., Sat. 6 p.m.-11 p.m.

Food **
Service ***
Atmosphere **
Overall **

Photos by JAN PŘEROVSKÝ/The Prague Post
Chef-owner Alexander Huellen thinks simply, and backs it with finesse.
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Alexander's hearty potato soup.
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FROM THE MENU

Grilled goat cheese 160 Kč
Potato-zucchini soup 75 Kč
Stewed lamb 390 Kč
Corn-fed chicken 250 Kč
Ginger-coconut ice cream 160 Kč

How strange and refreshing — a handsome new restaurant without one of those contrived, flavor-of-the-day themes.
At Alexander’s, there’s no claim to global fusion, pan-Asian, new Italian or the like. Instead, the menu wanders: pikeperch, venison with cabbage and potato pancakes, lemongrass soup topped by skewered prawns.
Décor is simple, the design equivalent of white noise. An hour after your first visit, it’s difficult to recall even the most basic architectural touches or paint schemes. There’s just a memory of soft whites, subdued stone, a little brick and splashes of color registering as “maybe red.”
In short, Alexander’s is not about design trends or the chef’s command of culinary techniques gathered from around the world. It’s about a handful of recipes, well prepared.
Take the potato-zucchini soup. Alexander (I’m assuming this is a chef-owner operation) finds comfort and more in the typically plebian broth. Sure, there’s the creamy bliss of starch and pepper, brightened a little by zucchini. Floating atop, however, crumbled pistachios provide a rich and mellow underscore, along with textural contrast. Two dark swaths of toasted pumpkin seed oil build on this nutty element, adding intensity and a gentle, smoky character.
It’s not difficult to create: Puree several potatoes, break some nuts and drizzle on the right oil. But the restaurant attempts few really fancy touches.
Grilled goat cheese, for example, demands only a round of decent curd and something to dress the plate — in this case, wafer slices of beet, marinated lightly until they lend a soft earthy-tartness, complementary to the cheese.
Anyone could plate these ingredients, of course. Surrounding the cake of cheese in a crispy veneer, on the other hand, requires above-average skill. And the chef’s intimate understanding of flavor combinations — how the gentle yet complex wash of pumpkin seed oil or the grounded, satiny influence of beetroot expand on other ingredients — seems born of experience and care.
Corn-fed chicken may represent Alexander’s sole attempt at superficial menu flourishes. Feeding chickens on corn rather than grain barely affects ultimate flavor, if at all — so why make reference to it? Besides, the pointless accolade does little to prepare you for juicy white meat in a brittle and deftly seasoned crust.
The result is simple and pleasing.
In each bite of chicken that includes a shard of crust, salt and pepper well up at the finish before quickly falling away into the dense, almost meaty tarragon sauce coating both the bowl and base of pasta. One more dash and the rising tide of salt would turn scorching; less, and perceptions of the dish would hinge on the bird itself — beautifully tender, nicely moist, but otherwise lacking in character.
Grand terms may be used to describe lamb, as well. If so, I failed to make note of it while lost in the beefiest mutton I’ve ever encountered.
Perhaps tannic red wine marinade and the heavy sauce — rosemary and more wine — contributed to this sensation. Although bulked up by robust treatment, tender medallions of slow-cooked meat still cut with a fork, the strands wilting away on the tongue. It’s served with a rough but highly complementary ratatouille, and three nondescript polenta cakes.
This is cooking by the book, although not by rote. Alexander, or whoever turns the spatula, has a sense of timing and technique that fits potato soup and baked chicken: no unnecessary flair, no oversimplification.
It seems like a fundamentally reliable restaurant.
So it’s surprising that, on a recent Saturday night visit, no other table was occupied. I’m certain Louis Armstrong, a mediocre space a few blocks away, teemed with dinner conversation. Same with that inconsistent pizza place down the hill.
Many talented neighborhood kitchens falter because, despite acclaim, the kind of support necessary for long-term success eventually wanes, or fails to appear in the first place.
Let’s hope Alexander’s has an opportunity to show its stuff.

Dave Faries can be reached at dfaries@praguepost.com


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