Divinis expands

With multiple television cooking shows, two restaurants and several sponsorships, Chef Zdeněk Pohlreich seems to be everywhere. Currently, Pohlreich divides his time between the stately and preserved Imperial Café, where he is the executive chef, and the smaller, humbler Divinis, where renovations were recently completed.

The menu at Divinis reflects Italian classics rather than the Austro-Hungarian-Western menu at Imperial. Until recently, the central color in Divinis was a soft stroke of blonde: unfinished woods that warmed under candlelight, with whimsical wooden carvings of angels and animals. It was a small space, but corners, walls and screens made it possible to offer private tables without crowding diners.

A remodeling that took all of August and much of September has opened up an additional room for the restaurant, allowing Divinis to take in more diners each night.

"We had to refuse a lot of reservations in the past due to the limited seating," Pohlreich told The Prague Post. "Also, the restaurant had aged a lot over the years, and it needed some fresh air."

The new tables vary in height and size as well as style. Cooler shades and aubergine accents have been interspersed on dark wood floors and tables and chairs. Divinis has the wine bar aesthetic down: simple, cozy and elegant.

"We involved the same designer who did the original Divinis," Pohlreich said, referring to Italian architect Luciano Belcapo. "So the restaurant has the same style, but the bigger space allowed more creations while keeping the coziness and its own unique style."

Pohlreich will be looking to introduce a new menu in the future, but a constantly rotating offer of specials means Divinis customers don't need to worry about menu fatigue.

Thanks to a lengthy wine list and expanded seating, you don't even need to open the menu to enjoy Divinis, just order one of the many Italian wines, which range from 520 to 1,350 Kč and hail from more than 10 different Italian regions.

Tequila!

This Friday, Oct. 22, Prague gets its first Tequila festival, which sounds like a rough party but is actually meant to educate, says Fernando Larios, co-owner of Las Adelitas. Doors open at 3 p.m. for businesspeople, distributors and restaurant managers who wish to meet tequila-brand managers and suppliers. From 4 to 11 p.m., everyone is invited. The festival will include live music, Mexican food catered by Las Adelitas and tequila samples, of course. As of press time, confirmed exhibitors include Herradura, Jimador, Viejo Luis, Amate, Casa Vieja, Casa Noble, Aha Toro, Esperanto and Tequila 1921. Mezcal and cigar exhibitors will be there, as well. Divadlo Vzlet; Holandská 1, Prague 10-Vršovice.

Dim sum

The Mandarin Oriental Hotel's Essensia restaurant is now serving traditional dim sum, steamed and fried Chinese dumplings, on weekends. Chef Jiří Štift gained his dim sum cooking experience in Hong Kong. The lunches run between noon and 3 p.m. and cost 980 Kč per person. The menu includes steamed prawn, pork, scallop and fish roe, and spicy chicken dumplings, as well as fried crispy duck and king crab leg dumplings.

Old bars, old friends

Red, Hot & Blues, an expat institution since 1992, shuttered its doors more than a month ago. The restaurant had passed through several managers and faltered in the past few years. Glenn Spicker, owner of Bohemia Bagel and the new Propaganda Bar, opened the restaurant in 1992.

"The midnight before we opened in '92, Glen Emery [owner of Bukowski's and Napa] came in with John Bruce Shoemaker, to introduce us and wish me luck," Spicker said.

Shoemaker, who owned the now-closed Marquis de Sade with Emery, passed away Oct. 5 in Hamilton, Montana.

Claire Compton can be reached at
ccompton@praguepost.com