Traditional Czech Restaurants & Pubs in Prague: Where to Eat

Prague has lots of traditional Czech restaurants, including plenty in the Old Town. These restaurants and pubs serve a variety of local dishes, most of which I enjoyed. Czech cuisine is heavily based on meat, including lots of pork and game. Local beer is a perfect accompaniment to a meal out in the city.

I had some fantastic meals out on my visits to Prague. Meat features heavily in Czech cuisine, as do dumplings. Although I enjoyed every meal out, my favourites were the ham knuckle and rabbit with root vegetables. Many of the eateries in the city are dog friendly, which is handy for us.

Pubs and Traditional Restaurants in Prague

Pod Vyšehradem

We spotted Pod Vyšehradem while searching for cheap places to eat. This is a local restaurant in the neighbourhood in the New Town area. This was a rustic-looking place, busy with locals enjoying a meal out. A drink here was one of my favourites, Budweiser, which is also known as Budvar.

For food, we enjoyed some meaty delights. First was the biggest ham knuckle I have ever seen eating out. The pork was cooked to perfection and very tender, and garnished with slices of red onion. This might have fed a small family with some vegetable sides.

The other main was half a rabbit, something I had not seen on a menu for a while. They served this with root vegetables – potato, carrot and turnip – and thin, tasty gravy. This was delicious and put rabbit meat back on my things to cook at home. The food at Pod Vyšehradem was tasty and hearty, and we left very full.

Restaurant Švejk U Zeleného Stromu

In the old town area is Švejk U Zeleného Stromu, a nice place to dine out. They have an indoor seating area and a dining area in a courtyard. The highlight of their menu was the Old Bohemian Pan, a feast to share served in a large pan. It is a combination of meats, including chicken, pork and ham, cooked in a creamy sauce. They garnished it with rocket, cheese and chilli peppers. This was a substantial meal and was delicious. For beer at Svejk, we opted for the light, refreshing Kozel.

Café Platýz

Café Platýz is a lovely place to dine out with some nice chairs in a small town square. They had a beer special called Dux, which the server recommended. This beer was between a dark and light beer and complemented the food very well.

For starters, we shared a cheese board featuring some nice local cheeses. They served this with breadsticks, grapes and a tasty chutney. The main course was rather special: lean pork loin with sautéed potatoes and a creamy peppercorn sauce. This really hit the spot for me and was cooked perfectly. Café Platýz is a lovely place for a lunch out or a bigger meal in the evening.

Restaurace Konvikt

Restaurace Konvikt is a nice place to dine out in the Old Town area of Prague. Their building looked quite historical and, according to their website, has quite a rich history dating back to the 12th century. They serve Pilsner Urquell here.

Their menu was interesting in that there are many options for traditional Czech cuisine. We enjoyed a soup followed by a smoked sausage with mustard and a spicy sausage cooked in beer.

Brabantský Král

Brabantský Král has been in operation since 1375 and is Prague’s oldest continuously open tavern. It is also known as ‘The Medieval Tavern’ and is in the Lesser Town between the river and the castle.

The Medieval Tavern is an interesting multi-floored building with a cellar where they host medieval banquets. The food at Brabantský Král is delicious, including some tasty grilled meats.

Konirna

Near the Charles Bridge in the Lesser Town area is a delightful traditional restaurant called Konírna. The restaurant’s decor could be described as rustic and had some interesting art on the walls. We visited for a light lunch and a beer, so we opted for their soups. The beef soup and the chicken soup were both hearty and warming.

Restaurace U Mlynáře

Near St Nicholas Church in the Lesser Town is Restaurace U Mlynáře. It is a traditional Czech restaurant serving delicious, hearty food and beer. Their menu includes delightful feasts like pork knuckles and knees. They had a wonderful selection of light and dark beers; however, the Krusovice was the best. The service here was great, and the staff was friendly.

Na Ovocném Trhu

For a lovely traditional Czech meal in a pretty town square, visit Restaurant Na Ovocném Trhu. They are in a 14th-century building with a lovely outside terrace overlooking the buildings of the square. They serve a range of local dishes, all cooked nicely.

For a lovely lunch out, they do a Bohemian charcuterie platter with an array of cold meats. They serve this with bread, pickles, horseradish and mustard. This was very filling and would be ideal for sharing. For beer options here, try the rather unique 1454 Bakalar Pivo, a fantastic drink.

Restaurace U Provaznice

Near Wenceslas Square is Restaurace U Provaznice, a rather nice place that serves delicious food. Restaurace U Provaznice offers both indoor and outdoor seating. Their main beer is Pilsner Urquell, which, as usual, is fantastic.

We had a traditional spicy sausage to start with. And filled up with some goulash. They served this with dumplings, bread, red onions and some chilli for a kick.

U Vejvod. ů

In the side streets of Old Town Prague is U Vejvodů. They specialise in serving local beer and food, which is delicious and hearty. They have a lovely indoor dining area and an outdoor courtyard, which is rather popular in the evenings.

We drank a few glasses of Pilsner Urquell alongside a massive pork knee. They served this on a spit with sauces and bread for dipping. It was big enough to be shared; however, it was too late, as we had ordered one each.

U Dvou koček

Near Wenceslas Square is the fantastic U Dvou koček restaurant, which translates to In Two Cats. They are a traditional bar and eatery with over 400 years of history. U Dvou koček has been cooking authentic Czech dishes since 1678.

They have a selection of regional beers, including Kočka světlá and other local beers. For something unique, they have live accordion music playing every day. They have a lovely dining room and a few outside tables too.

Their food menu has loads of traditional Czech options, all of which look fantastic. When dining here, I enjoyed the hunger-busting Czech Bastion. This included lots of meats, including duck, pork neck, smoked neck, and veal sausage, and was served with white and red cabbage alongside a variation of dumplings. My wife had the Moravian sparrow, which comes with potato dumplings and spinach.

Pilsner restaurant U Viléma

Another lovely restaurant that we visited was the good-value Pilsner restaurant U Viléma. It is a neighbourhood restaurant to the north of Prague Castle. They have both indoor and outdoor seating, which is nice to have the choice between.

They serve a range of traditional Czech food, and what we tried was delicious. Their menu varies by day and features lots of meat dishes. I ate a mixed grill with fries and green beans. They also serve fantastic draught beer and local wines.

Staročeská krčma

One of our regular haunts while staying at Hostel Dakura near Prague Castle was Staročeská krčma. It is a lovely venue with a decorative interior and on-street side seating. They are a top establishment for a beer, lunch or an evening meal.

They served a selection of draught beers, including Pilsner Urquell. Their menu had some fantastic options for hearty traditional cuisine.

For starters, the standout options were their soups and potato croquettes, which they served with a berry-flavoured bread.

For main courses, we enjoyed many items from their menu, including ribs, pork, dumplings and chicken wings.

Havelská Koruna

The value eatery we found on a blog was Havelská Koruna. This is a self-service canteen serving Czech food and a few beer options. This included the delightful Budvar that complemented our meal.

They had a few seating options, including benches, booths and a garden-type table. The food choice of the day was the Czech take on goulash. I chose the spicy goulash, which they served with dumplings. To be honest, I was not expecting the food to be excellent at such a cheap eatery.

U Schnellu

Near St Nicholas Church in the Lesser Town is U Schnellu. It is a nice place to visit for food and drinks. U Schnellu has a nice dining room and some outside seating too. On our visit, we enjoyed some local beers while people-watching on the street.