Follow this route and you will see and taste it yourself. Prague is so pretty it almost hurts.
During the Cold War Czechoslovakia belonged to the
Eastern Bloc. The times when Czechoslovaks faced persecution, for trying to
emigrate across the Iron Curtain are long over. This is the beauty of Europe,
you can go wherever you want, whenever you want. Travelling is an easy process.
I intensely hope that others value this freedom as much as I do.
Charles Bridge
The historic centre of
Prague is UNESCO World Heritage-listed. Start your walk on the
one and only Charles Bridge, you know the early bird catches the worm, go
early, chances are the streets of the old town are still deserted and there are
only a few hundred instead of thousands on the bridge. Special experience
really.
From here, distance to the first stop: Walk 270
metres to Cafe Kaficko.
Cafe Kaficko
Step away from the billions of visitors on
Charles Bridge. This café is literally only a few steps from it. What a super
friendly place. This is obviously a café operated by a person who has their own
style, and understands how to make everybody feel welcome. There are no shiny
subway tiles, there are no Xavier Pauchard Tolix chairs, there isn't even one
single bit of concrete floor, nor are there any exposed brick walls. This is a
place where you see clumsy teenagers, solo tourists, young mothers and cheerful
pensioners happily sipping hot drinks.
The Espresso is yum and I thoroughly enjoy
the normality of this place until the lady at the counter tells me they are
going to close towards the end of March. They have been here for 12 years, and
now there is a new owner … she doesn’t go any further. I hope they find a new
rooms, that suit their style, and where they can spread the love.
Cafe Kaficko, Míšeňská
67/10, Malá Strana.
From here, distance to the second stop: Walk 22
metres to Cafe Misenska.
Kafe Misenska
Walk through the gateway to get to this
place. It is newly refurbished, the floor looks like it was just laid,
everything is fresh and new and welcoming, and there is outdoor seating
decorated with table lamps, framed black and white prints and armchairs. Inside
the cafe, the small counter, more framed photos, wooden chairs and just a bit
of blue colour create a fun and friendly atmosphere. The Espresso has been
served with a smile.
Kafe Misenska. Míšeňská 71/3, Malá Strana.
Open 2pm to 12am.
From here, distance to third stop: Walk 110
metres to Bakeshop Little Bakery.
Bakeshop Little Bakery
Modern, fresh-looking café that gets their beans from La
Boheme coffee roasters (remember I had these in part one). This is a really
pleasant place, you will leave feeling uplifted. Nearby you find two men
urinating on Prague, yes really, it is a piece of art by artist David Cerny
(Cihelna 2). Go to Part One of the coffee walk to read about another piece of
his work.
Bakeshop, U Lužického semináře 99/22, Malá
Strana. Please visit the website for opening hours.
From here, distance to fourth stop: Walk 3.1
kilometres to Cafe Letka.
 |
| FLTR: Cafe Kaficki, Entrance Kaficki, Kafe Misenska, David Cerny Art, Bakeshop Little Bakery |
After three coffees so far, we go for an ever
so slightly longer walk. Prague is famous for its
historical Old Town and Malá Strana. But now
we go and ‘chzech’ out Holešovice. From Malá
Strana make your way towards and through Letná Park.
The view from the hill in the park over Prague is magnificent and the people on
Charles Bridge look like an army of ants. The suburb used to be an
old farming village (that was like centuries ago) and in more recent history it
was an industrial hub with abattoirs, gas works, electric companies, we can
well imagine the noise and dirt.
The gentrification in this part of town is in full swing. There are a
lot of cafes and little independent stores. Traces of a life under communist
rule are still apparent but I can imagine that soon there won’t be any
difference to any western city anymore.
Cafe Letka
This corner café is part of the theatre
Pidivadlo. Plastered walls, wooden second-hand school furniture (seemingly hot
right now, all over the world) and the old fashioned dark grey lacquered
counter give the cafe a homey atmosphere. I didn’t see a play at the theatre,
but watched this scene which was equally stimulating: I sat next to a 'pretty'
young family with a baby in a very expensive stroller. The two, dressed in
something striped and dark blue pants, looked sniffy at the two young children
who were there together with their heavily tattooed mother with ringed fingers
dressed in a tight sleeveless shirt, they had to share a table with.
Flat White plus chia pudding was yummy, the
service was as super welcoming as it was swift.
From here, distance to fifth stop: Walk 500
metres to Bistro 8.
Bistro 8
It is all here: white-ish interior, subway
tiles under a wooden workbench, locally sourced ingredients, friendly staff and
specialty coffee (beans are from Bonanza Coffee Roasters, Berlin). Maybe you are
so lucky and can try their Kombucha flavoured with lime, ginger and hibiscus.
Heaven.
From here, distance to sixth stop: Walk 1.9 kilometres to Kavárna Kočičí.
From Holešovice I walked over the River Vltava to Karlín, Prague's
oldest neighbourhood. Settlement in this area is fairly new. At least one reason
that building of a residential area began only in 1817 was the danger of
flooding.
The floods of 2002 put Karlín three metres (and more) under water, and
that damaged the neighbourhood hugely. If I wouln't have known better, I would
have thought this part of town always looked this quaint. Today there are parks
and gardens and residential streets lined with 19th century properties, many
small stores and cafes. There are many recently renovated Art Nouveau facades.
Kavárna Kočičí
You should really meet Barbuška, Cinnamon, Matysek,
Maggie, Tulip or one of the other cats who live at this place. I drank a thick and delicious hot dark chocolate and cuddled
the cats (of course).
Kavarna Kocici, Křižíkova 22, Karlín. Please visit the website for opening hours.
From here, distance to seventh stop: Walk 650
metres to Muj Salek Kavy. On the way have a look at the Church of
Saints Cyril and Methodius.
Můj šálek kávy
While I walked around Karlín, I went into
this café, better say I 'squeezed' into it, and couldn’t sit down, it was too
busy. This café is owned by local coffee roaster Doubleshot. I had a glimpse
around the cafe and sensed there was a pretty lovely atmosphere. Just in case
you wonder there is exposed brickwork, yes. This place would have absolutely
been my cup of tea. You probably didn’t notice, but I just did something very
smart just now. The Czech name of the café translates to "my cup of
tea" in English. I was dying to sit down at one of the tables, and I still
hope I can do this the next time I visit. This time I drank my flat white on
the street.
Můj šálek kávy, Křižíkova 386/105, Karlín. Please visit the website for opening hours.
From here, distance to eighth stop: Walk 110
metres to Globus.
Globus
Escellent place to end the walk with a drink.
I drank a massive jug of homemade lemonade here.
Verdict Prague Coffee Scene
My verdict is that the Prague coffee scene is
amazing. If you are into coffee (if it is your cup of tea) you really have to visit. After two days of visiting cafes I can’t say which place has the
best coffee since I didn’t drink one that was bad. It so often depends on the
skill of the barista who prepares the coffee. If I would have to name a
favourite I would probably say it is La Boheme Café (see in part one), the
taste of the flat white made me seriously happy.
What do you think? Do you like to walk around
a town to discover new places? Can’t wait to hear from you.
From Berlin with love