Eating - Prague and the Czech Republic - page 135

the Legií Bridge on Národní street), is a fixture in Prague, famous
as a hangout for its literary elite. Today, it's tired and clearly past its
prime, with an Art Deco interior, lousy piano entertainment, and
celebrity photos on the wall. But its iconic status makes it a fun
stop for a coffee—skip the food (daily 8:00-23:00, sit as near the
river as possible, tel. [phone]). Notice the Drinker of Absinthe
painting on the wall (and on the menu for 55 Kč)—with the iconic
Czech writer struggling with reality.
Café Louvre is a longtime elegant favorite (opened in 1902)
that still draws an energetic young crowd. From the big and
busy Národní street, you walk upstairs into a venerable world of
newspapers on sticks (including English) and waiters in vests and
aprons. The back room has long been the place for billiard tables
(100 Kč/hr). An English flier tells its history (200-Kč plates, 120-
Kč two-course lunch offered 11:00-15:00, open daily 8:00-23:30,
Národní 22, see “New Town” map on page 122, tel. [phone]).
Grand Café Orient is just two f lights up off busy Celetná
street, yet a world away from the crush of tourism below. Located
in the Black Madonna House, the café is upstairs from the
Museum of Czech Cubism (see page 60) and fittingly decorated
with a Cubist flair. With its stylish, circa-1910 decor toned to dark
green, this space is full of air and light—and a good value as well
(salads, sandwiches, great balcony seating, Mon-Fri 9:00-22:00,
Sat-Sun 10:00-22:00, Ovocný Trh 19, at the corner of Celetná
near the Powder Tower, tel. [phone]).
Café Montmartre, on a small street parallel to Karlova, com-
bines Parisian ambience with unbeatable Czech prices. Dreamy
Czech minds found their asylum here after Grand Café Slavia (see
above) and other longtime favorites either closed down or became
stuck in their past. The main room is perfect for discussing art and
politics, while the intimate room behind the courtyard is where
you recite poetry to your date (Mon-Fri 9:00-23:00, Sat-Sun
12:00-23:00, Řetězová 7, tel. [phone]).
Ebel Coffee House, in the Ungelt courtyard behind the Týn
Church, is the local Starbucks—priding itself on its wide assort-
ment of fresh coffee from every coffee-growing country in the
world, inviting cakes, and a colorful setting that delights the mind
as much as the caffeine (daily 9:00-22:00, Týn 1, tel. [phone]).
John & George Café, in the courtyard on the other side of
the Lennon Wall, is a secluded spot serving raspberry drinks, fresh
sandwiches, and Italian coffee next to a flower garden, an English
lawn, and one of the oldest trees in Prague (daily 11:00-22:00,
Velkopřevorské Náměstí 4, look for small gate at left end of Lennon
Wall, entrance to indoor seating area is another 20 yards to the left,
see “Little Quarter” map on page 120, tel. [phone]).