The Czech Republic - Eastern Europe - page 262

Moments

A Renaissance Pub Endures

Most visitors don't venture far enough into the castle to experience this
place during the day or night. That's their loss, for I've experienced one of
my finest dining experiences in the Czech Republic at Krcma Markéta,
Zámek 62 ( & 380-711-453 ).
To get here, walk all the way up the hill through the castle, past the
Horní Hrad (Upper Castle) and past the Zámecké divadlo (Castle Theater).
Walk through the raised walkway and into the Zámecká zahrada (Castle
Garden), where you'll eventually find this Renaissance pub.
When you go inside, you'll feel as if you've left this century. Unfortu-
nately, one of the pub's main draws, former owner Robin Kratochvíl, is
gone. The new owners have traded in Kratochvíl's big-enough-to-turn-a-
Volkswagen tongs for a set of racks where the meat cooks; they brought in
sets of plates, as opposed to the original wooden blocks on which food used
to be served; and there is even a menu now. But still go up to the fire and
see what's roasting; usually there's a wide variety of meats, including succu-
lent pork cutlets, rabbit, chickens, and pork knees, a Czech delicacy. When
the plate comes, don't wait for the vegetables. (Vegetarian dishes are avail-
able, however.) Before the night is over, you'll probably find yourself talk-
ing to someone else at the pub's large wooden tables.
Krcma Markéta is open April to October, Tuesday to Sunday from 6 to
11pm, and main courses cost 75Kc to 155Kc ($3.10-$6.45/£2-£3).

tables and benches are part of the thematic restaurant on the ground floor, where a
traditional Czech menu is served. The terrace on the bank of the Vltava River above
the water channel here is a super place to sit in the summer.
Siroká 80. & 380-712-838. www.krumlovskymlyn.cz. Main courses 150Kc-425Kc ($6.25-$18/£3-£9). No credit
cards. Daily 10am-10pm.
Inexpensive
Hospoda Na louzi CZECH The large wooden tables encourage you to get to
know your neighbors at this Inner Town pub, located in a 15th-century house. The
atmosphere is fun and the food above average. If no table is available, stand and have
a drink; tables turn over pretty quickly, and the staff is accommodating. In summer,
the terrace seats only six, so dash over if a seat empties.
Kájovská 66. & 380-711-280. Main courses 58Kc-158Kc ($2.40-$6.60/£1-£3). No credit cards. Mon-Sat
10am-11pm; Sun 10am-10pm.
CESKÉ BUDÊJOVICE
147km (91 miles) S of Prague
This fortress town was born in 1265, when Otakar II decided that the intersection of
the Vltava and Mal s e rivers would be the site of a bastion to protect the approaches to
southern Bohemia.
Today, C eské Bud ê jovice, the hometown of the original Budweiser brand beer, is
now more a bastion for the beer drinker than a protector of Bohemia.