It’s been a few months since my visit to go and see a friend living over in the Czech Republic’s second city, but I thought the trip definitely warranted some words for those considering a trip out in that direction for something of a slightly different pace. Flying out from the UK to Brno is an awkward proposition, the easiest route for us from Liverpool John Lennon was to fly into Bratislava, the Slovakian capital and take 3 changes (two trolleybus/trams onto a coach) to get into Brno. The trip was a little more stressful than it needed to be with neither myself or my companion speaking any Slovak; the older generation do seem to be responsive to German however. Nevertheless, we arrived in Brno in one piece with the travel costing us in the region of £7-8 in total from Bratislava airport to the coach station in Brno. The first night, my friend living in Brno collected us from the (very desolate, it has to be said) coach station to drop our bags and then go and find something to eat and drink. Not much after an hour passed before we were sat in ‘STOPKOVA PLZENSKA PIVNICE’ [http://www.kolkovna.cz/index.php?show=hot&place=16]a bar/restaurant supposedly of some renown for serving good beer and pretty authentic Czech dishes. A steak with cream and cranberries was placed in front of me, known locally as svíčková, I was initially bemused by the offering of such things, but any apprehension gave way to hunger. The meat was actually perfectly cooked, the dumplings were excellently seasoned and provide enough stodge to fill me up, although I did try the cream and fruit with the dish, it is not something I was overly fussed on revisiting. My companion was struggling to select something suitable as this part of the world is not exactly known for its vegetarian offerings, but the sight of Cheese on the menu piqued interest; the sight of it being deep fried even more so. This was a definite theme throughout the trip involving cheese, breadcrumbs and vats of oil where food was concerned; however, this first venture into such heavy and decadent food was pleasant. There was no residual trace of oil on the wedges of cheese in a light breadcrumb and it was served with bootlace fries and salad, it therefore provided an excellent companion to the Pilsner Urquell on offer. If you want to eat here, it is best to try and book a table in advance as it does get quite busy of an evening; be wary that places like this do not have a smoking ban either, so you may need to request a non-smoking table. A few bars and many beers later, it was time to rest, the next day we were due to have a wander around the town and then catch up with a few of my friend’s other acquaintances for lunch and a few drinks (it would have been rude not to partake when this country provides amongst the finest pilsner and lager beers in the world). ‘PIVNI OPICE’ (Beer monkey)[http://www.pivniopice.cz/] was our next port of call following a wander around past the Ossuary (bone storage place, macabre yet interesting), castle and cathedral. Pivni Opice is a relatively small basement bar that houses quite a relaxed atmosphere and very reasonably priced selection of food, with the usual czech cuisine augmented by some burgers, ribs and schnitzel dishes. The beer, is as always in this part of the world, very very good and cheaper here than in many other bars around the town. There is plenty of seating during the day and it does get a little busier in the evenings, but the atmosphere remains very relaxed and the service competent. There are a mix of higher tables and standard height dining arrangements, with a warmth to the place given partially by wooden decor and low ceilings. The food was superb value, with the plates of chicken legs and ribs with salads and bread being more than enough for one person, whilst the burgers and portions of the fried cheese are pretty much plentiful for even the most gluttonous of visitors. The quality of the food was nothing mind blowing, but for somewhere to grab a relaxed and cheap (it's under five pounds (UK) for a large burger with bacon, egg and salad with fries and three beers at the time of the visit) bite to eat and a decent beer, you can't go too far wrong with this enjoyable establishment! The city then became a bit of a blur of bars and pubs thanks partly to some overindulgence and partly thanks to a very unusual 24 hour dose of a heavy cold which miraculously cleared up by the end of our second day in Brno. On place that stood out if not on novelty value, but also on the portion sizes on offer, with numerous branches across the Czech republic THE PUB [http://www.thepub.cz/brno/?lng=en] specialises in free pour beer (i.e. you pour your own drinks from a central tap on each table). Although there are other beers on offer, the chance to ‘race’ against other people in the bar and indeed against those drinking in Prague or Ostrava is quite some novelty. The beer itself is massively drinkable and as stated, the food is a good companion to a convivial affair, pizzas, burgers and steaks all cooked well and reasonably priced. Needless to say, with three of us having a go at the pumps, we were quite outgunned by a table in Prague sinking twice as much beer (likely having twice as many people – at least we hope so). A few more beers were taken in along with watching a Davis Cup match (featuring the Czech Republic in the final, which they won) with some locals wrapped in the Czech flag and clearly very proud of their team in a restaurant/Beer Hall called ‘ÁČKO’. Besides the smoky atmosphere, it was pretty loud and an evidently popular place with the locals with various progressive rock band album sleeves scattered around the ledges in the main room at the back of Áčko. The beer was as it was elsewhere on our trip, cheap and very drinkable and pilsner style lager, there were plates of deep fried cheese brought out to us on a couple of occasions, but it was a struggle to stay too long in such a smoke filled room. POTREFENA HUSA [http://www.potrefenahusabrno.cz/] was visited later, sat in a very central location in Brno, this place was a very enjoyable place to visit and eat/drink in. The modern surroundings of the bar and a good atmosphere twinned with the food and drink makes for this to be a place very high on the list worth visiting in Brno. Its location lends itself to making it a good bar to finish a night on, along with beer snacks and food served until fairly late (although not all night - after 10 the kitchen may be closed). The snacks include excellent pickled cheeses (in oil, spring onion and peppers), which to some might not sound too appetising along with a few pints, but you'd be very surprised and pleased with the range of food on offer. It is towards the pricey and of bars in Brno, likely and quite noisy, with a much younger clientele compared to many of the other bars around, but it is still worth popping in for a drink. The return visit to Bratislava was intended to be brief, with only a few hours to kill until the return flights to Liverpool scheduled for 9pm, alas our stay was extended until 1pm the following day – without the ability to experience more of the city’s hospitality. The time that was spent there was used to wander to the Parliament and Castle, gaining excellent (if somewhat fog-hampered) views of the Danube and some good photographs of the interesting architecture on show. One thing that grabbed my companion and I was some of the brilliant graffiti that was hidden away in various parts of the city, the photos I have included are not necessarily in keeping with the main remit of this blog, but are worthy of inclusion from an artistic viewpoint. Only one visit was made for food and yet again, the deep fried cheese was on offer at the SLOVAK PUB [http://www.slovakpub.sk/], who were we to refuse? CLICK ON THE PHOTOS BELOW TO ENLARGE.... Flying into Bratislava airport and planning an onward journey in this part of Europe is relatively easy to handle given a bit of research; Ostrava, Prague, Brno, Budapest and Vienna are all within a few hours by coach, meaning a weekend break could see you take in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia and Austria with a single flight. You’ll need 3 sets of currency though!
Until next time, hopefully you enjoyed my little tour.... Pedro x
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