Vinohrady
Vinohrady is one of the most elegant residential neighbourhoods in Prague. During the 19th century, the landscape was covered in rose gardens, orchards and vineyards (vinohrady) running down the gentle slope towards the River Vltava and the centre of Prague. Vinohrady is now one of the most stylish districts in the city, its broad tree-lined boulevards and colourful squares offering an exceptional array of architectural styles from Neo-Renaissance and Art Nouveau to Pseudo Baroque and Neo-Gothic. Within these doors are to be found some of the hippest and exciting cafes, bars, restaurants and clubs in Europe. The district’s charming Riegrovy-sady and Havlíčkovy-sady parks provide a very pleasant relief from the sometimes maddening crowds of the centre. One could quite happily while away a few days just hanging out in Vinorady alone – although, of course, that would be missing the bigger picture. The city centre is extremely easy to reach – either three metro stops on the A-line or two subway stations on Tram 11, or just an undemanding ten minute stroll through some of the most spectacular streetscapes of Prague.
Five things to do in Vinohrady
- Spend a sunny evening in the beer garden in Riegrovy Sady
- Have a glass of wine in the folly midst fabulous vineyards in Havlickovy Sady
- Relax on a bench or on the grass, people-watching in Namesti Miru
- Take a stroll up Manesova, popping into the numerous antique shops and cafés
- See a play at the Vinohrady theatre in Namesti Miru
Bars & Restaurants
- Sahara Café
- Radost Fx Café
- Olympos
- Aromi
- The restaurant group Ambiente www.ambi.cz has an increasing number of locations around town, including the Café Savoy and Degustation. The original one is on Manesova – American style food.
- Trattoria Rocca on Anny Letensky is an authentic Bolognese eatery
- A good Czech pub in the neighbourhood is Hlucna Samota on Belgicka, and further along is the chilled out Meduza café.
Shopping
There are two excellent Italian delis nearby, one on Americka and the other on Rimska, as well as an excellent Greek deli, ‘Greek corner ‘ on Francouska 31 just round the corner.
For Asian foods (fresh lemongrass etc) there is a shop on Korunni street, while for Middle Eastern and Indian supplies you take tram 22 or 23 to Farah orientální potraviny, Myslíkova 5.
There are various Chinese run corner shops. The best of these is our local. Turn right out of the door and head up to Francouska, it’s the first on the left. Continue down to the next block to get to the 24Hr supermarket.
The international supermarkets are Albert in the Vinohrady Pavilion on Vinohradska or Tesco on Belehradska, but the nearby Czech one on Francouska stays open 24 hours.
The best shop of all is the Vietnamese owned food store on the corner of Belehradska & Tylovo Nam, which also has great value wine. There is a fresh bagel kiosk opposite. If you continue down (towards Wenceslas Sq) Belehradska you come to International Nuts, opposite Radost, which has a wide variety of herbs, spices and exotic foods.
For the best meat go to Yorkshire butcher Robertsons www.bacon.cz
For a health food shop head to Vinoradska.
There is a Dutch-owned international cheese shop on Jugoslavska, and the Musso Patisserie ( www.musso-praha.com ) on Italska has the best pastries and chocolate in all of Prague.
For toiletries your best bet is DM on Francouska.