Bistro Karel — Restaurant in Prague

Bistro Karel is a charming restaurant/café in close proximity to Trojský zámek. The location is stunning, surrounded by gardens and a castle, I mean what can be better? The only downside is that it is quite far away from the city center but again it gives you an opportunity to visit the zoo or the botanical gardens which are a couple meters away.

The concept of the bistro is to rely heavily on homemade seasonal products, they ferment their own vegetables, make lemonades and all other products are locally sourced. Some of them you can even by in the "colonial" aka a small "grocery store".

I also love the décor and atmosphere of the place, it is kind of eclectic since most things are unique, like you´ll get coffee in a unique cup that doesn´t have a "sibling" etc. When it is nice outside you can also sit in the garden which is very convenient since the place is usually packed during brunch times on weekends.

In terms of the food, I have personally only tasted the sweet stuff. So before Christmas I got a platter of Christmas cookies, which were nice but didn´t impress me that much. I knew I had to return for some of their entrées to really judge the food quality. And so I did, I got their French toast with mascarpone and blueberries and oh boy, was it delicious! Soaked fluffy bread drenched in tangy blueberry sauce, topped with a decadent mascarpone with grated lemon zest. Very well balanced, not too sweet, and so filling. When I looked at the portion I was like, yeah one slice of bread, I´ll need to get something on top to feel satisfied but not at all! It is very filling and I highly recommend it.

Apart from food, I urge you to get coffee here, that´s how they started and till this day it is my favorite spot in Prague when I want to get a delicious latté!

I´m deducting one star from service, simply because when we visited last time the server forgot to bring us water and we had to ask twice. We also waited for our coffee for 30 minutes which I think is a bit too long. I understand, the restaurant was full but still we got our food earlier than our drinks which I didn´t appreciate. Still, the staff apologized so no bad feelings :)

Overall, highly recommend for a little...

It's like a luxury McDonald's. Don't get me wrong. Bistro Karel is usually a lovely place with cheerful service, excellent coffee, and great pastries. Just make sure you don’t hit the high season. When the zoo is bursting at the seams, Karel is barely a pleasant place. First, you have to pay 300 for parking. I consider it a contribution to the zoo, so I don’t get too upset. The price is evidently meant to discourage people from driving to the zoo, but it’s in vain. The parking lot was, even at this price, packed to the brim. Karel was full. In fact, more than full. The barking dogs, screaming children, and harried staff are the result of an enormous influx that the bistro can’t handle. I think that if they gave up table service during this period and let people buy things at the counter, they would fare better. Instead, they desperately run around, trying to look brave while failing miserably. It was not a good visit. If you’re going to the zoo with children, feel free to stop by. If you’re looking for a calm brunch with your partner, definitely...

I'm very sad I came here on the weekend, because their weekday menu looks way better, now that I'm checking out the photos 🥲 the food was good, but nothing exceptional. I enjoyed my meal, but felt sad to pay so much for it. Not to mention the soup I really wanted was already sold out 😭 which isn't the restaurant's fault, I just had to settle on something more expensive and less appealing to me. The peppers were nice, but a bit too charred to my liking, and combined with the green pepper it was just a bit too bitter.

The staff was really nice and attentive, the atmosphere was nice as well. I might try this again on a weekday and hope it's as good as everyone told me it would be, because I was slightly...