Bockem — Restaurant in Prague

I visited on a wintry evening on 29 January, alone, as I was travelling for work, and had the most welcoming and wonderful meal. It deserves its place in the Michelin Guide, and I'd go as far as to say that it deserves a star too. It's a real treat.

The tasting menu is really well balanced in terms of flavours, portion size, and a mix of tradition and modernity. I wanted a taste of Czechia in terms of food and drink, and I got it alongside plenty of other European influences.

The sour velouté was a standout dish, as was the beef cheek. The foie gras dessert was unusual and rich, and while I wouldn't select it in a future à la carte situation, it showed a bit of flair and made the end of the meal memorable. There are also a sprinkling of lovely complimentary dishes. Shout out to the krupicová kaše in particular. Wines were also delicious and priced well.

Service was warm, unobtrusive, and paced the arrival of dishes to perfection. I didn't feel hurried, but I also didn't become bored. I've noticed during my visit to Prague that compared to London restaurants...they do really want to convince you to select the wine pairing option, as it must especially support their profit margin during quieter times of the year. I did slightly feel that this was the case here. Once I'd declined twice, all was fine, though. Just a tip for fellow travellers that it seems to be part of the restaurant culture and it's up to you to be clear and polite in making sure the dining experience works for your own budget and alcohol tolerance.

The restaurant is quite small and seems to be in the more liveable part of the city, in contrast to the medieval section for tourists. It's a pleasant and safe 30 minute evening walk from where most hotels are based. You could probably cut that time in half with a tram ride. Oddly, it was almost empty for much of the evening. Perhaps that was due to it being midweek at the end of January, when there are fewer tourists and locals are still financially recovering from Christmas. Regardless, it deserved to be full. I visited another restaurant with a similar reputation the following night, several tables were full, and I didn't enjoy it nearly as much as Bockem.

Definitely plan ahead and book a table the next time you visit Prague, and if you're a local, support such a...

I paid a small fortune for a breakfast I hardly tried to love but I could not. I went for a brunch with a friend last Saturday and I was very excited after reading all nice reviews about this venue. Somehow I have missed the Michelin star part about it. It was a fixed menu with choices for starter, main course and a desert. We loved the service. Very professional, thoughtful and tried to please us however possible. Loved all three lemonades self fermented raspberry, rhubarb and apricot. We both had and loved the smoked trout starter. This was the best dish. Truly exceptional and ticked all the boxes. However I was truly disappointed by the main course menu options. Out of four dishes four included gluten. There was no option to replace the white bread with brown one. Gluten free option was available only upon prior request. However we did not make a reservation and therefore this was not an option. A big minus for a Michelin establishment. How is it possible to have four mains and all of them to include gluten? According to me this is a lack of variety and creativity. My friend loved her Benedict soufflé. I did find nothing but the good beef quality to praise about my Croque Monsieur for. The dessert I had was the famous porridge. It was tasty but again nothing exceptional apart from the story behind the recipe. The owner used to cook that porridge with his grandmother as a child. Very touching and nostalgic. I chose for the porridge just because I did not like the second desert option (poached pear). I am not allergic to gluten but my stomach does not feel good afterwards. For me brunch/breakfast never includes bread. My friend did not even finish her poached pear desert. She was honest and told our waiter that she did not like it. Sadly the whole experience did not meet our...

As a true breakfast lover I eat out a lot, locally and abroad. Always on the lookout for sth new and exciting. That’s why I thought Bockem its a place to see while visiting Prague.

First of all - the interior is exquisite, minimalistic and elegant. Downside is that the room is really small and very very noisy. It was often hard to keep the conversation going. I would not recommend this place to people with noise sensitivity.

Second of all - the staff, well trained and friendly. However some of them were simply too loud and too pushy. Our waitress forgot to explain how the beverage menu works.

Last but not least. The FOOD. Not worth its price, I am afraid. Regardless of its spotless presence, the taste was not what i’ve expected. It was just regular.

The worst thing after such an expensive meal is to admit that, you could have done much better at home..

Biggest surprise: prices of beverages. Nobody explained it in advanced and they were not incorporated into the menu. In our mind, it felt like they were included in the total price of the main meal. So imagine our surprise when we got the bill.

Overall, sadly, it was just a...