Purple prose. Hmm, learned a new term there, thanks! As far as I understand what you say, noma really was a purple prose. To me.

Do you know of any restaurant in Prague that’s able to provide what you’re looking for?

What about the Kruts absinthe, have you ever tried that?

Trine

The words “honesty and dedication” appeal to me. It’s something that you can sense sometimes when you first sit down – like a 6th sense. The pleasure of anticipation, when this happens, is truly joyful. A long lunch streches out before you, waiting…like a friend you haven’t yet met. Purple prose? Maybe, but heartfelt.

But it’s a problem. When your foreign and go to a new city – where and how to find the nice spots with high quality ingredients and honesty and dedication?

Every city should have a guide, where people write their opinion about eating and other amusements. Like the mitKBH on Copenhagen for example, but in Danish.

So far, I haven’t had much time to explore WordPress. Unfortunately. I’ve browsed around Robert-Gilles Martineau’s blogs a little. Why do you ask?

LOL Welcome! A friend of mine had a bottle of red wine “served” on his shirt. The manager came over and said that he wouldn’t charge for the full bottle – only what was left! This is Prague. It is getting better, though.

Those places that you mention are very expensive:

Traditional Czech Potato Soup: 195,- Traditional Czech Crispy Duck, Red Cabbage, Bacon Dumplings and Dripping Pancake 495,>

Crazy! and if you wish to eat this kind of food, then this is not the place anyway. I also note the trite Asian element to the menu:

“Chicken Soup with Fresh Galgan, Coriander and Coconut Cream” 245,-

Again, a crazy price and from what I hear, very average.

This one made me smile: “Grilled norwegian salmon with Panko crust, udon noodles with enoki mushrooms, sun dried tomatoes and spring onion: 445,” Those sun dried tomatoes again!.. looks pretty on the plate, I guess! This is the definition of CON – fusion.

Years ago (mid 90s) I went to their first place. The service was shocking…in that one felt as if the staff were trained at a boot camp. Every few minutes the waitress appeared and did something – the final straw was the uninvited appearance of a cheese trolley, like a tank rolling in. Very stressful and pretensious. This is the problem with many so called “high end” restaurants, which are merely shimmering mirages of gastronomy.

I find that one should eat either in “mom and pop” style eateries, or places that are truly committed to their craft, and have a quiet self confidence.

Sermon ends

Do you read Robert-Gilles Martineau’s blogs?

I tried the Czech absinthe last year and also the French variant, which I liked more, in Paris in a not recommendable restaurant. However, they do know how to serve it – a small tower arrived with ice on the top and little taps round it to pour the water drop by drop onto the absinthe spoon melting the sugar (?) down to the green liquid. It was so funny to see how people at other tables also ordered this booze afterwards.

Anyways, I don’t like the chain concepts much, when it results in mainstream and no personality. The Mlynec restaurant though, part of the same group, was almost as nice as the Bellevue one, and I couldn’t really complain about their service. Especially, the Mlynec did a good job although there were almost 30 of us.

One last note on service in Prague. There is a place by the water front close to the Charles Bridge but on the castle side, where they served wine with the sick taste of cork and made me pay for the bad one as well as the one that was fine!

The Prague dining scene is influenced by tourism in the down town area. Things are better in Prague 2, and in some hidden corners of Staro Meste. The place that you mention, Bellevue, is part of a chain which I avoid; the foie gras was most likely Hungarian and good!! I love it with a simple chutney and brioche toast. The best I ever had was in a pub in Karlovy Vary during the annual film festival

Unfortunately there is a big problem with service standards in Prague.

Kruts Karport is a cafe and an absinthe! Here’s a picture:

http://buyabsinthe.wordpress.com/

The service at noma is great, personal, to the point and just right, right.

The Kruts Karport you mention is a bar/cafe they have absinthe, but I don’t think that they produce it themselves. In the old days it was the only place in Copenhagen where you could get this green drink.

But the absinthe you get in Czech Republic isn’t that different from the stuff they have in France and Switzerland?

Prague, by the way, I’ve had a couple of nice eating experiences there, Bellevue Restaurant for one – lovely foie gras I recall. At night, the view from the restaurant is magnificent with the lights on the castle and on the Charles Bridge.

Trine

Thanks so much for your very kind words.

Trine

Well dear Trine, having read your review I can honestly say…I want to go to Noma…..

Thanks for a beautiful nd interesting blog.