I've owed this review to Kulový Blesk for a long time, but I wanted to have a go at their food first, something that for many reasons I was only able to do the other day.
Kulový Blesk is located on Sokolská, one of the most awful streets in Prague and a great example of the shortsightedness of the Communist regime (laying a motorway across the centre of a major city, the only one in the world that has to stop to let the tram pass, brilliant idea). It's incredibly noisy there, walking along is horrible (and I can't even imagine what it must be like to live over it) and so pedestrian traffic is almost non-existent. If it wasn't for the Pivní Info server I don't think I would have found it. And what a pity it would have been.
At street level there is a rather pleasant looking, and surprisingly not too noisy, patio (without service), the hospoda proper is in a deep cellar and it's divided in several small rooms. All of them are non-smoking and are decorated with worn out, hand painted looking furniture and posters and screen-shots of Czech Film classics, which give the place more a café-restaurant feel rather than a pub.
It is also one of the many hospody that has decided to cut ties with the big brands adopting instead the rotating beer model, in this case on 9 taps with rather inconsistent choice in terms of variety. The breweries that have a more or less permanent presence include Primátor, Kocour, Matuška and lately it seems also Kout (which the other day was tapped better than at Lípy), all in very good condition.
Based on what I had the other day, and references I've seen here and there, the food might not be memorable, but it's still pretty good (the spanělský ptáček I had there, together with its sauce, was lovely, unlike the rice).
But the best of Kulový Blesk, and what gave me a great impression from my very first visit, is the service. Just like at Pivovarský Klub at its best, the staff is well informed about the beers they are selling. The times I've been there in the early afternoon, when the place is really quiet (I really love going for a pint at that hour) whoever was manning (or womanning) the taps asked me how liked my beer, and not in the robotic fashion of chain restaurants, neither like someone sucking up to get a bigger tip, but with genuine interest that more than once resulted in a short chat about the rest of the beer list or other beers they had in their cellar. And they are not only well informed, but are also able to recommend and seem to enjoy doing so. When I went there for lunch the place was very busy, but still the servers were glad to take the necessary time to explain the beer list to those who were expecting to find Pilsner Urquell, and also suggest something based on the client's tastes, resulting, every time, in satisfied, and pleasantly surprised, patrons.
Definitely a very recommendable place that deserves more recognition. If you are in Prague, don't miss it.
Na Zdraví!
Kulový Blesk
Sokolská 13, Praga 2
+420 721 420 859
PD: Sorry for the lack of photos. I think I've lost them, will add some as soon as I make new ones...
3 stars Hotels in Prague with 75% discount.
Kulový Blesk is located on Sokolská, one of the most awful streets in Prague and a great example of the shortsightedness of the Communist regime (laying a motorway across the centre of a major city, the only one in the world that has to stop to let the tram pass, brilliant idea). It's incredibly noisy there, walking along is horrible (and I can't even imagine what it must be like to live over it) and so pedestrian traffic is almost non-existent. If it wasn't for the Pivní Info server I don't think I would have found it. And what a pity it would have been.
At street level there is a rather pleasant looking, and surprisingly not too noisy, patio (without service), the hospoda proper is in a deep cellar and it's divided in several small rooms. All of them are non-smoking and are decorated with worn out, hand painted looking furniture and posters and screen-shots of Czech Film classics, which give the place more a café-restaurant feel rather than a pub.
It is also one of the many hospody that has decided to cut ties with the big brands adopting instead the rotating beer model, in this case on 9 taps with rather inconsistent choice in terms of variety. The breweries that have a more or less permanent presence include Primátor, Kocour, Matuška and lately it seems also Kout (which the other day was tapped better than at Lípy), all in very good condition.
Based on what I had the other day, and references I've seen here and there, the food might not be memorable, but it's still pretty good (the spanělský ptáček I had there, together with its sauce, was lovely, unlike the rice).
But the best of Kulový Blesk, and what gave me a great impression from my very first visit, is the service. Just like at Pivovarský Klub at its best, the staff is well informed about the beers they are selling. The times I've been there in the early afternoon, when the place is really quiet (I really love going for a pint at that hour) whoever was manning (or womanning) the taps asked me how liked my beer, and not in the robotic fashion of chain restaurants, neither like someone sucking up to get a bigger tip, but with genuine interest that more than once resulted in a short chat about the rest of the beer list or other beers they had in their cellar. And they are not only well informed, but are also able to recommend and seem to enjoy doing so. When I went there for lunch the place was very busy, but still the servers were glad to take the necessary time to explain the beer list to those who were expecting to find Pilsner Urquell, and also suggest something based on the client's tastes, resulting, every time, in satisfied, and pleasantly surprised, patrons.
Definitely a very recommendable place that deserves more recognition. If you are in Prague, don't miss it.
Na Zdraví!
Kulový Blesk
Sokolská 13, Praga 2
+420 721 420 859
PD: Sorry for the lack of photos. I think I've lost them, will add some as soon as I make new ones...
3 stars Hotels in Prague with 75% discount.
It isn't short sightedness, it is strategic to put a highway through the centre of a city, it makes it easier to get tanks and the like into the centre of a town in the event of a rebellion or counter-revolution, so you could argue that it was long-sighted because they saw the possibility of such an event and prepared for it.
ReplyDeleteHmm.... I doubt even a Soviet Armored division could move very fast in rush hour...
ReplyDeleteI wonder if that's what the council in Glasgow was thinking too ...
ReplyDeleteThey would just drive over the traffic!
ReplyDelete