Gluten-Free In Prague

[NJKen]

My wife and I spent a week in Prague this month to celebrate our anniversary. Uncertain how easily we would find gluten-free foods in the grocery stores (we had rented an apartment), we brought a large amount of gluten-free food with us from the US. We needn't have bothered.

Our rented apartment was in Praha 2, just off Belehradska. The Billa grocery store just around the corner from us on Belehradska had a display full of gluten-free breads, pastas, cookies, etc. There appeared to be no breakfast cereal, but we later decided that the chocolate-flavored amaranth "Viky" that we bought was intended to be cereal, not cookies.

Also on Belehradsa (address Belehradska 87), closer to the National Museum, was a Diana International Food bakery that had fresh-baked gluten-free desserts in addition to gluten-free packaged foods. I believe that the fresh-baked goods are brought in from somewhere else in Prague; this location also sells non-gluten-free foods. There are several branches of the Diana bakery in Prague, but we only visited this one, about three blocks south of the museum.

Several other grocery stores that we stopped in had some gluten-free products.

The best part of our visit (in terms of food) was our meals at a restaurant that we learned about only a few weeks before going. Na Zlate Krizovatce serves Czech and international specialties, and is entirely gluten-free. It is located on Za Poricskou branou in Praha 8, about a block from the Florenc metro stop, and just a few blocks from Obecni dum in the old town. Their website is www.nazlatekrizovatce.cz .

We had beef goulash with potato pancakes (me) and salmon with dried tomato salsa (my wife) and a dessert of apple strudel on our first visit, and then returned three days later on our wedding anniversary and had chicken with cream sauce and homemade spaetzle (me) and homemade gnocchi with gorgonzola cream (my wife) and a dessert of cinnamon pancakes with warmed-up berries ("forest fruits") and sour cream. Everything was delicious, including the bottle of Bohemian Sekt that we finished on our anniversary evening. The more expensive of the two evenings cost us just 1000 crowns including the tip, about $53 at the current rate of exchange.

The restaurant is below street level on a quiet block and has a nice atmosphere. Our first visit was on a day that we hadn't had lunch and arrived at 3:30; no one else was there throughout our dinner. Our second visit began just a little later in the day (perhaps 4:00), and five other tables had diners by the time we left. Service was good--not overly attentive, but there when we needed it, and of course no smiles; that wouldn't be Czech. I highly recommend this restaurant to anyone on this board who is visiting Prague, or will be within 100 km of Prague.

We did not get to the Country Life Restaurant in the center of the city that apparently has gluten-free menu items. We did eat one meal at the Nordsee on Na Prikope near the Estates Theatre and Wenceslaus Square. Nordsee is a seafood buffet restaurant chain with many branches in Germany and Austria; most of the fish is breaded, but not the salmon. The cc risk may be too great for some, though I believe that ordering something like the pre-made paella would reduce the risk. Be aware that the side dishes cost extra, so our buffet meal at Nordsee cost not much less than the upscale dinner at Na Zlate Krizovatce.

We had a wonderful time in Prague celebrating 20 years together. I hope that this information is helpful to others considering a visit.

[researchmomma]

I am so glad you enjoyed Prague. I just returned from living there for two years. I laughed when I read "no smiles, that wouldn't be Czech". Boy are you right about that.

We weren't gluten free in Prague, although I wish my daughter had been diagnosed there since they are very familiar with Celiac disease and gluten intolerance. It would have been so much easier than dealing with the ignorant US docs.

I will be back in April and I am happy to see all the gluten free options.

Thank you so much!

[BabsV]

Wow, this is great info. We aren't far from Prague by car (we're in Krakow, Poland) so we might head down for a long weekend. Thanks for sharing all this.