National Geographic Traveler

"The next best thing to being wise oneself is to live in a circle of those who are." - C.S. Lewis

National Geographic Traveler now has a web page showcasing 50 of the world's top destinations. It's called Places of a Lifetime.

The great cities of the world are represented. Prague is there, of course.

Basically, the Prague page gives an overview of the sights, entertainment, hotels, and such. There is a list of recommended restaurants, but I was not involved with that.

However, there is also a page of useful links. And there, you will find a link back to Prague's first English language blog dedicated to food and drink.

There is a good post there today about the National Geographic Traveler's Places of a Lifetime web page. I highly recommend it.

The Prague Post's Dave Faries - A Parody Review

i’m lovin’ it

McDonald's Big Mac consistently lands punches to the palate
Restaurant Review Archives
By Dave Faries*
Staff Writer, The Prague Post
January 29th, 2008 issue


If you’ve ever gotten drunk, read F. Scott Fitzgerald, and then tried to write a restaurant column, you’ll understand what I have to say about my visit to McDonald's.

It’s less “The Great Gatsby” and more “This Side of Paradise.”(1) But a comparison to Lewis Carroll’s “Through the Looking Glass” might be more appropriate (2).

Know what I mean? No? Well, it doesn't matter.

At the Wenceslas Square location, I went straight for the specialty that has brought this restaurant so much critical attention, the Big Mac. As Prague's foremost burger expert (3), I am able to discard personal likes and dislikes in favor of a hard-nosed assessment of this quintessentially American sandwich (4). 

Everyone knows it comes with two all-beef patties. However, if my Big Mac had one weakness, it was that the beef was not as grassy as I'd hoped. The meat should speak of freshly cut lawns on a hot summer day.

For example, I much preferred the grassy undertones of the steak at Gott Gallery (5). That was quite different than the almost grassy beef at La Veranda (6). Based on my experience, the filet at Monsoon rates higher on my grassy scale (7). But, I was also very impressed with the organic beef at La Degustation, which was redolent of the great green grass of Argentina (8).

Only true beef lovers and, of course, the more sophisticated restaurant critics, understand the importance of grassiness in a steak. I could write a whole column about it (9).

After the first bite of the Big Mac, I noticed a prick on my tongue. It's a sensation I'm always looking for. But it was nothing like the big prick that came with the freshly cracked pepper at Styl (10). It was more reminiscent of the little prick I had in my mouth after biting into that cod piece at Gordon Ramsay's place (11). Or maybe it was more like Karel Gott's timid prick (12) .

As many are aware, the Big Mac does not have the cloying tomato coulis that is so ubiquitous atop many of the restaurant's other offerings. It does have a so-called Special Sauce, which reminds one of the intricacy of a good mirepoix and indicates grounding in traditional cooking techniques (13). The onions were breviloquent (14). I didn't expect it, despite my exegetic reading of the menu and ingredients posted on the wall (15).

Let's talk about the pickles. These little circles of sourness wield daggers that jab your palate with impunity (16). The lettuce takes full advantage of the furious attack, parrying it with a watery blandness. 

Then, the salt hits you like uppercuts to the mouth that belt your palate with salvo after salvo of salinity. The violence of the toppings is only calmed by cheese (17). In the end, the sesame seed bun grabs them all and wrenches them to the ground (18).

As I see it, the Big Mac is Prague's best burger. It is even better than the Balkan pljeskavice at Mon Ami, which I consider a hamburger, but which laymen bloggers think is crazy talk.

But what do they know? First of all, they probably never worked at a free alternative weekly in Dallas like I have. Second, who can take these no-names seriously? They don't stand behind their work (20).

I do. I'm Dave Faries, dammit.

----------------------------------------------

* The article is a parody. It did not actually appear in The Prague Post and was not actually written by Dave Faries.

However, it's not that different from what he writes. The numbers in the blog post relate directly to the real words of this unintentional master of self parody:

(1) "In his classic The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald cautions readers against the natural human desire to recapture moments past. If I remember correctly, nostalgic reverie has some pretty devastating consequences. Sam Waterston as a neighbor, for one."

(2) "In Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking Glass, Humpty Dumpty declares that a word 'means just what I choose it to mean — nothing more, nothing less.' Thus empowered, he elects to say 'glory' in place of 'knock-down, drag-out argument' or 'impenetrably' to express his desire to change topics. Clearly, any conversation with the large egg could easily devolve into a confusing mess. U Slavíků, the new restaurant lodged in the space once occupied by Rudý Baron, is a model of such incoherence."

(3) The Prague Post, September 26, 2007, "The Grill of Victory" by Dave Faries

(4) "She understands the importance of accuracy, of discarding personal likes and dislikes in favor of hard-nosed assessment."

(5) "Otherwise, a gentle seasoning hand allows the flavor of beef to step forward — sour, grassy undertones in this case, with very little heft."

(6) "The flavor is natural, almost grassy, seasoned only by a few crystals of mild sea salt."

(7) "It’s not the best grade of meat in terms of marbling, but intensely flavorful — rich and grassy, almost like wild game."

(8) "This, however, has the mellow, grassy wealth favored by fans of Southern Hemisphere cuts."

(9) Dallas Observer, February 5, 2004, "Grazing Pains" by Dave Faries

(10) "Because of the exuberance with the pepper mill, sparks leap suddenly from the dense, rich and ever-so-slightly smoked sauce to prick at your tongue before relinquishing the sharp lance and disappearing back into the mist."

(11) "Seasoning pricks the tongue then falls away, allowing natural flavors to rush forward."

(12) "A sprinkle of pickled green peppercorns throws in occasional tart but timid pricks."

(13) "Although the pronounced essence of shell and intricacy of a good mirepoix indicates grounding in traditional cooking techniques, a fatal helping of salt quickly bleaches out everything good about the rich soup."

(14) "...the fat undercoating remains breviloquent and intense."

(15) "The proprietor, hiding behind the pseudonym 'Brewsta,' makes it clear he’s not a professional. But his entries are fun reading and much more exegetic than the usual blog-stopper stuff out there. I use the word “exegetic” just for Brewsta’s benefit. He took me to task for using “breviloquent” in print."

(16) "As a jjigae (stew), however, the stuff wields daggers — a coal-fire red broth that clutches your palate and begins jabbing away with impunity."

(17) "Yet it still met traditional standards and the mixture of spinach and gorgonzola belts your palate with salvo after salvo of pungent bitterness, calmed only by cream."

(18) "But pancetta is the heart of it — grabbing the bright taste of crushed tomato and wrenching it to the ground, uppercutting herbs with strokes of salt."

(19) "Pljeskavice, the Balkan favorite made of ground beef and lamb, may not appeal to all burger aficionados."

(20) "And, unlike so many other bloggers, Baranik stands behind her work, affixing her name to the site rather than ducking into the safety of a pseudonym."

Prague Food & Drink Blogs

**NOTE The Prague Spoon is no longer active

"Let us not take ourselves too seriously. None of us has a monopoly on wisdom." Queen Elizabeth II

For almost a year, Czech Please was Prague's only dedicated English-language food and drink blog.

But, as Teddy Roosevelt used to say, all good monopolies must come to an end.

And I think that's great.

I have an insatiable appetite for reading about gastronomic and alcoholic pleasures and where to find them.

I had always hoped that more bloggers would come to the table, so to speak.

And they have.

This week marked the debut of The Prague Spoon. It is written by Laura Baranik, who was the food critic at Expats.cz, among other places. I was a fan of her unpretentious, first-person reviewing style, and I expect I'll continue to be.

The Spoon has already saved me a trip to Monarch Wine Bar & Grill. I always get a bit worked up when I see a shiny, new restaurant, and I want to check it out.

Based on Laura's description, I'll save my money. After seeing what they charge there, I'll save a lot of money.

I also like her overview of Prague hot chocolate spots. I've written in the past about Cafe Louvre's and Cafe Savoy's offerings, but The Prague Spoon takes hot chocolate commentary and analysis to a whole new level.

As someone who is graphically challenged, I was extra impressed by the post's sliding thickness and sweetness scales.

If beer is your thing (and it certainly is one of mine), there are now a number of blogs covering this intoxicating subject.

First, I'll mention Pivní Filosof - Beer Philosopher. This venture started at the beginning of 2008, and is an English-language offshoot of Max Bahnson's longer-running Spanish language blog, Pivní Filosof - Filósofo Cervecero.

I've never met Max, but we've often communicated through blog comments and emails. He's a prolific writer who knows his stuff. He's got a passion for it, and it shows.

Max has already been highlighting some of the Czech Republic's lesser known brews, like Jubiler, and brew pubs like Pivovar u Bulovky.

For more expert views on brews, there is the Beer Culture blog by Evan Rail.

He is the author of "Good Beer Guide: Prague and the Czech Republic." I haven't read it myself, but have heard good things about from more than one person.

Rail also writes travel articles for The New York Times. He used to be the restaurant critic for The Prague Post. I was a harsh critic of his restaurant reviews, but I've gotten that out of my system. I like his beer coverage.

Finally, the author of Beer, oh beer doesn't post as often as I'd like. But he does review some pretty obscure beers. The posts are short, to the point, and easy to absorb.

For the most part, all these blogs, including this one, exist because of love, not money. And that's a good part of the reason people read them.

In these days of corporate hype and spin, people are hungry and thirsty for real experiences from real people. A quote from this Washington Post article articulated what I've been thinking:

"Authenticity is the new consumer sensibility," says Joe Pine, a business consultant and co-author of "Authenticity: What Consumers Really Want." It is the criterion "by which people decide what to buy and who to buy it from."

Guardian Unlimited

“I wanted to get angel wings tatooed on my back, as a guardian thing.”

-Kirsten Dunst

If you need a guardian thing, I have one to recommend.

Guardian Unlimited, the online version of The Guardian and The Observer newspapers, has published a post with the title "Blog by blog guide to ... roving gourmets."

A good read.

There are short descriptions of interesting foodie blogs that have posts on Paris, Tokyo, New York, and Jakarta.

Oh yeah... and the Czech Republic.