The Most Important Meal(s) of the Day

When you travel to Europe, the biggest piece of advice that is given by all family members is to try all the food that you possibly can. When I was given this advice, my first thought was ‘let’s hope I don’t go into a food coma’, but my second thought was more of a concern. I’m a vegetarian, entering a country in which lunch meat and sandwiches are served for breakfast.

The first two weeks, I only found a scattering of food that could constitute as a meal. To be completely honest, the first day when I was extremely jet-lagged, all I could find appetizing was a side order of potatoes and water. Slowly and surely though, I found some places in Prague that have become staples which I’m sure I’ll return to. It took time to adjust mentally, and my appetite was no different.

With good food comes good mood, as many say, so I was ordered to find myself a nice big meal by my family. Let’s just say that I found out that Vegan’s Restaurant has vegan Svíčková to die for. Svíčková is a traditional Czech dish, containing dumplings and steak, soaked in a veggie/meat sauce. So this restaurant took the traditional, and made it with dumplings, tempeh, and sweet potato/veggie sauce.

If you aren’t into the local food (no idea why one wouldn’t be) there is another option for you. There is a “fast food”, vegan restaurant called Forky’s. It has cheez-burgers, not-dogs, red thai curry, and even ‘fish’-and-chips. I highly suggest getting their fries, as it is a rare combination of sweet potato and golden fries.

After our final exam in the Czech language course, we were taken to Café Neustadt. In this cafe, I hit a milestone: I tried eggplant. Even as a vegetarian, I squirm at the mention of eggplant. I decided to give it a try on a whim of courage even with my backbone thought that eggplant was disgusting. To my surprise, it was one of the best things I’ve had since I got here. The eggplant was paired with cheesy vegetables and a side-salad.

I also wandered across many, many cafes. Some good and some bad, but altogether I am confident to say that Prague nails dessert. I have obviously eaten more than just these two desserts since my time here, but it is quite easy to devour a slice of pie before one thinks of snapping a picture. I feel as though these desserts are something that you has to taste to believe…

Obviously, you cannot eat out every meal of the day. Studying abroad is already expensive enough! While Tesco is quite a popular grocery store here, I highly suggest going to Kaufland instead. It’s just a twenty-five minute tram ride from the dorms and it has an amazing bakery selection.

Today I made a sandwich, grabbed a banana, filled my water-bottle and went to a nearby park. Sitting under a tree and eating a sandwich with the Charles Bridge as my view is the definition of a great meal in Prague.

In Prague, almost every meal is fantastic and if it isn’t, well…you’re doing something wrong. You just have to let your appetite adjust.