Something that caught my appetizer on the way.

I’m not a food blogger.

I usually skip meals, and have only one big dinner + some snacks on the way. Traveling, witnessing, and experiencing activities are my things. Remember the time in Paris when I had only a piece of falafel and a Bounty chocolate bar until 6pm? It goes that way.

However, never can I deny the magnificent tastes of the dishes I luckily ate on the way. I will choose the very local for the heavy meal, and prior the locals for snacks as well. So, here are those I’d had, during my autumn trip:

Late dinner @ Lokál Dlouhááá (Prague)

“Good evening, beer?” – the waiter offered without even consider my taste. Here, once you’ve chosen Lokál, you’ve asked for at least 1 beer.

Even though being a non-alcohol drinker, I had to admit they have really good craft beer. Czech beer has a price of its title

Lokál is famous for being one of the “very original” Czech pubs – a long house full of tables, original dishes, and good beers. The price was also very affordable, comparing to the quality of the food.

10pm and people still have to queue up for a seat

The general atmosphere at Lokál is harmonious: people gather together, be a bit drunk, and enjoy the best food & drinks here. A good place to be for dinner.

Goulash. In all shapes.

For these Eastern Europe countries, Goulash is the common dish. It can be a curry-like, or soup, but usually contain meet (beef) and vegetable, eat with white bread. If you travel in this part of the world and not having any goulash, it’ll be a big miss.

Goulash stew (Czechia)
Goulash soup (Hungary)

To summarize how goulash taste like is hard, because in each region, in each styles, they use different flavors, from cauliflower to paprika to n things more. But, don’t underestimate them – the portion can look small but you turn out struggling to finish, as goulash is rich in nutrition, and good things take time an effort. I enjoy tasty food, and goulash is indeed my favorite; it tastes strong, and is significant from one place to another.

Ham hock – Pork knuckle (Prague)

Another local dish of Czechia is this delicious pork knuckle. The meat will be well roasted, with the crispy skin covering the very tender, juicy meat inside.

I was literally swallowing my saliva reading its info. And I knew what I had to eat in Prague. So for the last evening there, I confidently ordered one pork knuckle portion.

One portion, including: pork knuckle, sauce, pickles, breads, and Cola

You know what the problem was?

For people in this part of Europe, throughout the history, they’d consumed lots of meat, and their meals were very heavy, with little herbs and bread, but way more meat than I would normally have.

The pork knuckle you saw in the picture above, believe me or not, was 1.2 kilogram.

It was almost as big as my head ???

And do you know how it went?

1.5 hour, I finished around 40% of the knuckle and decided to stop – I could have eaten more, but it surely would ruin my experience. The pork was well done, crispy and tender, with good sour sauce.

But take my advice guys: only order this dish when you either go in group, or is a hardcore meat lover.

Schnitzel (Austria)

“The best schnitzels in the world are made from Wien” – The old Wien tour guide proudly presented. And after that day in Wien, I was convinced.

For those who are yet to taste, schnitzel is a common dish in German-spoken countries (Germany, Austria, Switzerland). It is a slice of meat (usually pork) fried in fat. All countries claim their version of schnitzel as “the best”. For me, so far, the one I had in Wien has been the most tasty.

I arrived at the oldest and probably the most famous schnitzel restaurant in Wien – Figlmüller – just before it got crowded and the other customers had to line up.

“If there is a better schnitzel than figlmüller’s, it can only be my wife’s” – said my tour guide

There are four things I love about having lunch here:

  1. My companion: A sweet, friendly British primary school teacher. We talked or some times in the group and decided to have schnitzel together. She made me feel that we are all open to make friend, but shy to do so.
  2. “Schnitzel code”: You can only and only have a schnitzel with lemon topping. DON’T ask the restaurant for ketchup, wavy, siracha, or whatever you usually use at home; it is offensive here. We have seen tourists ignoring this code in the past, and the chefs ended up coming from the kitchen with knives.
  3. The schnitzel itself:
A true Wienese schnitzel

Smelled awesome. Perfect with lemon. Crispy skin + 10/10 cooked pork. Just a perfect lunch, a bit too much for my companion.

4.  The waiter: A  real gentleman, perfect etiquette and cheerful attitude; also very Wienese: grumpy and polite: he reminded my companion to finish her schnitzel next time lol.

Dessert: Sachertorte (Austria)

Made of torte chocolate, this cake is usually served with cream. One of the most significant things about Austrian cuisine.

For me it’s as good as other cakes

Dessert: Trdelník (Prague)

You will see this food literally everywhere in Prague, and other cities as well. “The best of  Bohemian cuisine”, they said.

Short description: Dough being grilled, than top with sugar + other toppings

Trdelník tastes okay, I would say; a bit sweet, dough smell like fresh buns. However, I don’t have special impression with this food, especially when it is overpriced in Prague.

In general, there is till yet a lot for me to explore, regarding cuisine.

Khanh Tr.