Sarah Bernhardt

Excellent service, well presented and well cooked food in beautiful surroundings. Recommended. Good value with 15% off offer through Alakarte 14. 08. 2011 (09:50)

Stunning and charming. Be transported back in time. An experience of a lifetime. A lesson in Art Nouveau history.

This restaurant’s (and Hotel Paris’) decors are surely to-die-for. It is located adjacent to Municipal House (Obecni Dum), which is itself truly spectacular for its Art Nouveau interiors and furnishings. Restaurant Sarah Bernhardt was also truly beautiful a place to dine in. The restaurant is part of Hotel Paris, a stunning Art Nouveau hotel. We spent much of our time being mesmerised by the luxurious interiors, high ceilings and beautiful lighting – all original fittings!

We booked this restaurant through Alakarte.cz, which had a fantastic offer of 15% off the final bill. It is a really good promotion offer, and well-advised to try. Furthermore, the reviews on Trip Advisor were appealing. We were definitely not disappointed. We also ate at Palffy Palac the night before. These 2 restaurants really made our trip to Prague even more special. I preferred Sarah Bernhardt slightly more, but only slightly. One could see that the presentation at Sarah Bernhardt was that bit more fine.

Atmosphere: I was happy that the restaurant was not full. There were about 4 other tables filled (couples, mostly). I prefer privacy and quiet at dinner, not cacophony. So don’t go to this restaurant expecting a lively, noisy buzz, as one would find in a pub. There was a pianist on the other side of the dining room. He played beautifully, and I was glad we were not seated near the piano or it would have been too loud to have a conversation.

We had a roomy table by the window. Being summer, with the sun setting late, we enjoyed the view of the street and Municipal House.

All in all, the staff were friendly and helpful, the décor was stunning, and the food was a truly delicious French and Czech mix. If you want to have a glass of bubbly before the meal, choose the Bailly Lapierre Brut Rosé. The Mucha sekt was a too-sweet bubbly and not to my liking. We also tried the Czech red wines by the glass, and they were good.

Another thing that I appreciate is when wait staff know the menu well and can help recommend wine and food if you are undecided. I was not sure which appetiser to have, and the waitress suggested the goat cheese. Boy, was this dish delicious! There was a crisp thin layer of caramel (like in a crème brulee) on top of the subtly-flavoured goat cheese Chavroux, and there were sun-dried tomato bits that balanced the dish. Another appetiser, Prague ham with apple and horseradish that was prepared like a jellied terrine, was super delicious too. (Check out the menu on their website. It will make you drool.)

Desserts were just as good: We tried the Marzipan roll, and the Blueberry parfait. Great way to end a meal. These desserts were much better than the one I had at Vienna’s 2-Michelin-Star Restaurant Steirereck.

It was a tremendous relief that no one was smoking in the restaurant. The experience and flavours would have been flawed otherwise.

I would definitely visit Prague again, and next time, not only dine again at Restaurant Sarah Bernhardt, but also stay at its Hotel Paris. 23. 06. 2011 (04:23)