Editorial
Prague is two drinking cities: the world's deepest beer culture (U Zlatého Tygra has poured the best Pilsner Urquell in the country since 1942) and a surprisingly serious modern cocktail scene (Hemingway Bar, Anonymous Bar). The 10 below cover both. Most are within walking distance of Old Town Square.
Hemingway Bar tucks into Karoliny Svetle in the Old Town, and it takes its rum and absinthe seriously, with more than 200 rums behind the bar. The cocktails run spirit-forward and properly made, not cheap at roughly 300 koruna, but you get what you pay for. World's 50 Best Discovery rates it. Book ahead for a weekend seat.
Anonymous Bar runs a V for Vendetta theme on Michalska, masks and all, which sounds like a gimmick until the drinks land. The menu leans theatrical, smoke and reveals, and the room fills with a mixed speakeasy and tourist crowd after dark. It opens at 5pm and goes late at weekends. Go midweek if you want a seat without the queue.
U Zlateho Tygra has poured tank Pilsner Urquell on Husova since long before the cocktail crowd arrived, and at about 55 koruna a half-litre it is the best value on this list. It opens around 3pm and the regulars take the good seats fast. No frills, no menu theatre, just the beer done right. Get there early.
Black Angel's Bar sits in a Gothic cellar under Hotel U Prince on Old Town Square, and the no-phones rule keeps it dark and quiet. The list runs classic, with Becherovka working its way into a few of the house drinks. It opens at 5pm and suits a date or a slow nightcap. Atmosphere over flash, which is the point.
Bokovka hides down a courtyard off Dlouha and pours small-producer wines, plenty of them Moravian, by the glass. It is a wine bar that knows its growers, listed on the Star Wine List, and the staff point you somewhere good without the markup theatre. Evenings are the time. One for drinkers who would rather talk grapes than cocktails.
Cobra sits on Milady Horakove out in Letna and works as a cafe by day and a cocktail bar and taproom by night. It is the kind of all-day spot the neighbourhood actually uses, mellow in the afternoon, busier and louder once the DJs start. Drinks are fair for what they are. Best if you are out in Prague 7 rather than the tourist core.
Groove Bar runs two levels on Vorsilska in the New Town, cocktails upstairs and Bernard beer on tap, with DJs Thursday to Saturday. It opens at 7pm and the weekend crowd comes to dance rather than nurse a drink. Not the place for a quiet pint. Go on a Friday if you want the room at full tilt, earlier if you do not.
Cash Only Bar does what the name says on Liliova, no cards, no bookings, just a seasonal cocktail list and hot dogs until 2am. It is a walk-in spot, small and busy, that rewards turning up rather than planning. Bring notes. Best late, after the bigger rooms have filled, when the hot dog starts to make sense.
Bar and Books keeps a clubby room on Tynska built around whisky, champagne and cigars, with a Bond-themed cocktail list to match. It is dressier than most on here and the prices follow, so it is one for a cigar and a slow whisky rather than a cheap round. Tuesday is whisky night. Go when you want the leather-armchair treatment.
BeerGeek Bar runs about 30 rotating taps on Vinohradska out in Vinohrady, Czech brewers alongside imports, and it is walk-in only. This is the craft end of Prague drinking, a long way from the tank-beer pubs, and the board changes often enough to reward a return trip. It opens at 3pm daily. One for beer hunters, not cocktail tourists.
Prague drinks more beer per capita than any country on earth. Start at U Zlatého Tygra or a tank-pour pub for context. Then move to Hemingway Bar or Anonymous Bar for the cocktail side. The combination is the most Prague way to spend an evening. Most pubs close by midnight; cocktail bars run later.
Tom Callahan covers pubs and pints across the UK, Ireland and beyond. Value-conscious, suspicious of anything overpriced, and always with one eye on the match.