Travel Nibbles: 'Mistral Cafe' Review

Hey Nibblers!

    Made it to the amazingly snowy Prague where our tour guide once again declared that they were in fact the beer capital. While it was debatable at first considering Munich hosts the biggest beer festival 'Oktoberfest' each year when I looked at Prague's drinks menu, I was quite baffled. The cost of beer was cheaper than asking for table water. Yes, like tap water. In Australia, it usually doesn't cost a thing but in when in Prague, it's almost always 1.5 times more expensive than a glass of their famous 'Pilsner Urquell.' Kelly and I walked past 'Mistral Cafe' while we were exploring or also known as getting lost. It had a 4.5/5 circle rating on Tripadvisor so, we noted the nearby landmarks to ensure we didn't miss the opportunity.

'Mistral Cafe' Review
Where: Valentinska 11, Prague 110 00                                                                            Website: http://www.mistralcafe.cz/

'Mistral Cafe' interior. Image taken from Tripadvisor

     When we arrived, it was already bustling with people. We had just finished a four hour walking tour so were pretty knackered for some food. The table were set nicely with simple presentation and extremely clean. I would imagine the large windows they have to absorb quite a bit of lighting during the day which would make for a very open yet cosy setting. By night, they had dim lights throughout the cafe giving it a very romantic feel.
     I was all for the dumplings so I ordered the 'Sirloin with cream roll, homemade jerky dumplings and cranberries.' I loved the presentation of this dish. My camera doesn't do it justice but the generous amounts of sauce, beef and cranberries was just to drool for. My love for the presentation didn't stop just there because taste wise, this was an absolute winner. The creamy gravy like sauce was superb. Full of flavour, hints of pepper and sweet with the dashes of cranberries. The dumplings, soft as freshly made bread insides absorbed so much of that sauce, it was like I was licking my plate clean. The beef cooked slowly and to perfectly just pulled apart and was juicy as ever. I can't recommend another dish highly enough. It was just right. Served quite quickly and steaming hot.

'Sirloin with cream roll, homemade jerky dumplings and cranberries' 174 CZK (approx. $10 AUD)

          I had to give the good old 'Pilsner Urquell' a try as well. To much of a surprise, the beer came in a fancy cup. It didn't feel right but 'Mistral Cafe' gives off a pretty fancy vibe itself so no complaints there. Again, I can't really comment much on taste of beer as I'm haven't experienced enough but, all I know was it's nicer than the overly bitter Aussie beer but not as crisp and sweet as Munich beer. This is all according to my lack of beer taste buds anyway. But, if you're a lover of beer, I say give it a try. Apparently, its one of their best brands!

'Pilsner Urquell' 0.3L, 29 CZK (approx. $1.60 AUD)

        Kelly on the other hand ordered the 'Grilled chicken breast risotto with wild mushrooms and cheese grana padano.' I had a few spoonfuls and from the little taste I was able to experience it was delicious. I don't usually have risotto a lot but, I felt it wasn't too liquidy and didn't just taste like rice in a lump of butter. It had much more hearty flavours with a touch of creaminess. It looks quite small in the picture but turned out to be filling. I think she thoroughly enjoyed it and her plate was pretty much wiped clean. The picture is terrible but, presented well in reality. 

'Grilled chicken breast risotto with wild mushrooms and cheese grana padano' 163 CZ K (approx. $9.50 AUD)

            As we looked at the dessert menu and saw 'Chocolate cake with a scoop of vanilla ice cream,' we just had to. And lucky we did. This was one of the best cakes I've had. It was moist, liquified in the centre and the perfect richness. A bit too much granulated sugar sprinkled in terms of presentation but, it was delicious I really couldn't care less. The ice cream that accompanied the cake was nothing  special on its own but really helped cut some of the richness when we hit the melted centre. Simply delicious!

'Chocolate cake with a scoop of vanilla ice cream,' 96 CZK (approx. $5.50 AUD)

Candle lit dinner

Snowy Prague! So beautiful!

        Overall, I really loved the atmosphere and food at 'Mistral Cafe.' If I'm ever in Prague again I would definitely be coming back. Staff were very sweet and welcoming. If you have ever been to 'Mistral Cafe,' be sure to leave a comment talking about your experiences.

       Until next time, hope you're all having an amazing week.

Nibble Away,

      

                   Jo x.

Travel Nibbles: 'Trattoria Bondi' Review + Mini 'Triangolo dell Bermuda' Review

Hey Nibblers!

     This week, Kelly and I find ourselves in Florence/ Firenze. Unfortunately, we were unlucky with our train times so we only had one night in Florence. Being two girls in a strange place, we didn't want to stray too far from our hostel (PLUS Florence). Luckily, with the help of Tripadvisor, we were able to find a place to grub on on the same street, only 5 minutes away. 

'Trattoria Bondi' Review

Where: Via Nazionale 45r /47r, Florence, Italy      Website: No official site but, you can check out their Tripadvisor page:

                                                                                          http://www.tripadvisor.com.au/Restaurant_Review-g187895-

                                                                                          d1423448-Reviews-Trattoria_Bondi-Florence_Tuscany.html

      From the outside, 'Trattoria Bondi' looked pretty small. But don't be quick to judge a book by its cover because we soon found out this place was oddly shape but, had a tonne of space to sit and it was packed mostly with tourists which could be why Tripadvisor has a 4.5/5 rating for 'Trattoria Bondi.' The restaurant's name had me at Bondi. Took me back to the lovely beaches of Sydney for a minute there until, I saw the menu. It is probably a hit because, it is the cutest thing I've seen yet in terms of menus.

Such a cute, fun menu!

        Anyway, we were starving so, as it was our last night in Italy, I had to order a pasta dish. I decided on the Ravioli. Presentation lacked. It did not look appetising at all. But as I said before, looks can be deceiving but, in this case, looks mattered. The ravioli was half cooked with some bits dry like cardboard. The tomato- based sauce was good but, couldn't make up for the lack of flavour and texture all round.

Ravioli I say? More like ... 

        Kelly on the other hand, wanted some meat after days of just mushrooms and carbs. She opted for the roast chicken with mushroom sauce, salad and roasted potatoes. This looked a tad more colourful which was promising. I had a taster of hers and while it was quite a good portion, there was nothing outstanding about this one. Just a regular dish that we could have all cooked easily at home.

Roast chicken with mushroom sauce, salad and roast potatoes.

           And, of course we were suckers for dessert ordering. We had the 'Creme Brulee with chocolate sauce' to share. Yup, they gave you a choice of what topping you wanted. Kelly being the chocoholic and me, being the best cousin knew she would have wanted to try chocolate and so we did. It did not look like a toasty top creme brulee we're used to that's for sure. I love when you get to crack the top of a brulee but not the case for this one. It was more like a less condensed, sweeter version of custard that had drops of chocolate sauve on top. Nope, nothing special here either. 

Creme Brulee ?

        All in all, photos from the food this night aren't amazing. Sorry guys! But, I'm not too hurt because the dishes we had were nothing to die for. The 4.5/5 rating from Tripadvisor, I do not understand but, I do have to say that 'Trattoria Bondi' has a great cosy atmosphere and friendly staff. The other plus side are their dishes are affordable and good if you're a backpacker or just want a place to chat with friends. I think the high rating on Tripadvisor made me have high expectations but, it wasn't a terrible experience just, could have been better.

'Triangolo delle Bermuda' mini gelato Review

Where: Via Nazionale, 61r, 50123,  Florence, Italy                                  Website: None of their own but check out

                                                                                                                             Tripadvisor: http://www.tripadvisor.com.au/

                                                                                                                             Restaurant_Review-g187895-d1792166-Reviews-

                                                                                                                             Triangolo_delle_Bermuda-Florence_Tuscany.html

        No idea why they chose this name. Perhaps they want us to get lost in their Bermuda Triangle of flavours? Okay, no. Bad joke. This had a 4.5/5 review on Tripadvisor as well but, we can't rely on that too much now. We decided on three scoops for 7 euros. We chose: chocolate, mint and hazelnut coffee. This was amazing. I love mint so it was super refreshing after having some pretty sweet creme brulee. I loved all the flavours and all had real chunks of chocolate and nuts inside which was amazing. The man that served us was super friendly as well so definitely going back! Only thing is, my fingers were swollen after holding this on the way back. Serves me right for eating gelato in the Winter.

Dessert stop #2: Triangolo delle Bermuda - Chocolate, mint and hazelnut coffee. (7 euros approx. $10AUD)

Hope you have an amazing week!

I know it's not Tuesday anymore but, I started typing on Tuesday.

Nibble Away,

          Jo x.