Taste of Prague

If you’re planning a trip to Prague and wondering whether you should indulge in a Taste of Prague food tour, stop reading this post, go to their website and click the purchase button immediately… act fast or you won’t get the chance to take this heavily-​subscribed tour of the best Prague’s food scene has to offer!
OK, now that you’re back I will continue the review. My wife and I recently returned from several day trip to Prague, and ToP was THE highlight of our trip. We were fortunate to time the tour for our arrival day, as this tour provided an excellent overview of many Prague neighborhoods, local businesses, and local customs. Starting with the arrangement of the tour, the entire process was seamless. I exchanged a number of e-​mails with Zuzi and Jan (the owners) who were happy to work with me, answer my questions, and work to schedule the tour at a convenient time. The personalized attention and willingness to promptly reply to e-​mails at odd times of the day was a nice touch.
A day or two before the tour, we received a nice reminder e-​mail, which also included some Prague tips and ideas for our stay. On the prescribed day, my wife and I went to the designated meeting spot and after a few minutes, a few other couples arrived on the «X» and we all realized we were all there for the same thing… FOOD AND BOOZE! At exactly the appointed time Jan, the co-​owener of ToP, arrived and warmly greeted us and asked if we were ready to eat food. After a quick walk (which Jan did backwards… a truly amazing feat on cobblestone and amongst other people, cars, etc), we found ourselves at the first stop, which was super-​good, super-​cool, and set the tone for the rest of the day. Several stops and a tram ride later, with a fully belly and feeling warm on a cold February day, we concluded the tour at a super-​exciting new restaurant in an up and coming Prague neighborhood my wife and I would never have visited without Jan. At the end of the tour, Jan took a group photo so we could all remember the day, and also gave us a free gift as a thank you gift – which was a welcome treat. The next day we received a summary e-​mail, which gave us a rundown of what we ate, drank, and experienced. Also, my wife and I went back to most of the places we visited on at least one, if not more, occasions.
Whether you’re on a tight timeline, or have all the time in the world in Prague, I highly recommend a Taste of Prague Tour. Jan has worked diligently to build relationships with food and beverage purveyors who are truly excited to show you their best offerings. The price of the tour was a small price to pay for such a personalized, curated food experience. Best of all, you get an instant friend in Prague who is happy to help you while you’re in town (I truly believe he means it hen he says this). All in all, the tour was definitely worth it, and since I know he regularly changes the offerings, I am sure we’ll take another tour with him when next in Prague!
Also, ToP offers a MiFi device, which you can rent from them for a nominal fee. I highly recommend taking them up on this offer, as we saved a ton of money on international roaming and always had reliable, fast access to the Internet on our mobile devices.

I’m a huge foodie and a frequent traveler. I’ve gone on food tours before, eaten food across the world, and even own my own food blog. Now, qualifications aside: this is pretty much my favorite travel experience (and also most lasting one) from the last 3-​week trip to Europe that I took. It really is that: an experience. It’s not just a food tour, although you certainly get to try some amazing food and drinks and get your money’s worth. Jan and Zuzi have really created a STORY and a journey behind the tour (and as someone who works in marketing/​writing myself, I appreciate the importance of a story). I left with an understanding of how and why Czech food has evolved in the last 100 years: how Soviet occupation and collectivization of the food industry eradicated the idea of Czech cuisine, and how it has resurged and evolved after the fall of the Soviet Union. Jan started our tour at some places that showed us the «old» Czech cuisine (and even a pub that still has a very Soviet feel to it), and then progressed to «new» Czech cuisine at an almost brand-​new restaurant that’s doing some really innovative things with basic, traditional ingredients (I’ve never had vegetarian dishes this good before). He even brought his iPad and showed us some old Soviet commercials — and then recounted some of his own personal experiences in school when the Soviet union was dissolving. Honestly, I learned more about Czech history on this tour and gained a better understanding of its culture than I could have at most museums or historical walking tours. And the whole time, Jan kept things fun, too. He obviously knows food, wine and beer, and the history of his city, but he’s also just a great, fun guy who makes the tour feel more like an adventure with a group of friends. And he gave us recommendations for where to go for New Years Eve that night, what fun/​unique champagne we could buy, etc. The other amazing part is that Taste of Prague isn’t just a big company that takes you on a tour and forgets about you, but a 2-​person business that approaches each tour as a start of a long-​term relationship, if you want to take them up on it. Their «lifetime coverage» means that when you come back, they’ll send you updated tips or help you with your itinerary — or do it for your friends and family. They offered to order for us if we wanted to go to the same restaurant as them on New Years Day, answered all my emails with questions about etiquette, and even offered to call a restaurant we’d eaten at to complain about something we’d been overcharged for. Hey, they may regret their lifetime offer when I decide to move to Prague for a year and start asking them for suggestions on where to live and to be references when I’m looking for a place to rent, but I’m pretty sure they’ll still be just as helpful ;)

One of the best parts of our trip! If your a foodie this tour is a MUST! You get to try multiple amazing places and a range of local culinary delights. Each place you stop at already has reserved seats and top notch service. It’s like having the insiders hook-​up! They also provide TONS of useful information on places to see and things to do. We used many of their tips and it resulted in one of our best vacations yet! Highly recommend!!!

What a great tour and history of food for the Czech Republic. Jan and Zuzi were very easy to work with and are foodies. Thus, it’s a perspective that is based on food and not based on tourism (if that makes any sense). Jan was our guide for the afternoon. He explained to us how communism essentially wiped out their food culture for 40 years. But now there is a resurgence of their traditional food with a modern twist. Jan took us to 7 places and we tasted a huge variety of different foods with the new generation.
Furthermore, prior to arriving to Prague, Jan and Zuzi sent us a variety of information to make our visit a great one.
If you want to learn a culture, it’s best to eat it. And if you are going to eat it, you should do that with Jan and Zuzi!

Jan (pronounced with a Y), an owner, was our guide. He led us on a journey that combined food and drink with Czech culture and history. Extremely engaging and personable, he invited us to have an open discussion about anything: from living under communism to pronouncing Czech words. Beside the obvious of having delicious food, he gave us the experience to indulge in both «old» and «new» Czech cuisine. Jan is very bright and knows how to integrate food facts, history, politics and current events into each dish and libation. It really was amazing. I’d do it again in a heart beat.

The BEST thing we did during our 3 days in Prague! If you love food this tour is a MUST-​DO! We did the Food & Culture tour and my husband and I both agree that it’s probably the best tour we’ve ever taken, anywhere. Jan & Zuzi have something extremely special here that could’ve only been created with true passion behind it. Book early, word is out that they’re the best!

After finding them on tripadvisor and reading the glowing reviews, we knew we had to book a tour with Jan & Zuzi. We felt we were a bit ‘foodie’ living in San Francisco and all but asked some questions to decide between the Foodie Tour or Food & Culture tour and we opted for the Food & Culture tour — which starts at 5pm, takes 5 hours and goes to 5 places.
Before I get to the actual tour I want to share some other details that made this well worthwhile:
Paying the majority ahead of time meant no worries during the full 5 hours — all drinks, food, any bus tickets — are all taken care of, nothing to think or worry about. At the end you pay the remaining balance and any additional tip you want to include. They take a max of 4 people so your experience is sure to be intimate and special. Don’t worry about taking notes during the experience either because you will receive an awesomely detailed emailed the next day with EVERYTHING you did and everywhere you went!!! :)
It is IDEAL to book this experience the first night you are in Prague (you learn SO much). But that doesn’t always work out — which it did not for us. In fact, we could not take our tour until our last night in Prague. However, Zuzi and Jan made sure you leave at our hotel when we did arrive in Prague the following maps: food maps showing where our hotel is and all their recommend places to eat color-​coded by type (we went to 3 before we even met Jan!), shopping maps also color-​code by recommended fashion, gifts, souvenirs, etc and 2 suggested walking tours/​sightseeing trips.
The Food & Culture tour was great. Someone else said in their review Jan feels like your long lost friend — it is true! Jan is so friendly, easy to talk with and great at sharing his experiences and it fits perfectly with how his life tells the story of Communism in Prague and more recent history of it’s culture and food evolution.
Food wise we started off with meat plates and appetizer food, went to a wine bar and then headed off for a large ‘dinner’ meal — all were very memorable. We ended our night at a café with pastry desserts and Czech apéritif Becherovka. Besides normal chit-​chat Jan shares via iPad videos and photos — whether it be about the wine industry, Communist commercials or anything in between.
It did not end there. We shared that we were headed to Berlin and would have our anniversary there. Jan shared that he and Zuzi traveled to Berlin often and followed up the next day with recommendations for places to eat and drink in our travels.
Jan and Zuzi really care about your experience in Prague and they do know their stuff. Put your trust in them and you will not be let down.

Highlight of my trip for sure! Great food and even better your guide. If you are a foodie then this is for you! Loved it!

Hands down the best thing my husband and I did while in Prague! Jan and Zuzi provide more than just a tour of some of the city’s best restaurants (that span the spectrum of high-​end trendy to less expensive local fare), they provide cultural context for the city (including tidbits we never would have discovered ourselves about the recent Communist era). Spending time with Jan and Zuzi is like being invited to a dinner party by a couple you are scarcely acquainted with who become cherished friends by the end of the evening. Not only do Jan and Zuzi provide a great tour, they also take care of all of the little things; they gave us tickets to take public transit up to the Prague Castle at night (the places that sold tickets were closed) as well as tips and tricks to get the most out of our stay. We would highly recommend this tour (which is capped at 6 and doesn’t feel like a «tour») to anyone visiting Prague!