I had a “Kafkaesque” day in Prague, though not in the strict definition of the word. But what a great day indeed.
Day Two In Prague
The true meaning of “Kafkaesque” is situations that are bizarre, illogical, and disorientingly complex, often with a nightmarish quality, and typically involving bureaucratic systems…thankfully, that was not the case.
But my second day in Prague included a lot of Kafka…
I wasn’t all that hungry when I woke up, which always presents a dilemma when you are staying at a hotel with a large buffet. The Linder Prague Castle (a Hyatt JdV hotel) does have a very nice breakfast spread, but I stuck to my intermittent fasting and skipped it…
Instead, after getting some work done, I headed out for coffee, stopping for a cortado and flat white at a place called The Miners (a specialty coffee chain based in the Czech Republic).
Now properly caffeinated, my first stop was the Franz Kafka museum. I had read Kafka in high school in both English and German…quite an author indeed…but it had been many years since I had read “The Metamorphosis,” and I had never read “The Trial” and “The Castle.”
I’ll say more in a separate post on the Kafka Museum, but what a fascinating and deeply-layered character. I do love museums and there are few museums I have ever regretted going to. This was certainly worth the two hours.
Hunger set in by the time I was done and I sought out Mexican food (as one does in Prague).
I found a place called Cantina and you know something? The food was just fine…my chicken quesadilla was very acceptable.
I forgot my wallet…and the restaurant did not accept credit card (everywhere else I just tapped my phone). The guys were very nice and I said, “You’ve got to trust me. I’ll walk back to my hotel, get your money, and come back.” They agreed…what choice did they have?
The walk back to my hotel required climbing Petřín, which was both beautiful and somewhat steep in certain points. Spring blossoms were just beginning to bloom and it was a beautiful time of year…cool, but not bitingly cold.
I walked through the courtyard of Prague Castle before returning to my hotel, grabbing my bag, and heading right back to Cantina.
My destination this afternoon was The Andaz…I would have been fine with a second night at the Linder, but figured a second hotel review made more sense.
This is a fabulous hotel and likely my favorite Andaz in the world. I’ll have more to say about this hotel in my full review, but I took the rest of the afternoon to workout, sit in the sauna + steam room, and get some work done…for better or for worse, work never stops for me, regardless of where I am in the world.
Later on, I took part in the Globalist Happy Hour in the bar before getting some more work done.
For dinner, I took the recommendation of reader Ricardo (thanks Ricardo!) who suggested I visit Café Imperial to try Czech food, where Kafka used to go.” It was a “Kafkaesque” day, so I thought it fitting that I visit not just any Czech restaurant, but the very restaurant Kafka himself used to frequent.
Located in the Art Deco style Imperial Hotel, Café Imperial opened in 1914 and has beautiful high ceilings and ceramic mosaic tiles.
I had a late dinner and thankfully, there was no wait for a table.
The menu changes daily. For dinner, I had dill soup with poached egg followed by braised rabbit with porcini mushroom sauce and truffle dumpling. Very delicious dishes…

This was another nice day in Prague. Could I have crammed more in? Of course…but that’s just not the way I travel. I appreciate that I can remotely work and workout, balancing daily tasks with a bit of culture and cuisine when I am in a different venue.
Will you be reviewing the Linder? I’d like to know about it and the area.
Coming soon.
Wait wait wait! I see a 10% service charge on the bill, that’s not how that usually goes.
Did you specifically instruct them to include a 10% tip, or did the server break policy?
I’d be pretty surprised, this is a reputable place, but I’d love to get to the bottom of this.
Was automatically added…maybe just for foreigners ?
That would be super illegal.
I’ve checked and they’re supposed to only add a 10% service charge for groups of 9 or more.
This is not OK.
Do you have a link? I’d like to follow-up on this.
Yup, it’s stated on their Contact page, both English and Czech: https://www.cafeimperial.cz/en/contact-us
I’ve already inquired via email, but you might want to follow up on your own. The restaurant is owned by a celebrity chef (Gordon Ramsey’s Czech counterpart, so to speak), so presumably they’d want to know about this. Cheers.
Yay for some local food, and glad you enjoyed it.
What an honor, Matthew. Glad you liked it.
Prague is one of the most beautiful cities in the world