It’s no secret that when I want to treat myself, feel fairly confident of success and, while the bill may be high, still expect it to be payable, I often end up at Mlýnec or V Zátiší. Both belong to the Zátiší Gourmet Club, where membership is free and brings a 10% discount and other perks. So when I mention these restaurants from time to time, it isn’t due to bribery (alas, I’m tempted to add), but for the reasons above: I can afford to be pampered, and it usually works.
V Zátiší was closed in August and the first part of September for a refurbishment and a refresh of its concept—what they now describe as “A new concept, a modern interpretation of Slavic flavours from farms and forests, with stories of the landscape and a dash of boldness.” I’d have happily shortened that to: “Contemporary Slavic flavours with a daring touch.”
For the record, I hadn’t been calling for change (we old men rarely do); I was perfectly content with the restaurant as it was. But I’m always curious, and at the moment I’m following a strict eating regimen with one small loophole: on my day off, Wednesday, I’m allowed to go out for lunch. I didn’t need much temptation, and the prospect of V Zátiší’s Welcome-Back Menu was enough to get me through the door.
The offer
Three courses with one glass of wine and water for CZK 1,295 (CZK 1,116 with the club discount). The menu is available until 12 October.
Starter
- Smoked beef tartare with Carskaya caviar / mushrooms / bone marrow
or - Cucumber with sheep’s milk cheese from Mělník / cream / dill / hazelnuts
Main
- Beef tenderloin with plum / “škubánek” dumpling / cream
or - Poached brook trout with mushrooms / sea buckthorn / black apple
Dessert
- “Makovec” poppy-seed cake with fermented cherries / mead / nuts
or - Sorbet
The included wine is a Czech sparkling. It’s perfectly decent as a welcome drink, but—as I discovered—it doesn’t pair with any of the courses. Because I received a glass of prosecco as a welcome drink thanks to the club membership, I “saved” the included sparkling for the main course. That turned out to be a bad idea.
Bread & preamble
House-baked bread arrived with whipped butter dusted in smoked paprika. Super-tasty and fresh. There was no amuse-bouche, but none had been promised.
Starter: Smoked beef tartare, Carskaya caviar, mushrooms, bone marrow
The tartare arrived in a bowl still smoking; the gentle smoke did the meat a great many favours, and the beef itself had plenty of flavour. The bone marrow had—so far as I could tell—been worked into a mayonnaise. It contributed much more fat than flavour, and for me that skewed the dish: the combined richness of meat and marrow dominated, without a natural acidity and perhaps a hint of sweetness to counterbalance—exactly the sort of checks one usually applies to, say, foie gras.
The accompanying ultra-crisp bread was sliced so thinly it functioned mostly as crumbs, and it, too, carried a generous smear of the marrow/mayo. The artificial “caviar” doesn’t taste of much, but it does add a nuance the beef tolerates well enough. Still, my lingering memory of the dish is “smoked richness”.
Main: Beef tenderloin, plum, “škubánek” dumpling, cream (sauce)
The beef was tender, well-seasoned and cooked a beautiful pink. The sauce—clearly inspired by svíčková na smetaně—was very sweet and lacked the refinement I’ve come to expect from sauces at this restaurant. The plum felt out of place.
The dumpling, škubánek, wasn’t like anything I’ve previously been served; it tasted of very little and was covered in a thick layer of crushed poppy seeds that added not flavour but an unwelcome texture. There’s no doubt that in this course the Slavic influence the restaurant wishes to champion came through in full. Unfortunately, not in a way that appealed to this non-Slavic guest.
Portioning didn’t help: it was stingily plated for a main course (almost a parody of the “fine dining equals tiny portions” cliché). That would have been a real problem if the dish had been enticing enough to make me want more. I was disappointed.
Dessert: “Makovec” poppy-seed cake, fermented cherries, mead, nuts
Aesthetically, it was charming—topped with an elegant poppy-seed tuile. But the cream was too sweet, the cakes themselves faceless, and the honey only compounded the dominant sweetness. I couldn’t find the nuts, though the cherries did bring a measure of contrast thanks to a little sourness. Overall, I fear I wasn’t Slavic enough to appreciate this either. Another disappointment.
Service, wine & odds and ends
Service was polite; the team did reassure me that I should return and give the tasting menu a chance. As noted above, the included Czech sparkler didn’t suit the dishes, and “saving” it for the main was a misstep on my part. The bread and smoked-paprika butter were a bright spot.
Verdict
My conclusion on the Welcome-Back Menu, regrettably, is that I’m not compatible with the style the kitchen is aiming for here. I should add that I only sampled half of the set menu, and the staff were keen for me to come back for the tasting menu.
I’m undecided. The dishes I tried all appear as standalone options on the à la carte, which means there are items I would now purposefully avoid. It feels strange to find myself doubting a restaurant I normally love visiting.
Perhaps I should try the Sunday brunch again and see if the spark returns. I don’t know. Today, I left disappointed.
