People come to Prague to walk across the Charles Bridge, to visit the Vitus Cathedral, to drink local beer, and to walk up and down the streets in Prague’s old town. But, where are you going to eat your dinners in Prague? Have you heard about the very popular restaurant named “U Pavouka”? This is a restaurant giving you a medieval dinner experience with lots of drinks and food, and a program consisting of sword fights, belly dancing, loud music, and much more. Is “U Pavouka” worth the money? Should you spend an evening in the restaurant during your trip to Prague?
“U Pavouka” is located in the center of Prague, only 2 minutes by foot from the Old Town Square. As a result, you don’t need to make a lot of arrangements to get there. If you visit the popular Christmas markets or Easter markets at the Old Town square, you can just walk towards the famous Powder Tower near the Municipality Hall, and the restaurant will be on your left side within 2 minutes. In other words, the location is perfect!
There are several cities in Europe with similar theme restaurants. In Budapest (Hungary), Sir Lancelot is the most famous medieval restaurant, while Rozengrals is a popular medieval restaurant in Riga (Latvia). But, should you reserve a table and spend a lot of money on a quite expensive dinner in “U Pavouka” in Prague?
What makes “U Pavouka” so special?
As you arrive at the restaurant, you will be escorted down into a dark cellar where there are lots of candles. The entire atmosphere takes you back to what you might think of as a tavern during the Middle Age. As the program starts, you are welcomed by musicians playing typical medieval music as they march through the entire restaurant, giving everyone the chance to see the musicians up close. This is a quite fantastic way to start the evening and the atmosphere the musicians and the music brings along gives the program a flying start!
The restaurant has a schedule for the food, meaning that the food is served at set times. In other words, this is a full-evening program, and not a place you visit for 30 minutes and then run to the next program. If you arrive around 20.00, you should know that the main course will only arrive at the table around 80-90 minutes later. But, before you get to the main course, you will get a starter, a soup, a pancake, and lots of entertainment.
The menu might change in the future. It is also worth knowing that children are only served three courses, while adults are served five courses in the restaurant.
As the musicians get back to their places, the dancers arrive, and you will see them lots of times during the evening. These are good-looking and skilled dancers that will accompany you and entertain the visitors. But, there are also actors/actresses performing, and do not be surprised if you witness a sword-fight or other battles close to where you are seated.
Is “U Pavouka” a family-friendly restaurant?
If you are coming with teenagers to Prague, this is probably going to be one of the most popular programs you attend. It isn’t a coincidence that many people refer to “U Pavouka” as a theater and a restaurant, and not just as a restaurant. This is a restaurant with a full program, and teenagers will enjoy both the acting, the dancing, and the atmosphere.
Kids under 5 will have trouble understanding what’s going on, but kids aged between 5 and 10 will most likely have a good time, even though some might find some of the entertainment a little bit scary (but that wouldn’t stop us from bringing such kids along).
To answer the question; “U Pavouka” is probably one of the most family friendly activities in Prague, and one that your kids will remember for a long time after you leave the city!
It is worth knowing that there is unlimited beer consumption included in the program (normally). What does this mean? You shouldn’t be surprised if other guests get in a good mood and start to sing, dance, and get in an extremely good mood due to consuming too much alcohol. If you don’t want your kids to see that, then you might want to go elsewhere, but you can also use it it as an opportunity to teach them about alcohol consumption and about life in the taverns in the Middle Age.
What is the food like in “U Pavouka”?
So far we have written a lot about the entertainment in the restaurant (which is awesome). But, what is the food like? If you buy a full menu, then you will be served five courses. During our stay we were first served a salad, followed by a soup, a pancake with spinach, a gigantic piece of meat, and then a dessert in the end. You can see pictures of the food we were served below.
We loved the show, but we weren’t as enthusiastic about the food. The soup was splendid, the main course (the meat) was juicy and a lot, but the starter, the pancake, and the dessert were easy to forget. The kids who only received three courses looked very much forward to the dessert, but neither of them liked it, so that wasn’t a success for them, nor among the adults. The pancake would have been a bigger success with Nutella, but that wouldn’t have been very authentic. The problem was only that the kids weren’t happy about a pancake with spinach, even though it had a good taste.
To sum up the food; it felt authentic, but it could have been better and more kids-friendly.
How much does a “U Pavouka” dinner cost?
If you book your dinner through a page like GetYourGuide, the price is €78 per adult (12 years or more) and €47 per kid (4-11). That is an expensive dinner, but it is important to take into consideration all the extras you get in addition to the food. One thing is the unlimited drink consumption (beer, wine, and soft-drinks), the other thing is the show and the entire atmosphere you get throughout the evening.
It is still an expensive experience, so a family of four with two teenagers can easily end up spending €320 paying for a dinner in “U Pavouka”. Is it worth it? That is up to you to decide, but we are quite convinced that it will be an experience most guests will remember for a very long time.
It is possible to eat at a lower price in “U Pavouka” if you reserve a table for the early-dinner which starts at 16:30. This is a quite similar show, but cheaper due to the fact that most people want to be there in the evening and not at this time.
What do you think of “U Pavouka” in Prague?
Have you been to the restaurant? How did you like the experience? Was it worth the price? Was it an experience you will remember?
Many people say they wouldn’t visit the restaurant twice, but as a one-time event, it is definitely worth the money. Do you agree?
