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http://www.denverpost.com/food/ci_2785970
DINING
REVIEW
Fill up on hearty fare, an elegant atmosphere
By Kyle Wagner
Denver Post Dining Critic
At
Cafe Prague, the food is balanced between classic Czech
dishes and lighter European fare.
(Post / Andy Cross)
A
sleepy foothills hamlet noted more for its biker brunches
and Harley happy hours than any real culinary scene, Morrison
is pretty much the last place one would expect to find an
upscale Czech restaurant.
But
Cafe Prague moved from its original - and seemingly almost
as unlikely - home in Georgetown in October, and since February
has been packing them in, drawing Denver diners as well
as the locals.
They
might come for the elegant, dark wood, white-linen atmosphere,
the dining room located inside a late-1800s building on
the main drag through town, in what used to be an art gallery
and a century ago was the Ross Hardware store.
You
wouldn't know that now: The comfy, leather-lined banquettes
and mural- lined walls make for swanky dining, and as the
weather warms, the partially shaded patio along one side
is appealing too.
The
crowds also might come for the crisp service, which can
bog down later in the evening when things get busy but usually
is so tight and serious that at one point a server admonished
a member of our party who seemed to be ordering out of turn:
"Women first."
And,
of course, they must come for the fabulous food.
That
it's classic Czech fare with its heavy reputation, its sweet-and-sour
cabbage and its bready trappings seems to give no one pause.
We're talking schnitzel and dumplings, sauerkraut and sauerbraten,
brown sauce and lingonberries - and everyone seems to be
loving every minute of it.
Chef
and owner Tomas Stibral says he moved the eatery from Georgetown
because the seasonal business was killing him. "You
get only about four months there, and that isn't enough
for a restaurant," he told us on one visit. Some of
his old staff in Georgetown stayed on and are trying to
keep the place going under a new name, while Stibral has
found that Morrison's dining scene is a little more consistent.
"People just seem to keep eating here year-round like
normal."
Part
of the reason must be attributed to the fact that Stibral
has balanced the menu between classic Czech dishes that
might be more popular in the winter months and lighter European
foods that will carry over into the summer.
Starters
such as escargots ($7) can go either way. If you can stick
simply to plucking out the six soft snails with a fork and
eating them in all their rich, lemony glory, they qualify
as light, but we couldn't do that - the tangy butter was
too good. Instead, we jammed pieces of the spongy, house-baked
bread into the little holes to soak up all the liquid.
The
smoked salmon ($9), noted on the menu as smoked in nearby
Kittredge, also would be in the light category, thin slices
of faintly sweet, not too oily fish, each piece wrapped
around a breadstick and garnished with capers and onion,
as would the pâté of the day ($10), in this
case a duck version, mild and smoothly textured.
The
deep-fried calamari ($7), not exactly a classic Czech offering
and not exactly light, either, nonetheless came nicely presented,
with the rings of squid thinly coated in crumbs and oily,
a zippy marinara on the side for dipping.
The
thing about Cafe Prague, though, is that you really don't
need starters. Entrees come with a cup of soup or a salad
and the bread basket, and even the "Lite Dinners"
such as goulash and chicken schnitzel have hearty sides.
But
the mother of all meals to have here, the one for first-timers
for sure, is the Bohemian Combination Platter for Two ($39).
This
will ensure that you and one other person on the planet
for one night will be treated to a Czech dining extravaganza
complete with (are you ready?): one quarter of a crispy-skinned,
juicy-fleshed roast duckling; several slices of tender roast
pork; one well-pounded breast of moist, gently breaded chicken
schnitzel; and a few slices of well-seasoned meatloaf.
But
wait, there's more. You also receive two slabs of dense,
doughy potato dumpling and two thick slices of Bohemian
bread dumplings, which look and smell just like bread but
are much heavier and denser, and generous helpings of savory
sauerkraut and pungent, sweet-and-sour red cabbage.
And
then there is the pièce de résistance, a gravy
boat of brown sauce, two words that simply do not do justice
to what this substance represents: the culmination of some
laborious cooking down of many ingredients into a medium-thick
brew so concentrated and rich with flavor that "brown"
was all anyone could come up with to sum it up.
This
was after the soup or salad too, choices of deep, dark goulash
soup choked with potatoes or Caesar salad studded with bits
of parmesan and seriously lacking salt.
Those
of us not taking down the Bohemian platter (but still sticking
a fork in here and there anyway) tried the Hungarian beef
goulash ($12) in its non-soup form, thinner and lighter
in color as well as concentration, the paprika-flecked sauce
mild but still sweetly peppery. Bread dumplings were at
the ready for sopping up the stuff that didn't get used
on the tender beef chunks.
We
also fought over baked salmon ($16) slathered in a hollandaise
so textbook-perfect we were stealing the crunchy matchstick
potatoes from the well-crafted trout almondine ($16) to
dip in. And the classic sauerbraten ($17) brought beef loin,
like the other meats cooked until it nearly melted, awash
in a sauce less sour than many, with a faint clove quality
and sweetness that matched the meat's.
Lunch
at Cafe Prague offers a more American focus, with a drippy,
soft-bun hamburger ($7), decent fish and chips ($8) and
other sandwiches. There's also the German platter ($10),
with its great, fat links of bratwurst, garlicky knockwurst
and smoky German sausage, served with creamy mashed potatoes.
Dessert
was the only time I felt ambivalent toward Cafe Prague.
Homemade apple strudel ($4) came out dry and too tart, while
a Grand Marnier chocolate mousse ($4) needed more chocolate
and a lot less whipped cream on top. The forest berry tart
fruit dumpling ($6) was moving in the right direction, but
the real winner was palacinky ($6), described on the menu
as crêpes filled with sweetened cream cheese and raspberry
jam but really coming out as crêpes that tasted like
great buttery cinnamon toast.
They
would be just right for a biker brunch.
Dining
critic Kyle Wagner can be reached at 303-820-1958 or kwagner@denverpost.com.
Cafe Prague
***½
EUROPEAN
| 209 Bear Creek Ave., Morrison, 303-697-9722|*** 1/2
Atmosphere:
Upscale, white-linen dining, with comfy side banquettes
and a shady patio next to the building. One wall sports
a mural of Prague, and the bar that juts out into the dining
room offers a place to stop by for a few appetizers.
Service:
Crisp, although it can bog down toward the end of the evening
when the place is full.
Wine
list: Well-rounded and reasonable.
Dinner
entrees: $12-$26
Hours:
5 to 9 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday.
Details:
All major credit cards; street parking and pay lot across
street; medium noisy; no smoking; wheelchair accessible;
reservations recommended.
