Maitrea Vegetarian Restaurant, Prague
When we arrived in Prague train station, we needed a taxi straight away but the taxi situation was scary. The signs led us to a wrong spot and the real taxi rank had a long queue already. We rang the guy who rented us an apartment in Old Town Square (Thomas) and asked what to do. He sent us a taxi immediately and we helped two ladies from California to call their hotel for their own transportation by allowing them to use our phone. It was all sorted in the end, however, we couldn’t help but thinking where the hell are were?
When we got to the apartment, Thomas was waiting for us. We took over the keys to the apartment and after a brief orientation to the place we asked the ultimate question of vegetarian places to eat in Prague. The answer was brief: Maitrea. He said: “You can’t go wrong with Maitrea. Besides, it’s just around the corner.” And he showed us the exact location on our city map.
I did a little research around Czech food at the time of planning for this trip and was hoping to find some interesting Jewish vegetarian dishes around town. When you think about the number of Jews living in Prague, there’s bound to be some restaurants but we didn’t need any of that in the end. Because, Maitrea was enough and it really was “just around the corner” as we spotted the place when we were out and about for the first time.
The place looks like a dark cave decorated with Zen principles -check out the water feature video which was right next to our table. It is even darker downstairs (check out the photos taken downstairs) but it feels cozy because of it.
The menu at Maitrea is quite international. However, on our first night, we decided to try some original Czech dishes which have been vegetarianised. Here’s what we had on our first visit to Maitrea:
Czech special: Spicy goulash with vegetarian “meat” pieces, served with wholemeal dumplings/or baked potatoes 175 CZK The seitan in this dish was exquisite; the size, texture and flavour were like no other seitan I have ever had in my life. Apparently, they make their own.
Another Czech special: Traditional “Svíčková“ – vegetarian “meat” slices seitan with a tangy vegetable cream sauce, served with wholemeal dumplings, lime, whipped cream, and cranberries 170 CZK
The second time we visited Maitrea, we tried Paella a la Barcelona (it was by far the best vegetarian paella we have ever had!) and Meatless “chicken“and mushroom balls.
Paella a la Barcelona with sun-dried tomatoes, champignons, and shiitake mushrooms, onion, stir-fry sauce, vegetarian “chicken” pieces and parmesan. 175 CZK
Meatless “chicken“and mushroom balls with oven-roasted vegetables, basil pesto and homemade tofunnaise 175 CZK
Maitrea Vegetarian Restaurant
Týnská ulička 1064/6,
110 00 Praha 1, Czech Republic
Maitrea has a complete spiritual center right next door with a bookstore. If you are interested in books and workshops in spirituality, you might like to check it out too. Their working hours are different to the restaurant, though.