New contributor Simon Ogilvie-Harris reviews La Finestra in Prague and is pleasantly surprised to find that it is as popular with locals as it is with tourists
La Finestra has a reputation as one of the top eateries in Prague. It is located just behind an old town square on Platnéřská Street and has a menu that is focused on Italian meat and seafood dishes.
The interior of the restaurant is unassuming and is rather like a New York loft in terms of the way it has been styled. The lighting level is just right and the resulting atmosphere is both pleasant and relaxed. Though situated in an area frequented by tourists, La Finestra is also popular with locals and on our visit my companion and I found it surprisingly buzzy.
We started with dishes recommended by the waiter: Grilled scallops with Jerusalem artichoke purée and beetroot carpaccio with sugar nuts and goat cheese mousse. Both dishes arrived perfectly executed and we found the scallops we tried so fresh that we felt as if we were dining on the coast rather than in the middle of the mainland. Equally, the combination of the raw beetroot and the light and frothy goat cheese mousse was extremely tasty and something we’d both highly recommend.
La Finestra’s menu features a large selection of fish and meats from across the globe. They have steaks from Argentina, Italy and the USA and fish from Denmark and the Mediterranean. Though these tempted us, we opted for the dishes that our waiter recommended as their best sellers: Grilled octopus and guinea fowl breast with foie gras.
Though the grilled octopus was perfectly pleasant, it was somewhat lacking in flavour. I found it disappointing given it had been described as “one of La Finestra’s top dishes” by our waiter. We were both much more impressed by the fusion of tastes and textures offered by the guinea fowl and foie gras combination and would suggest diners definitely opt for this as a choice.
We finished with a dark chocolate fondant with a white chocolate ganache and a mango sorbet. The taste was truly divine and represented a great way to end a delightful dinner.
La Finestra is certainly pricey compared to other restaurants in the locality but, if you compare it to a similar restaurant in London or New York, it really is not that expensive. With charming waiters and excellent service, this is undoubtedly the restaurant I would recommend to anyone visiting Prague.
La Finestra, Platnéřská 90/13, 110 00 Prague, Czech Republic. Telephone: +420 222 325 325.
Simon Ogilvie-Harris is the founder of the jewellery brand Chavín. He visited La Finestra with interior decorator and restaurant designer Karina Fisun.
Subscribe to our free once daily email newsletter here: