Czech it out...

I am very proud to have been born in Slovakia, or Czechoslovakia as I knew it as the little dumpling of my parents' eyes...in a city named Kosice to be exact and regrettably it has been well over 15 years since I have visited my amazing homeland. A dream (read: goal) for this year is for the Mr. and I to visit my friends and slightly dysfunctional but lovable family.

No doubt about it, I can no longer ignore my beloved Bryndzové Halušky, Pierogi, Slivovice and Goulash beckoning me to once again divulge in all things decadent and artery-clogging. Sigh. Food and booze talk aside, my nostalgia for home sweet home has gotten me wondering about what my homies have been up to in their world of design. Let's Czech it out!

First and foremost, we'll need an uber stylish and expensive place to crash, so let's see what the popular Hotel Josef has to offer....but first, I feel a boutique hotel dilemma coming on. Two swanky hotels, both of which are decorated by a one Eva Jiricna.

I know I've been touting color as of late, but nothing says sweet slumber like a neutral room, soft white sheets and no overhead lighting...and a splendid Ghost chair.



...and next we have Hotel Maximilian, just a few steps from Old Town Square, with Art Deco, Modernism and contemporary design influences.

I'm digging the all-white living area...and those corset-inspired chairs?!?! Super-sexy!

Love Art Deco, Bauhaus and Czech Modernism?...now THIS is a plant stand I can stand - Found at gallery Kubista:


...and an Art Deco couch to die for!



Eat your heart out with this original chair circa mid 1930s by Jindřich Halabala. Can you believe the arm rest/legs are made of one piece of solid beech bent in a mould? Found at Modernista.

And finally, the most important burning question for any style junkie/foodie? Where is the best place to eat? Funny thing you should ask! As I was cyber-stalking just one of my chef crushes, Gordon Ramsay, several months ago, I knew it was true love when I discovered one of the restaurants in his empire was located in Old Town Prague. Sadly, I recently learned after a little over a year, Maze is shut its doors February 2009. Here are some photos of what would have been...

So we don't conclude our little adventure on a sad note, let's go to plan B. Housed in 12th-century Roman cellars, in one of the oldest buildings on Old Town Square, restaurant Bílý koníček offers fine cuisine in atmospheric and tranquil medieval surroundings...and it turns into a discotheque at night!