The Best Duck in Prague? For me, it’s at Hostinec na Výtoni!
Maybe you haven’t visited this newly renovated restaurant in the historic Podskalská Customs House yet—it hasn’t even been open for a year. It’s not as famous yet as the Výčep restaurant, nor are there lines outside like for the grilled pork knuckle at Pork’s. Don’t expect fine dining like at the Vallmo restaurant, which is just around the corner. Still, it’s worth a visit.
Hostinec na Výtoni specializes in duck dishes brought to perfection.
They don’t prepare the duck by roasting it in the oven like in many other places. Instead, it’s slow-grilled over charcoal on a huge Josper grill, custom-made in Barcelona for the local head chef and co-owner, Jakub Hirsch. They are happy to show off the beautiful Ferrari-red grill. Inside, there are six spits that rotate evenly; each one holds four ducks, so they can prepare up to 24 at once. Grilling takes about two and a half hours. Their duck preparation is refined down to the last detail—the crispiness of the skin reminded me of perfect Peking duck.
It’s exactly the smoky flavor and crispiness of the skin that, for me, sets this duck apart from other places. The skin reminds me of perfectly rendered cracklings, and I couldn’t help but recall the similarly perfect skin of the grilled pork knuckle from Pork’s. That’s why it’s no surprise that Jakub Hirsch used to be the head chef at the popular Pork’s.
My feast starts with the house treat—sourdough bread with lard containing pieces of duck cracklings. Ever since COVID times, when I started baking sourdough bread at home, a slice of freshly baked bread with butter and salt has been one of my favorite simple meals.
Hostinec na Výtoni elevated my experience with salted lard and pieces of crispy duck cracklings, which also reminded me of home butchering days back in my native Valašsko. Simple perfection with only one downside—two slices of bread for four guests just isn’t enough! 😇
For a starter, I tried fried bread (“topinka”) with chopped Olomouc cheese, onion, pepper and mustard (175 CZK/7 EUR). I was surprised by the lightness and airy texture of the cheese spread, and the fried bread wasn’t oily; it was crisp on the outside and still soft inside.
Half of our table chose the grilled duck (389 CZK/15.60 EUR) as their main course, served here with red cabbage with apples and potato dumpling fingers. I went for the pulled duck in a potato pancake (349 CZK/14 EUR). The potato pancake was filled with spiced cabbage, flavored with apple mayonnaise, sprinkled with fried onion and topped with duck jus.
The duck meatloaf with truffles in a poppy seed roll (379 CZK/15.20 EUR) was perfect as well. Anyone who enjoys the taste of truffles will be delighted.
After the duck feast, I couldn’t resist dessert. Hostinec na Výtoni offers ice cream, the now-iconic caramel apple, or potato dumpling fingers with roasted plums, poppy seed ice cream, gingerbread, sugar and lots of butter (179 CZK/7 EUR). I love the tried-and-true combination of poppy seeds and plums. Even though they were generous with the butter, I didn’t feel as heavy as I do, for example, at the U Matěje restaurant after their curd buns with butter. To me, this was a perfect Czech dessert.
Pilsner is on tap here (69 CZK/3 EUR) as well as dark Kozel, and they’ll gladly pour you a mixed beer (“řezané”), a “mlíko” (very foamy beer) or a “šnyt” (small beer with lots of foam).
If you’re not far from Prague’s Výtoň, Hostinec na Výtoni is also an ideal place for lunch in Prague. A quarter grilled duck with a side costs about 250 CZK/10 EUR as part of the lunch menu.
It’s also nice how they pay attention to so many small details with the duck motif, for example on the beer coasters.
For the evening, reservations are a must. We had a reservation for six o’clock and the place was already packed. The staff are friendly, communicative and absolutely professional; the food was on the table quickly, and drinks were brought out almost immediately.
If you want to enjoy perfectly grilled duck, Hostinec na Výtoni is a great place to do so.
Bon appétit!
For more information about Hostinec na Výtoni, click on the map link:
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