Casa De Carli

Italian Cooking in the Old Town: Where Casa De Carli Sits

Casa De Carli sits on Vězeňská in Staré Město as a contemporary family-run Italian restaurant. Matteo De Carli and Lenka Hermanová have run it since 2012. The cooking has a subtle North Italian bias: breads, pastas, and ice creams are homemade, and the menu moves between classic Italian dishes and seasonal combinations.

Further afield, 8½ Otto e Mezzo Bombana in Hong Kong and cenci in Kyoto are useful related rooms. In Prague, other addresses include Aromi, La Finestra in Cucina, Divinis, CottoCrudo, and Dejvická 34 by Tomáš Černý.

The Room and the Format

Casa De Carli places tables on the cobbled street in front of the building.

Inside, the interior is straightforward and modern. The open show kitchen is the centrepiece, with cooking visible from the dining room. A wine-fridge wall and a walk-in wine fridge are also on view, and the wine list is a detailed offering.

The chef's table in the basement seats a maximum of eight guests, with the chef cooking directly in front of the group in a private setting. At eight seats it is limited; book that room first if it is the point of the visit.

The Kitchen's Priorities

Bread, pasta, and ice cream are all made in-house. Daily specials are offered in the restaurant — turbot in puff pastry crust is one dish to look for — and they are the place to see what the kitchen is pushing that day.

Guests who want the kitchen to set the sequence can take a 5-, 6-, or 7-course tasting menu from chef Matteo. At €€€, a full dinner, especially a tasting menu, is worth booking ahead rather than treating as a drop-in.

Planning a Visit

Casa De Carli is at Vězeňská 116/5 in Staré Město. Monday–Friday service is 12:00–15:00 and 18:00–23:00; Saturday, Sunday, and holidays are closed. The chef's table for up to eight in the basement needs its own arrangement.

For a broader picture of Prague dining, see our Prague experiences guide. Further afield, Cattaleya in Čeladná and Chapelle in Písek sit outside the city, alongside ARRIGŌ in Děčín, ATELIER bar & bistro in Brno, Babiččina zahrada in Průhonice, and Bohém in Litomyšl.