U Medvidku ★ 4.0
U Medvidku has poured beer since 1466 in the same Old Town building. X-Beer 33 is a one-pour experience; do the standard 12-degree alongside.
Tip: X-Beer 33 is a one-pour experience; do the standard 12-degree alongside.
History
Utopenci, literally drowned ones, are a Czech pivnice staple developed in the late 19th century as a way for pubs to keep parky-style soft sausages edible for weeks once a fresh delivery had been cut. The sausages float face-up in tall glass jars at the bar like macabre ornaments, scooped out with tongs and served on a small plate with the brined onion piled around them and a slice of pickled cucumber. Utopenci are pivni jidlo (beer food) of the strictest kind, demanding rye bread and round after round of cold beer to balance the funk. U Medvidku and U Fleku keep jars going perpetually.
Common allergens: Mustard
Make it at home
Ingredients
- 8 small Czech parky sausages or German bockwurst (about 80g each, soft uncured fat-skinned sausages, NOT smoked frankfurters)
- 2 large yellow onions, sliced thinly into rings
- 4 garlic cloves, smashed
- 2 fresh red chillies, slit lengthways
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 tbsp black peppercorns, lightly cracked
- 2 tsp yellow mustard seeds
- 1 tsp whole allspice
- 500ml white wine vinegar
- 500ml water
- 60g caster sugar
- 2 tbsp sea salt
- To serve: 1 small onion sliced very thinly into rings, dark Czech rye bread, mustard, cold Pilsner
Method
- Bring a small pot of water to a gentle simmer; lower in the sausages and poach for 4 minutes (not a hard boil, which splits the skin). Lift out, drain, cool 5 minutes.
- Slice each sausage lengthways from one end almost through to the other, leaving them joined on one side like a book.
- Stuff each sausage cavity with as many sliced onion rings as it will hold.
- In a saucepan, combine vinegar, water, sugar, salt, garlic, chillies, bay leaves, peppercorns, mustard and allspice. Bring to a boil, simmer 5 minutes, then cool to barely warm.
- Layer the stuffed sausages and the remaining onion rings in a tall sterilised 1.5L glass jar, packing them snugly but not crushing.
- Pour the cooled brine over until the sausages are completely submerged (top up with extra vinegar-water if needed). Seal.
- Refrigerate for at least 72 hours before eating; the flavour deepens significantly between days 3 and 7, and they keep 3 weeks in the fridge.
- To serve: lift one sausage out of the jar with tongs, slice across into 1cm thick rounds, pile onto a small plate with extra brined onion from the jar, fresh sliced raw onion rings on top. Eat with rye bread, mustard and a cold Pilsner.
Tip from the editors. Czech parky are sold in Central European groceries and are the only correct sausage; a German bockwurst or weisswurst is the closest substitute. Smoked frankfurters do not work; the texture is too tight and the smoke fights the brine.
Where to eat utopenci
Utopenci in Prague
U Fleku ★ 4.0
U Fleku's eight beer halls stay loud until 23:00. The 1499 brewery's dark Flek 13 is the late-night pour; the kitchen runs full Czech mains until last orders.
Try: Dark Flek 13, goulash, pork knee
Tip: Avoid the Friday and Saturday late shifts unless you booked a hall in advance.
Vycep ★ 4.3
Vycep in Vinohrady earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand in 2025. Chef Jiri Hrachovy modernises Czech pub cooking with a touch of Wallachian sheep-cheese country.
Order: The Wallachian halusky with bryndza; the Pilsner pour from tank.
Lokal Dlouhaaa ★ 4.4
Lokal Dlouhaaa stays open to 01:00 weekend nights, pouring tank Pilsner and serving classic Czech pub food until last orders. Located in Stare Mesto.
Try: Tank Pilsner, Czech pub menu
Tip: Last food order is 30 minutes before close; the smazeny syr is the late dish.
More cities are in research. Want utopenci covered somewhere specific? Tell us where you want to eat.