Snacks for the Bus

Europe is a wonderful place to visit for so many reasons but one big one is that it’s easy to hop from country to country with just a short ride on a bus or train. We wanted to take advantage of this luxury so we caught a bus from Berlin to Prague. Before starting our bus journey, we made a quick trip to the supermarket. We picked up fruit smoothies, grapes, wholegrain rolls and a jar of tomato spread made from sunflower seeds. Having forgot our cutlery, we also snagged some chopsticks for spreading. There were no plastic knives, spoons or forks in sight. Sometimes you have to get creative. After five hours on the bus, we arrived in Prague. Ready to eat, of course!

Zdravé Žití U Tří Růží

Zdravé Žití U Tří Růží

For its size, Prague has quite a few restaurants and shops that cater to vegetarians and vegans. Many of the veg-friendly places are near the center of the city, making it easy to keep well fed and avoid overpriced tourist traps. For vegan backpackers on a budget, it’s always a good idea to check out organic and health food stores for snacks, prepared meals and sandwiches, as well as products you can use to make meals at hostels. Of course, you’ll find prices are higher at these kinds of specialty shops but you can usually put together a high quality, healthy meal for less than what you’d spend at a restaurant. Zdravé Žití U Tří Růží, which translates to Healthy Living with Three Roses, was the first bio shop we checked out. It caught our attention with a big sign reading Vegetarianske Potraviny, Czech for vegetarian food.

Salad Bar

Behind their glass counter, they had many bowls filled with delicious looking bean and grain salads. The prices were very reasonable, with each portion costing 13.00-25.00 Czech Koruna ($0.75-1.43 USD).

Dry Goods

The back of the tiny shop was stocked with dry goods, like sauces, spreads and bread products, while the front fridge was stuffed with many soy creations.

Meat Alternatives

Salve Natura Sausage

Tofu Pate

All of the products in the fridge were new to me. They had lots of tofu pate in plastic tubes. There were veggie burgers, steaks, hot dogs, haggis and some big, dried sausages by Salve Natura. I stared at many products in wonder but didn’t buy any. Some were a bit scary. For vegans who like to try meat alternatives, this is the place to shop. Prague is full of this stuff. Otherwise, I’d recommend the salad bar for a quick takeout lunch.

Zdravé Žití U Tří Růží
www.zdraveziti.eu/
Soukenicka 21
Praha 1, Czech Republic
Tel: +420 222 318 726

Bio Fresh

Bio Fresh

Just a five minute walk straight down the street from Zdravé Žití U Tří Růží, we came across another green and orange shop, Bio Fresh. 

Tofu Sandwiches

This store was even bigger and also had a wide selection of veg products. They had a fridge full of tofu and tempeh sandwiches ready for takeaway. The prices were a bit higher here, with the sandwiches costing 51.00-54.00 Czech Koruna ($2.92-3.09 USD), but still within a backpacker budget.

Tofu and Tempeh

Bio Fresh also had a fridge full of tofu and tempeh products for making meals at home.

Japanese Sauces by Arche Naturküche

They had half an aisle dedicated to Japanese products. I noticed some mini bottles of Japanese sauces by Arche Naturküche. These 20 ml bottles are just the right size for vegan chefs who want to keep up their cooking on the road.

Isola Bio Milk Alternatives

There was no shortage of milk alternatives to choose from. The most interesting of the bunch were made by Isola Bio. There selection included rice, orzo, corn, coconut, almond, millet, spelt and oat milk. But that’s not all…

Isola Bio Chocolate Quinoa Drink

… they even make a chocolate quinoa beverage.

Chocolate and Candy!

The candy section took over the front counter. There were several milk-free dark chocolate bars to choose from.

Raw Vegan Flax Rolls by lifefood

And for the raw foodies, they had a few products by LifeFood. These organic apple cinnamon and lemon ginger flax rolls looked tempting.

Bio Fresh Zdravá Výživa
Rámová 739
Praha 1, Czech Republic
Tel: (420) 224-815-880

Country Life

Country Life

Country Life is one of the most popular vegan restaurants in Prague. There’s also a large Country Life health food store attached to their central location, which is just a few minutes walk from the old square. They carry a wide selection of products, though not everything they sell is vegan.

Life Bar and Flapjack

We picked up some granoVita flapjack bars and LifeBars by Live Food. They made for great snacks while walking around the city and on the bus ride back to Berlin.

granoVita Vegetable Pate

After eating at a few restaurants, we didn’t have much money left over to buy snacks or specialty items but that didn’t stop us from looking. We saw some more vegetable pate…

Vegan Treats

..lots of cookies and sweets…

Vegan Pudding and Soy Whip Cream

…many kinds of vegan pudding…

Naturvia Tofu

Meat Alternatives

…and more meat alternatives than we’d know what to do with.

Cookies

Even though we were running out of Czech money, we couldn’t resist the temptation of the pastry section at Country Life. We agreed we had to try their freshly baked vegan croissants. Thankfully, they were only 14.00 Czech Koruna ($0.80 USD). It was the first time either of us had encountered a fresh vegan croissant. We’d tried a packaged croissants in Brussels, Belgium, but really, that’s just kind of sad. Croissants shouldn’t have a two month shelf life.

Vegan Rosemary, Onion and Garlic Croissant

Vegan Apple and Almond Croissant

We bought two. One rosemary, onion and garlic. The other apple and almond. They were both light, flaky and delicious. We kept asking each other “Are you sure these are vegan?” right up until the very last bite. We asked the staff a million times, and even emailed them afterward to confirm. They’re vegan alright. And they’re fantastic!

Country Life
www.countrylife.cz/
Jungmannova 1
Praha 1, Czech Republic
Tel: +420-257-044419