by James Gogarty

A bearded grandfather-type coaxes you onto the sled with gentle eyes and a cool, encouraging voice. Red light turns green and grandpa isn't so "On Golden Pond" anymore as he shoves you down the first bending slope. You hit the first circular berm a little too fast for your taste. Yes, you were told that your brake lever can bring you to a snail's pace, but you don't want to be shown up by the 12-year-olds gaining swiftly on your rear.

The second spiral approaches and you envision yourself careening off the side to a chorus of chuckles speeding by. Unscathed, you really start to pick up speed on the straightaway, and you must be reaching that maximum 50 kph you read about in the brochure and think that this is actually quite fun ... A sharp bank abruptly brings the fear back in your eyes and a second has you questioning your purpose for rocketing down a bobsled track on a Sunday afternoon. Was it her birthday? No, wait her name day, right? Who the hell is she anyway and why did she bring me here? What could we possibly be celebrating on this death chute? An orange flag orders you to pull that brake and the next thing you know you are being brought back up the hill on a conveyor belt at a restful pace. Your whirling mind begins to settle and remembers that you are simply celebrating the first sunny weekend you have had free in quite a while.

At the top of the hill you hop off your sled and join your equally frazzled friends on the upper patio. The panorama is two parts buena vista and one part an eye sore as you notice a vineyard and forest framing the vast Vysočany industrial zone. Regardless, it is a wonderful day and you are hungry and although the restaurant specializes in pizza (average 100 Kč), it's summer time and you see the big fat grill smoking in the corner. The waitress brings you a 10-degree Budvar (25 Kč) and a dry-on-the-corners, moist-in-the-middle Grilled Pork Steak with cold green beans mixed with bacon and butter (160 Kč). The beer relaxes and the food satisfies, but you can't help picking at your friends' plates where the choices are more tasty. The Grilled Chicken Breast with freshly sliced tomatoes topped with pesto sauce is lightly grilled and spiced subtly making it a perfect accompaniment on this hot day.

Although being a trendy vegetarian many years back, you still delight in stealing pieces of eggplant, zucchini and bell pepper from your comrade who doesn't mind anyway since the Grilled Veggie Plate (110 czk) is by far the largest portion. You order a few more rounds and listen to your friends say they are too old for this sort of fun and you somewhat agree as you note the Kamikaze Vodka Lime special for only 35 czk.A little while later you find yourself fighting through a battalion of children and standing in front of the ticket booth. “Dva lístky, prosím,“ you request and rush through the turnstile arranging yourself on the sled; knees bent, head tucked forward, hands firmly on lever. Turning to grandpa you give him a devilish smile and a thumbs up as red light turns to green.

Bobová Dráha / Restaurace Na Bobovce
Prosecká 906/34b
190 00 Praha 9
284 840 520
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Average user rating

   (0 vote)