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The city’s oldest brewing pub, U Fleků is famous for its delicious, dark lager and somewhat more than modest prices. Despite what anyone tells you, the Becherovka shots are not complimentary and the rounds keep coming until you say “ne ” five times. Very popular with busloads of tourists, and not without reason.

Excellent, rustic Czech fare served in a genteel setting. The house brewmaster is always concocting strange new flavours for his drinks, such as coffee lager or champagne ale. You can also watch the fermenting vats that will eventually become beer, if the process of brewing interests you.

Good, fresh beer and an outstanding roast duck with cabbage and dumplings are among the offerings here. The New Town brewery tends to pack guests in tightly, which can mean long waits between drinks. Also known as “U Surlýho Waiterů”.

This legendary pub, famed as the haunt of the late writer Bohumil Hrabal, serves the finest mug of Pilsner Urquell in the city. Regulars were nonplussed when President Václav Havel brought former US president Bill Clinton in for a cold glass, so don’t expect them to take much interest in you. If you find a seat, it probably means one of the regulars has died.

This is Prague’s – and perhaps Europe’s – best cocktail bar. It may look like a Jazz-Age time capsule, but Tretter’s is actually a relative newcomer, and highly welcome at that. You’ll find no bottle juggling, just serious mixology, very dry martinis and, if you’re lucky, a seat. Open until 3am.

The kind of bar where you’ll find well-heeled septugenarian gents with a girl on either arm. Somewhat circus-like, but the drinks are top notch. Sit at the bar for the best service. The under-dressed have been turned away, so look smart.

If you like your drinks tall and fruity, your bartenders chatty and your disco music loud, this is the cocktail bar for you. Escape is popular with a bold and beautiful crowd, all of whom seem to know each other. Bring a local celebrity magazine with you and the likelihood is you’ll be able to identify some of them.

A straightforward approach to cocktails, as the name suggests. The superior circulation system, which is a novelty in Prague, filters the ubiquitous cigarette smoke from the atmosphere. DJs play classic rock and Motown tracks and the kitchen serves small plates of snacks for the peckish until 3am.

What seems like an improbable combination of Irish and Cuban themes actually works a treat, with Sunday roasts and Guinness on tap. When the football’s on, expect the bar to be filled with a hooligan-free crowd of locals, tourists and expatriates. Unfortunately, the fun stops at midnight.

The bar next to the Church of St James has lost some, but not all, of the seediness that characterized its previous incarnation, where the motto was “the customer is always wrong”. Backpackers still chat to each other up over absinthe, however, and men in the street will offer you hashish on your way in. It may sound unappealing, but it’s a true Prague experience.