Café review: Divoké matky

I knew going into this review that I was not the target market for Divoké matky, but after all, this café is in my neighbourhood, seems to be quite popular and I am open to new things, so why not? Divoké matky, aka “Wild Mothers”, opened in Karlín (Prague 8) the beginning of 2012 by Kristýna Liška Boková (Czech actress and dancer), Barush Zik, Zuzana Kolková. This café was created as a space for “wild” mothers and their children. If I were in this demographic, I would be in love with this place which is entirely decked out as a space and a sort of club-house for moms, dads and kids alike. Divoké matky has a big playroom with things to climb, jump, tumble and build, space to park strollers, shelves to store shoes, and a bar that also serves as a book shelf which is stocked with books and magazines to complement its rather, eclectic-kid friendly interior décor. Inside, parents can breathe easy in the non-smoking environment and have no fear that something will break, or that someone is being too noisy. The noisier the better! I must also mention that the bathrooms are equipped with a changing table and a little kid’s sink, so everyone can wash their own hands at the appropriate height level. Cute!

Now for my experience: I showed up around 4pm on a Thursday afternoon and there were no fewer than eight kids, with shoes neatly stored away, running to and from from the play room and back into the main café to check in with mom. For me, this environment was extremely overwhelming but again, I am not part of their target demographic. From a pure café perspective, Divoké matky offers your standard spread of coffee such as espresso (double, long), Americano, cappuccino made with Mama Coffee, bagged tea (Ahmad), bottled True Tea ice tea, juices, wine, and beer. If you are hungry, you can select a fruit from their fruit bowl or opt for a pastry or a slice of quiche. On this particular visit, I sampled the apple strudel, and plum cake along with a bottle of green ice tea and an espresso. Let’s just say, I am not running back here for the food or drink. Both baked goods were stale and hard, as in, I had to put some bicep muscle behind cutting the strudel with my fork. I will give them the benefit of the doubt that it was a Thursday afternoon before the long weekend and they may have chosen to sell out of what they had left. However, in my opinion, until the doors are closed for business the food and drink experience in any establishment should be the same throughout the day. Stale cake does not enhance the coffee or tea, unless it was meant as something to be dunked into the hot beverage to soften it. Who are the wild mothers? Watch any of Divoké matky’s creative videos posted on Vimeo and you will see they are referring to a person that depicts the anti-1950s house wife or the rebel woman who still has a life outside of her kids. If you are a parent, caregiver, aunt, uncle, cousin or really nice friend who wants a child friendly environment with WiFi, or to spend some stress-free time while the kids enjoy themselves, you are missing out if you have not been to Divoké matky. On the other hand, if the environment I just described is not your cup of tea (or coffee), let me save you the trip.