RESIDENCE NOSTICOVA – residence of dreams
Jiří Vlastník – Travel in the Czech Republic

The astronomers Tycho de Brahe and Jan Kepler study maps of the starry firmament in the corner, while at the next table the alchemist Master Kelly ponders the production of gold as he sips his wine. The oak door opens and into the room comes Rudolf II himself, King of Bohemia and Holy Roman Emperor... This is the romantic 16th century conjured up in our imaginations by the imposing interiors of the appropriately named Alchemist Restaurant in the Renaissance house known as The Residence Nosticova in the Lesser Town in Prague.

GENIUS LOCI
In 1583 Rudolf II settled in Bohemia permantntly, and his court attracted artists, merchants and architects from all over Europe. It was a period that has not only left Prague magnificent palaces, but has also endowes it with its „genius loci“ of mysterious alleyways and magic. Italians were prominent among the architects that came to Prague under Rudolf, and four centuries later another visitor from the South of Europe, Giorgio Bonelli, son of a well-known Italian writer, followed in their footsteps. This lover of art, antiques and the Lesser Town decided to take an Unobtrusive apartment house in a quiet Lesser Town alley and turn it into a luxurious private hotel. In 1997 he opened it under the name of the residence Nosticova. For its reconstruction he had one principal idea, which was to project his own personality onto the design of the interiors. It was as if he wanted to give visitors the feeling that they staying with him as his personal guests in his home.

MYSTERY AND BEAUTY
The design of the individual rooms and especially the aesthetically exlectic restaurant with the eloquent name Alchemist, does not, however, give the impression of being the work of a single architect. Instead, the vivid and remarkable mixture of colours and forms of furniture, textiles, statues and pictures gives you the feeling that you have stepped into and exotic dream. Everything has been so worked out to the last perfect detail, and so despite the diversity of the styles the visitor gets the impression of seamless comfort, exotic mystery and beauty. The owner found different pieces of furniture in antique shops here andin Italy. The abundant but tasteful decoration of the walls and ceilings is the work of Croatian and French painters. Naturally, the guests at the Residence Nosticova also enjoy all the advantages of the new millennium. The facilities of each room are perfect both from the point of view of design and technicak efficiency. There are ten rooms in all, from the smaller, measuring forty square meters to the largest two-stories apartment, which is popular particularly with film stars.

AS IF IN PARADISE
The Alchemist Restaurant is undoubtedly Mr. Bonelli´s pride and joy. He has fitted it out according to his own taste, and the interior has been imported from Italy. On his numerous travels around the world, during which he experienced hotels of all sizes and types, he developed his own vision of a hotel and a restaurant where he, and his hosts, would feel as if in paradise. To make sure that the guests at Residence Nosticova feels completely at home and want to come back, the original interiors are matched by an equivalent standard of services from all the staff. Immediately you enter the restaurant you are offered a welcoming drink and various small delicacies, and are not left waiting at your table for even a moment. Every guest here is treated like a personal friend. The cuisine is international in style, but with a natural emphasis in Italian dishes. The kitchen works round the clock and room service is available untill 12.00 pm. The Residence Nosticova also of course provides its guests with office and secretarial services, 24 hours a day.

FOR THE STARS AND FOR YOU
If you are exploring Prague, visit Mr. Bonelli´s Renaissance house. The Alchemist Restaurant, where time has stood still, is open daily not only for hotel guests but for other visitors as well. Apart from enjoying the enchanting setting, the excellent wine and perhaps the popular duck breast with orange, here you might easily meet Nastasja Kinski, or Gerard Depardieu might sit down at your table. Like Martin Shaw, Alndie Mc. Dowell and others, they nave chosen this house in the Lesser Towl as their home from home. As the saying goes in the Residence Nosticova – Mr. Bonelli offers his guests half of himself. And because guests know it, they are staying longer nad longer nad comming back regularly......

Residence Nosticova
Nosticova 1, 118 00 Prague 1
Phone:+420 257 312 513 - 6,
Fax:+420 257 312 517,
E-mail:info@nosticova.com