A guide to Na nože season 1: every restaurant and its story

Na nože season 1 (2023): where it all began

The very first season of Na nože premiered on 8 February 2023, with Martin Novák rescuing eight restaurants from Šamorín all the way to Smolenice. Knife ratings did not exist yet, so every episode ended with a verbal verdict rather than a score. That makes the contrast with the public all the more telling: on Google these eight venues average 4.15 out of 5. Some are now local fixtures, two sadly did not make it. Here is the whole first season, restaurant by restaurant, and what really went on behind the kitchen doors.

Bella Italia (Šamorín)

The very first episode opened in the Šamorín pizzeria Bella Italia, a family business sliding into the red after covid. The core problem was a monstrous menu of 136 dishes, a fusion of Slovak, American, Asian and Italian food under an Italian name. On his first visit Martin was hit with over-salted bruschetta, a creamy "carbonara" that was not carbonara, and a 1990s relic called Snow White's Dream. The one bright spot was a single Diavola pizza.

Martin trimmed the menu to around 37 dishes, moved the old classics into a Retro Bella Italia section and gave space to the owner's son David. The biggest win was not the food but the father and son relationship: Tibor finally stepped out of his comfort zone and let David cook. After the reset the pizzeria is full almost every night, and the legendary schnitzel now sits on the menu as Martin's Dream. Rating: no knives in season 1 yet, Google 4.2/5.

Hashtag Pub (Ľubica pri Kežmarku)

The second episode took Martin to a beer-and-burger sports pub under the Tatras, Hashtag Pub. It sat half empty after covid while owner Števo was busy building his own house, dropping by only to unlock in the morning. The soup pleasantly surprised Martin, but the pizza was dry as a flatbread, the wings had rubbery skin, and he waited 42 minutes for a huge cheeseburger served on slate.

Martin flipped the strategy and took the team to the Kežmarok square to hand out burgers, found a homemade sausage at the local butcher based on Števo's father's recipe and built the Hashtag hot dog around it. That became the new bestseller, and an unsure cook named Maťo turned into a star. After the reset the pub is full again. Rating: no knives in season 1 yet, Google 4.4/5.

Zlatý Mlyn (Ludanice)

The third restaurant, Zlatý Mlyn near Topoľčany, was completely empty when Martin arrived just after one in the afternoon. The place carried debts up to ten thousand euros and the kitchen ran on convenience food: a Caesar with no Caesar, defrosted and overcooked salmon, and a cordon bleu that sent Martin "back to 1999". In storage he even found homemade cherries from 2018.

He launched a three-day deep clean, a stock take, a touchscreen till and a new cook, with smoked beef tongue becoming the star of the new menu. After he left, the restaurant filled up with families at weekends, but sadly it no longer operates today. Rating: no knives in season 1 yet, Google 4.2/5. The venue is now closed.

Penzión na Trojici (Banská Štiavnica)

Right in the historic centre of Banská Štiavnica stands Penzión na Trojici, a guesthouse and restaurant in one that sat empty despite its beautiful town. Martin ran into a double problem here: a despotic owner, Štefan, who shouted at his staff, and two cooks battling alcohol. The food was a trip back to the 1980s, from chicken breast with peach and cheese to overcooked risotto he called "mortar".

He introduced a clear no-alcohol-at-work rule, dismissed one cook after a 1.5 per mille reading, and brought in a new head chef. He taught Štefan the basics and the sous vide technique, and the venue got a modern menu, a working website and a new banner. The most important part was the lesson Štefan learned about his own behaviour. Rating: no knives in season 1 yet, Google 3.1/5 (the lowest in the season).

Reštaurácia Záhrada (Nitra)

Reštaurácia Záhrada is an unusual venue built from shipping containers on the edge of Nitra, which owner Maťo built with his own hands, yet it sat so hidden that almost nobody knew about it. Maťo was head chef, manager and buyer all in one and was around 45 thousand euros in the red. The meat and pizza tasted good, but the problem was chaos, cold dishes and a place barely a handful of guests visited at lunch.

Martin brought the concept Nitra was missing, build-your-own meatballs, and renamed the restaurant Hangár. In the end Maťo got cold feet about the rename and kept both names and concepts at once, but the team relationships improved and the owner finally learned to praise his people. Rating: no knives in season 1 yet, Google 4.2/5.

Reštaurácia Novohrad (Lučenec)

Reštaurácia Novohrad in Lučenec ran an all-you-can-eat concept for 6.20 euros, but takings were falling and the team did not respect owner Ján. On his first visit Martin got flavourless fried food after 40 minutes, but the worst was in storage: mouldy carrots, a blood-soaked cloth and convenience foods piled together. He cleared the place on hygiene grounds on the spot and sent the guests home.

He taught Ján to be a boss who gives clear orders and built a new menu with a veal schnitzel in honey-beer glaze as the draw, replacing all-you-can-eat with a three-euro surcharge per extra plate. Part of the changes, such as uniforms, a smoking ban and regular cleaning, stuck. Rating: no knives in season 1 yet, Google 4.3/5.

Plantáž Bistro (Martin)

Plantáž Bistro was a cosy vegan bistro in a courtyard in central Martin, crushed by debt of around 100 thousand euros and above all by constant clashes between its two owners, the fiery Markus and the calm Peťo. As a self-described carnivore, Martin ordered across the menu and ran into a bitter, sponge-like vegan duck and a pad thai he described as overcooked mud.

He split the roles, kept Markus in the kitchen and handed management to Peťo, cut the meat imitations and built an honest vegan menu, with a mushroom paprikash becoming the bestseller. The bistro earned the highest Google rating of the whole season, yet it still could not make it and no longer operates today. Rating: no knives in season 1 yet, Google 4.8/5 (the highest in the season). The venue is now closed.

Dvor u Sedliaka (Smolenice)

The season closed with Dvor u Sedliaka, a small rustic restaurant below Smolenice Castle run by an exhausted owner, Mária, seven days a week and weighed down by debt of around 20 thousand euros. The schnitzel "like grandma's" was excellent, but the roast knuckle was so tough a knife would not go through it, the dumplings were dry and grandma's bread pudding was burnt bitter.

Martin buried Mária's dream of pizza, bet on the Slovak podpecník flatbread, modernised the kitchen with a combi oven, a dishwasher and a new till and cleared the cluttered space. After the reset it is full at weekends, with the sirloin and the bryndza podpecník as the big draws. Rating: no knives in season 1 yet, Google 4.0/5.

Martin versus the public

Martin did not hand out knives in the first season, but the public is clear: the eight venues average 4.15 out of 5 on Google, from 3.1 at Penzión na Trojici to 4.8 at Plantáž Bistro. You can find the full numbers, and the comparison of Martin's knives against the public's verdict in later seasons, on the statistics page. And you can find every restaurant from the show on our interactive map.