163Praga f © ̊ \\\
Ulitsa Arbat 2/1 Tel (495) 690 6171 Map B3
Located right between the New and Old Arbats, Praga is one of the most famous restaurants in the city, featuring
Russian, Japanese, European, Caucasian and Brazilian cuisine. A special historical menu is available with dishes
made according to tsarist recipes, such as dressed sturgeon.
ST PETERSBURG
Senat Bar : 7 f ©^ \
Galernaya ulitsa 1 Tel (812) 314 9253 Map B4
Senat is known both for its elegant Russian and European menu and for its “imperial” decor, featuring portraits
and busts of tsars and 19th-century antiques. Despite the fact that women are present and there is dancing in
the evenings, the mood is masculine, with lots of business diners – some doing deals, others just relaxing.
Literary Café : f ©^ \
Nevskiy prospekt 18 Tel (812) 312 6057 Map D4
This is the former Wolff and Beranger Café, from which the idolized Russian poet Alexander Pushkin set off for his
fatal duel. The venue retains its popularity with tourists and lovers of Russian literature, though the appeal of eating
here is more historical than gastronomical. Traditional, rather heavy dishes are served, with lots of meat in rich sauces.
Caravan : ©^ \
Voznesenskiy prospekt 46 Tel (812) 310 5678 Map C5
Caravan serves an unusual combination of dishes from the republics of Georgia, Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan, and is
famous for its Georgian shashlyk (kebabs) and Uzbek chebureki (folded pastry pockets stuffed with ground beef,
and tasty sauces). The staff bake their own bread in a clay oven. It attracts more locals than tourists.
Spoon : © ̊^ \
Bolshaya Morskaya ulitsa 13 Tel (812) 999 9191 Map B4
Despite being extremely fashionable, Spoon manages to keep its profile and its prices low. Famous local faces might
be spotted settled in the cosy armchairs on almost any night of the week. Light European cuisine is served in a
relaxed café-style atmosphere. A rare combination of style and substance.
Austeria :^ \\
Peter and Paul Fortress Tel (812) 230 0369 Map C2
Located right by Peter and Paul Fortress (see pp140–41), Austeria is the ideal spot for visitors to take a break for
refreshments while visiting nearby places of interest. The interior reflects Peter the Great’s favourite Dutch style,
in line with the Fortress Cathedral, while the menu comprises traditional Russian dishes.
Caviar Bar and Restaurant : 7 f ̊^ \\
Grand Hotel Europe, Mikhaylovskaya ulitsa 1/7 Tel (812) 329 6651 Map D3
Open only in the evenings, this bar-restaurant has the most elegant and varied ways of serving caviar and fish in
town. Try caviar in quail’s egg, salmon marinated in vodka, or one of the Russian regional dishes served as monthly
specials. The interior is tiny with a small fountain, resembling a grotto in an 18th-century park.
L’Europe : 7 f © ̊^ \\
Grand Hotel Europe, Mikhaylovskaya ulitsa 1/7 Tel (812) 329 6630 Map D3
This cavernous, Art-Nouveau hall with its stained-glass ceiling is not a recreation of St Petersburg’s glorious past, but
the real thing, beautifully restored. The food is first-class European – lobster soup, steak tartare – but it also hosts
other special events and festivals of Russian cuisine. Sunday brunch attracts many local Russians.
New Island : \\\
Rumyantsevskiy Spusk, Universitetskaya Naberezhnaya 15 Tel (812) 320 2100 Map B3
This floating restaurant, much loved by the powerful, has played host to Bush, Putin and Chirac. In winter the boat
is reserved for banquets, but from late spring to autumn it sails four times daily. Visitors can eat caviar and blini
(Russian pancakes) as the boat sails past the Winter Palace towards the Smolnyy, where it turns back to its moorings.
FURTHER AFIELD Matrosskaya Tishina :^ \\
Ulitsa Marata 54/34 Tel (812) 764 4413
The advertisement for this restaurant reads “fish fashion”, and indeed it is. Inside are parts of a real trawler;
aquariums stuffed with live lobsters, oysters, crayfish and sea scallops, and just the right wines to wash them down.
None of the fish or seafood is frozen – everything is delivered fresh and kept cool on ice.
FURTHER AFIELD Aquarel : f ̊^ \\\
Near Birzhevoy Bridge, Dobrolyubova prospekt 14A Tel (812) 320 8600
This is the city’s most fashionable and most expensive hi-tech fusion restaurant, with modern, luxurious decor.
Effectively a glass box, it sits on a pontoon on the Neva river, and offers great views. The Aquarel itself is situated
on the first floor but one floor up the prices are nearly halved in the associated Italian bistro called Aquarellissimo.
WHERE TO EAT IN MOSCOW AND ST PETERSBURGKey to Symbols see back cover flap