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Moscow Guide
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Quarterly seasonal full color guide on cultural and VIP events, including restaurant guide. Contains information about dining, fashion, social and cultural events. |
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From understated, low-key Forte to Le Club’s hazy Manhattan hipness, Moscow’s jazz clubs are all unique in their own way. They do have one thing in common, though — great music.
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Nikita Khrushchev’s 1950s critique of jazz summed up the status of that so-called “bourgeois” music in the Soviet Union: He remarked that listening to it gave him gas.
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The city’s oldest jazz club, Sinyaya Ptitsa, or Blue Bird, celebrates its 40th anniversary this September.
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Missed the Soviet era? Don’t despair. Not only are there still some authentic Soviet bars and restaurants around town, but there’s also a wave of nouveau Soviet establishments recreating the experience — with a sense of humor, and higher-quality food.
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Drinking and dining with the best views in town.
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If you don’t speak Russian very well, getting your hair cut at a local salon can be a scary experience. What if the stylist misunderstands your broken speech and wreaks havoc with your lovely locks? Luckily, the just-opened Expat Salon caters to those who haven’t quite mastered the local language. Centrally located, the salon boasts professional English-speaking stylists, complimentary beverages, a large selection of your favorite American and British magazines, a book exchange and even a car service for those who find the metro too daunting to tackle.
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As you enter Maisoncafe, a French restaurant on Savvinskaya Naberezhnaya, you are greeted by a polite lady who will guide you to the coatroom. There, instead of a typical coatroom token, you receive a set of large keys that look like they could open a hidden treasure chest.
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Located a hop, skip and a jump away from the Paveletsky Plaza business center, the Baloven-S eatery is an ideal casual lunch spot for busy office workers toiling nearby. This little cafe serves up tasty meals at reasonable prices, with a range of European dishes, including quite a few vegetarian offers.
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The area surrounding Patriarch’s Ponds seems set on its course to become the restaurant district of Moscow. On Spiridonyevsky Pereulok alone you will find the Lebanese Shafran, Italian Borgo and seafood restaurant Beluga. Not long ago, they saw a new neighbor move in across the road, another seafood restaurant called simply “Fish.” It has swam to our shores thanks to the folks behind Oblomov, Pizhon and Tarelka.
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Have Moscow’s elite become so rich that they’re now ready to eat like the poor?
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The first thing we thought when we heard about the opening of Baklazhan Cafe was: “Just what Moscow needs — another Georgian restaurant.” However, reports of good food at unbelievably low prices were coming so thick and fast that we had to see what the hype was all about.
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Hummus — which means “chickpea” in Arabic — is one of the most popular and well-known Middle Eastern delicacies. Made of mashed chickpeas, olive oil, assorted spices (ranging from cumin to cayenne pepper), and lemon juice, a perfect hummus is hard to find, especially in a place far from the Middle East like Moscow. But — remarkably — impeccable hummus can be found here: at the wonderful restaurant Shafran.
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Part owned by the newspaper of the same name, the Kommersant cafe is a hangout for suits rather than journos, and while other cafes list the varieties of coffee beans they offer, Kommersant lists its free Internet service, mobile phone charging points and complimentary copies of the day’s newspaper.
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This correspondent got drunk on tea, and here’s how it happened.
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Caffeine junkies will have their jittery hands full when the International Festival of Tea and Coffee comes to town on May 21-23. Conceived as an effort to promote goodwill among the tea- and coffee-drinking nations of the world, the festival turns Vasilyevsky Spusk into a miniature city of tea, populated by pavilions where guests can become acquainted with the traditions of various tea-drinking cultures. Festival-goers will also have the opportunity to sample and purchase tea and coffee from such far-flung locales as China, India and Sri Lanka. The festival is also expected to feature a kids’ program that includes a puppet theater and a children’s tea ceremony.
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Whether you’re looking for the perfect ending to a meal or just something to go with an espresso, nothing spells delight like a plate full of the cool, refreshing dessert called “pick me up” in Italian.
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Kroshka Kartoshka
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Stone statues of Buddha are omnipresent at Gandhara — from three sentinels guarding the street entrance right down to small sculptures in the bathroom. Even the coat-check number is written on the back of a miniature Buddha head.
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The drama starts at 8pm: an abrupt shift in the music, the swift unbolting of a cellar door, and the sudden emergence of five exotic beauties. Every night, you see, is belly-dancing night at Veliky Sultan, the recently opened sister restaurant to Lebanese eatery Sultan. But, while the evening’s theme of tummy-wiggling to Arabic-pseudo-trance rhythms might not be to everyone’s taste, the cuisine will certainly find a way of being so.
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If you’re strolling around the Zamoskvorechye-Polyanka district, feeling like a crisp cold beer and some good Japanese food in a stylish outdoor setting, you’re in luck. Dzhusto and Zhyoltoye More are two attractive propositions, and are located close together — so an alfresco beer-and-sushi crawl might be just what’s in order.
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At the end of Strastnoi Bulvar near two other restaurants — Bulvar and Sunset across the road — the expensive, lavishly designed Galereya has created a nightly bottleneck of Mercedes and BMWs. You could make a fortune if you offered drinks and food to the bodyguards and drivers waiting outside.
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Few people have both the time and money to go on a safari. However, if you at least happen to have plenty of the latter, then Zebra Square, a new French “restaurant contemporain et Bar Lounge” from the group run by French restaurateur Patrick Derderian, may just fit the bill.
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A rather attractive new cafe at one end of an ugly residential high-rise on Novy Arbat greets its guests with the aroma of burning incense.
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Many of us live in big, impersonal towers of concrete and glass. Secretly, we might wish for a friendly neighborhood cafe where the barmen know us, where we can let our hair down and chat with them about the weather, the dog or relationships.
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Seven Seas is an intriguing Indian-Asian-fusion restaurant. In both its menu and interior design, it is a concoction of various influences, combined with varying degrees of success.
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Moscow has no shortage of trendy restaurants for those who want to see and be seen. But now, that other, long-neglected market segment for discreet, anonymous dining in the dark has finally been filled by a worthy newcomer: Chinese restaurant Shatush.
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In their dining culture, the French distinguish between a ‘restaurant gastronomique’ and a wallet-friendly brasserie. The latter is what you get at Paname, a new French eatery in a quiet courtyard just off Stoleshnikov Pereulok.
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From May 25 to 30, the spacious halls of the Central House of Artists (TsDKh) will host the eighth Art Moskva international art fair. Thirty-two Russian and 13 European contemporary art galleries are to present their most outstanding works of recent years — a good chance to get up to speed if you have not been a disciplined gallery-goer lately.
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After enlightening viewers in Germany, the “Berlin-Moscow/Moscow-Berlin: 1950-2000” exhibit makes its next stop at Moscow’s State Historical Museum.
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A barrel is rolled out on stage. Is that a man in there? Yes, it is, and he rolls and tumbles in it as if he has lived there his whole life and the barrel is as alive as he is.
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Renowned Japanese drum ensemble Yamato is bringing the magic rhythm of the universe to Moscow with the ancient Japanese art of taiko. In taiko, drummers beat out “the pulse of life” — a mystical music that is supposed to have an ecstatic effect on listeners, sweeping them away to the times of creation. The band was formed in 1993 by Masa Ogawa in the city of Nara, Japan. Its members play a dozen different drums, including 400-year-old Wadaiko drums made of ceremonial timber. To make a skin-covered timber sing, taiko drummers must demonstrate both physical strength and acting technique — all of which promises a feast for the eyes and the ears.
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Moscow art lovers can look forward to the 2004 Photobiennale, which runs from April 19 to June 19.
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Feel like a dip? If you can’t wait for Moscow’s beaches to open, the time is right to visit a pool.
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Tired of the same old workout at the gym? Want to feel a bit safer when walking the streets at night? Did the Bruce Lee marathon you watched over the weekend get you fired up to learn some cool moves?
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Moscow’s dance scene has grown enormously in the past few years, with local clubbers now spoiled by the number of foreign DJs arriving to perform each weekend. One DJ who has appeared on more club flyers than most is Nick Hodgkins.
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Although Moscow’s nightlife scene now rivals the best of the world’s entertainment capitals, many of its top clubs can be, shall we say, a little uptight. “Face control” can be ultra-strict and the absence of a large black German car and a designer outfit can quite often increase your chances of humiliation at the door. Exclusivity is, of course, the name of the game, but one may be forgiven for questioning whether this was what house music was supposed to be all about. And this is exactly what 27-year-old local DJ Tim Svodnik did about two years ago. In a snub to the city’s self-proclaimed party-going “elite,” Tim founded a new movement inspired by themes and imagery from the Soviet-era Cheburashka cartoon. He now holds weekly parties at various Moscow nightspots for his army of more than 1,000 clubbing revolutionaries. We caught up with Tim to find out more.
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Sinesha Lazarevich, 38, is one of the most prominent personalities in the Moscow club scene. This month he celebrates the 10th anniversary of his career in Moscow.
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Sveta Graudt interviews Arkady Novikov, the former chef who is considered Moscow’s most successful restaurateur, about why it’s chic to eat simple sausage sandwiches.
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Mark Baker, co-owner of trendy New York meat-packing district nightclub Lotus, recently visited Moscow to present a prize at the city’s Night Life Awards. The Brighton, England-born Baker, who has 20 years of experience organizing parties and events around the world, also scoped out Moscow’s club scene, did some networking and found a few minutes for an interview.
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The Paper Moon international chain of Italian restaurants arrived in Moscow last month, with a star-studded opening party at its new location on Ulitsa Petrovka. The chain, born when a husband-and-wife team founded the first Paper Moon restaurant 27 years ago in Milan, also includes Italian eateries in New York, Istanbul and Tel Aviv. Chef Mario Carlino is in charge of the menu, which features a wide assortment of traditional Italian and Adriatic dishes.
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Major changes are afoot at Indian restaurant Seven Seas. Gone are the previous manager and waitstaff — along with the disco ball. The addition of some new furniture, including some extra glass fish tank-tables, and the positioning of fish tanks between the tables to provide more privacy all combine to make it feel more like a proper restaurant. The live music on weekends is now exclusively jazz.
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Mom and Dad, what goes on at the bank? The next time you hear that question, hold the long-winded explanation about tax planning and the falling dollar. Instead, take your financially inquisitive tyke over to DeltaLand, a bank for kids recently opened by local financial institution DeltaBank, where kids can learn all about the joys of credit, receive their own bankcards, and even open a personal account.
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Only a few people in the world have the patience to train cats, and one of Russia’s top clowns is among them.
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If your kids aren’t crazy about cats, that doesn’t mean they need to be deprived of fun — pack them off to Cool School.
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Legendary jazz pianist and composer Herbie Hancock makes his Moscow debut this month at the Moscow International House of Music (MMDM), within the sixth international Boheme Jazz-2004 festival. The 63-year-old jazz master is to bring his Herbie Hancock Trio to Russia with a program based on his 1999 Grammy award-winning album, “Gershwin’s World.”
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UK-based band Moloko — named after the stimulating cocktail consumed by the devious characters in Anthony Burgess’ novel “A Clockwork Orange” — is well known among local clubbers. Their single “Sing it Back,” with the catchphrase “Bring it back, sing it back,” reverberated across the city’s dancefloors a couple of years ago. But curious music lovers who bought Moloko’s album “I Am Not a Doctor” after hearing the “Sing it Back” single realized that it actually does not have much to do with the band’s general style.
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Dusseldorf-based German electronic band Kraftwerk have occupied their own niche in the modern music scene for more than 30 years. Decidedly unique, the band started unashamedly using synthesizers, vocoders and other electronics to make music in the ’70s — when the rest of the world deemed it uncool — and consistently used the trappings of computers and robotics as aesthetic choices, even creating stylized, cybernetic versions of themselves for use in their visuals.
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There is room for some potpourri pioneering in the world of live concerts in Moscow, and that’s just what Shestnadtsat Tonn booker Maxim Silva-Vega aims to do with an ongoing series of mini-festivals. The first of these was the French Alternative Spring in April and early May. Now, with the steadily warming weather, he brings the action outdoors and to another venue — Gogol’s summer stage — with the Avant Independent Music Festival, featuring five bands from France, Spain, the United States and Russia.
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B.B. King, the first blues performer to tour the Soviet Union, will no doubt notice that Moscow has changed a bit since his last gig here in 1979. The legendary singer and blues guitarist, who was born in 1925, has inspired the likes of Jimi Hendrix, U2 and Eric Clapton. He is to perform at the Kremlin Palace on May 18 as part of his farewell tour.
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Felix Da Housecat is one of the world’s highest-paid DJs — and for good reason. He has produced remixes for artists of such caliber as Madonna, Kylie Minogue, Garbage and New Order. Spin magazine named his “Kittenz and Thee Glitz” in its top 20 albums for 2002, while Rolling Stone placed him in its top 10 “2002 artists to watch.”
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In the crazy-quilt world of postmodern musical hybrid permutations, Stereo Total has confidently surged forward with their very own melange of French chanson, German electronica and punk stylings. They make their way to Russia again in June, when they are to perform at Moscow’s Zapasnik before moving on to more exotic locales such as Izhevsk (which, according to the Moscow promoter, is slowly but surely becoming a hotbed of progressive culture) and then Chisinau, Moldova.
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Future Sound of London are counted among the leaders of intelligent electronic music. Along with their peers The Orb and Aphex Twin, they set the tone for the trance/ambient music that emerged at the beginning of the 1990s.
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SuperAlisa is an art grad student’s dream come true. Hailing from Tatarstan in central Russia, she incorporates traditional Tatar folk melodies with old-school electro beats, adding a blend of Tatar- and Russian-language lyrics to the mix to create such tracks as “Tatarstan Super Good,” “UFO” and “EVM,” or electronic counting machine. Her wildly extravagant costumes, which she makes herself, include such novelties as a yashmak veil covered in fluorescent stars. As a bonus, she performs with Alberto del Kosmiko, winner of the “Cheryomushki 86” electric boogaloo break-dance competition, all accompanied by homemade video sequences. What more could a performance-art student want?
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Having risen through the ranks to become a big boy on the world club circuit, British DJ Danny Howells stands out among his peers for his original “deesexyfuturistictechfunkhouse” flavor. His style is marked by his ability to meld and move from progressive to dark funky house to techno. Howells’ studio work has yielded numerous releases, including “Nightlife Report” in 1997 and “Repercussion/ Persuasion” with Dick Treavor in 2000, as well as remix projects for the likes of Chakra and Robbie Williams.
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“One of the most influential producers in hip-hop today” — that’s how most bios of the RZA begin, and this one’s no exception.
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Kult celebrates its third birthday on May 29 with the help of British electronic chill-out act Neon Heights. The Nottingham-based quartet made waves in Britain’s electronic music scene in 2000 with the release of their debut album, “A View From the Heights.” In addition to providing the soundtrack for Kult’s birthday celebration, the band is expected to premier tracks from their much anticipated sophomore effort, “A Hot Trip to Heaven,” during the course of the evening.
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When Myortviye Delfiny’s lead singer Artur Atsalamov arrived in Moscow in July 2000 from a refugee camp in Ingushetia, he didn’t know a soul. Yet less than three years later, his group’s first album topped the charts of popular FM station Nashe Radio — no small achievement for a young musician from Grozny who narrowly escaped death more than once during the first Chechen war.
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Golden Boy is not just a popular Japanese animated film. It’s also the stage name for Zurich-based photographer and artist Stefan Altenburger, who has achieved some fame as a musician thanks to his creative partnership with Caroline Herve — the new-wave chanteuse and DJ better known as Miss Kittin.
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For some clubbers, Victor Calderone’s appearance in Moscow is sure to be the event of the decade. A virtuoso of music manipulation and remixer for Madonna, Calderone is sure to pack the house.
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David Sylvian was a truly preeminent figure in the New Wave music genre, fronting the cult British haircut band Japan in the late 1970s and early 1980s. His rise to fame was crowned by 1982’s UK No. 3 hit “Ghosts,” from Japan’s “Tin Drum” album. Following on that success, Sylvian struck out on a solo career, joining Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto to write and perform a haunting soundtrack for the film “Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence.” His first solo album “Brilliant Trees,” released in 1994, entered the UK charts at No. 4.
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Pioneering electronic music innovator and former Kraftwerk member Karl Bartos is set to electrify Moscow and St. Petersburg as part of his world tour.
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Hot on the heels of their first album release in more than a decade, Kraftwerk is scheduled to come to Russia as part of a world tour, with concerts planned for June 1 in St. Petersburg and June 3 in Moscow at Luzhniki.
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“Where sadness and heartache never lose sight of melody and lush spaces — that’s Violet Indiana,” reads the band’s press release.
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This weekend one of Moscow’s longest-running clubs, Propaganda, is to celebrate its seventh birthday with two nights of celebrations featuring special guests from Britain and America.
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How time flies. A year has passed and a lot has changed since Brit-electronica wizards The Orb arrived to open Moscow’s hi-tech Phlegmatic Dog club. Billed as Russia’s first Internet pub, the Dog — as it’s more affectionately known — began life rather tentatively with occasional weekend performances by local bands and a return visit by The Orb’s Alex Patterson.
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In terms of musical appreciation, Russia has never had a problem with non-anglophone acts. That is why a mini-festival such as the French Alternative Spring in Moscow can easily see the light of day here. Over the course of April and May, the festival will bring three French indie rock bands to Moscow: Experience, NLF3 and La Fresto.
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Last year saw two incarnations of permuting progressive band King Crimson perform in Moscow to sellout crowds: the 21st Century Schizoid Band, featuring members of the original 1969 line-up, followed by a newer King Crimson headed by founder and guitarist Robert Fripp, with Adrian Belew, Trey Gunn and Pat Masteletto.
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Ibrahim Ferrer, the Afro-Cuban singer from the internationally renowned Cuban music collective Buena Vista Social Club, is coming to play in Moscow with a 17-piece orchestra that includes his other surviving compatriots from the group.
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The strains of day-to-day life in a sprawling metropolis can sometimes leave you desperately in need of sanctuary. If you’re looking for a haven from the bustle and smoke of the big city, perhaps it’s time to think about visiting one of Moscow’s many chill-out venues.
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The summer concert season includes several festival-style events, and in terms of rock festivals, Maxidrom, in its ninth year, is one of the largest and most well known in Russia. Envisioned by its creators, concert promoter RISE Music and Radio Maximum as a kind of Russian Woodstock, there is nonetheless, nothing classic rock or hippie-dippy about it. Being partially a promotional vehicle for Radio Maximum, one of Russia’s most popular radio stations for the under-30 set, it is pretty much just as corporate as the modern-day Woodstock has become.
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Creamfields, which was to take place on June 12, has been rescheduled to take place in late July or early August. There will be no major changes to the lineup, organizers said in a press release. Citing problems with Moscow city government officials as the reason behind the last-minute change, the organizers said that the authorities were reluctant to allow such a large open-air festival to go ahead as police resources would already be stretched due to the Independence Day festivities being held on the same date.
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After more than 10 years on the alternative music scene, uncompromising British rocker PJ Harvey is set to make her first appearance in Moscow.
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Tony Sheridan is due to lead Russian tributes to the Beatles in a concert timed to coincide with Paul McCartney’s 62nd birthday.
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Cote D’Azur — a favorite vacation spot for the nouveau riche — is now a fitting inspiration for an exclusive Moscow nightspot.
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When asked about the photos of actress and gay icon Marlene Dietrich in her newly opened Dietrich Bar, Yevgenia Debryanskaya — activist, writer and club owner — doesn’t just talk; she swoons. As one of Russia’s first openly lesbian women, Debryanskaya is something of an icon herself in Moscow’s gay and lesbian community and club scene.
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The problem with the city’s new wave of super-sized venues is the difficulty finding them — and getting away later. Most are located in far-flung industrial zones (that is, warehouse space), where the only other local business seems to be a stray-dog factory. Leaving the club after a few drinks might slow you down enough to make you a meal for these hungry mongrels.
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A minimalist, modernistic interior with floor-to-ceiling windows. A panoramic view of Novy Arbat, from the pedestrians below to the skyscrapers above — and beyond, to the airplanes leaving vapor trails in the sky. Heavenly Bloody Marys. Sensational mojitos.
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Get ready to rock — the club Tochka is back in a new location, and it’s even bigger than before.
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Two years ago A Priori opened just off Novy Arbat as yet another glamorous club replete with strict face control and the obligatory model-like bimbos flanked by their wealthy admirers.
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One of the stayers of Moscow’s fast-changing club scene, Mix, celebrated its fourth birthday in March.
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Lounge music is relatively new in Moscow, having appeared just a few years ago along with the trend for fashionably designed pre- and after-party venues, such as Mon Cafe, Museum and Dzhusto.
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One of Moscow’s glammest, most glittering clubs celebrates its first birthday this month.
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That’s a nice tie. How much did you pay for it?” says one New Russian to the other.
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It’s no longer summer patios that make the headlines anymore — the new hook of the season is the party boat.
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There’s a great way to see Moscow’s most beautiful sights without wearing down your heels — from the water. A popular boat route, running from Novospassky Bridge (next to Proletarskaya metro station) to Kievsky Station reopened in April. It is to continue running until September.
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Visit the Aptekarsky Botanical Gardens through June 15 to catch a glimpse and take a whiff of exotic flowers from all over the globe. Founded in 1706 by a decree from Peter the Great, the garden was originally intended for growing medicinal plants and herbs for use by the Russian Army. The current festival celebrates the garden’s upcoming 300th anniversary.
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Although the Young Pioneers Stadium in north Moscow offers a well-managed ice-skating rink during the winter, for the past few summers it has been largely desolate. But this year, that’s about to change. After being cleaned and renovated, the stadium is to reopen May 15 for the summer season.
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Get ready for another round of parades, concerts and fireworks at the annual May 9 Victory Day festivities this year. Besides celebrating the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany, the May 1-9 holiday period also marks the start of dacha season, when hordes of Muscovites head to their country homes on the weekends to escape the city’s heat and smog.
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A slice of gourmet France is coming to Moscow with the opening of Fauchon this spring. This exclusive delicatessen will sell imported, high-quality gastronomical treats including foie gras, pate, cheese, sausage, mustard, olive oil, spices, chocolate and jam. There will also be an on-site bakery. Fauchon has affiliates in more than 19 countries, and more stores are set to open in Russia in 2004 and 2005.
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It took 40 minutes, 30 liters of espresso, 70 liters of milk, three coffee machines and six baristas to brew, at 100 liters, Russia’s largest cappuccino. The record was registered on March 28 in the Russian Book of Records amid a crowd of journalists and other coffeeholics.
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Lovers of body art will not want to miss the International Tattoo Fest, which runs in Moscow till June 12. Organizers plan several parties and tattoo exhibitions at &Club, as well as a contest where prizes will be awarded, including Best Male and Female Tattoo, Best Rock ’n’ Roll Tattoo, Best Biker Tattoo and others. Major festival events at the club are planned for April 24 and June 12.
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Hear those church bells ringing? Melodies peeling from bell towers are only a small part of the program at the 3rd Annual Moscow Easter Festival, taking place April 11-24. The festival is also expected to feature concerts by the much-heralded Mariinsky Theater Orchestra, led by Valery Gergiyev, as well as other high profile performances. For more information, see the arts calendar.
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Attention all Yankee Doodle Dandies — the American Chamber of Commerce in Russia is holding its 10th annual Independence Day celebration on July 4. Being both the 10th anniversary of AmCham and their 10th celebration of Independence Day, the event promises to be a real doozy. As in previous years, the Kuskovo Estate is the planned venue and the list of activities is extensive. Popular Russian band Neschastny Sluchai is to head up the musical entertainment, with the band Animation in support. There is a demonstration of the latest-model Ford, Chrysler Jeep and GM automobiles planned, and for kids there is to be a special play area with an inflatable jumping castle and Ronald McDonald Center staff supervising. Also on the bill are hot-air balloon flights, sporting competitions and a fireworks display, among other amusements. Tickets are 300 rubles at the gates or 250 rubles in advance; kids under 12 get in free. Entry is open to all — even those not born on the 4th of July.
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It’s not quite the Tour de France, but it sure looks like it. June 12 is to feature the second coming of Critical Mass, an event in which cyclists from every walk of life ride through town to celebrate cycling and protest society’s dependence on cars, trucks and other polluting means of transport.
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Wakeboarding, a kind of skate-boarding on water, is doing its best to become Moscow’s next sport craze. Classes in the sport are now on offer for both adults and children at the Olimpiisky Sports Complex, along with its more traditional partner, water-skiing. Winches have been specially installed into the sides of the pools, whisking students to speeds of 30 kilometers an hour.
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There is a tale of one rich American woman who liked her red Ferrari so much that she asked to be buried in it. Ferraristi are not a new religious sect, although they do worship something that has cult status. Enter Ferrari, the powerful Italian sports car that can now be purchased — at your leisure — from the Ferrari Maserati dealer that opened May 20 on Tretyakovsky Proyezd, just a short distance from the Kremlin.
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Chess matches wouldn’t seem so dull (to the uninitiated, of course) if the players substituted their pawns and queens with shots of vodka: Take a pawn and have a drink. Amateur checker players have adopted this strategy, however, and you can see for yourself how it all works if you go to the quarterfinal game of the First Moscow Open Drunken Checkers Championship at the Sipadan restaurant on June 10 and the grand final on June 17. Shot glasses of red and white wine serve as the checker pieces, and the winner receives 100 kilograms of Atlantic shrimp.
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Monday nights are a flurry of flying feathers at restaurant Uzbekistan, which promotes its weekly cockfights with the slogan “appetites are only aroused.”
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The FotoKafe at FotoTsentr.ru's southwest location purports to be the world's first photography cafe. Sounds far-fetched? Maybe, but I have to admit that after a recent visit I was convinced that this variant of cafe-cum-photo lab could truly be one of a kind. It's so technologically advanced that I had to check to be sure that I was still in Moscow and had not been teleported to Tokyo.
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Winter 2009
Autumn 2008
Summer 2008
Spring Guide
Winter Guide
