The last few days we had a few “Moscow in your pocket”-recommended meals that weren’t half bad.
We popped into the cafe Everyday People (http://www.ludikakludi.com/) for a bite this afternoon. Good pies and smoothies, along with the usual coffee shop fare of teas, espressos, and croissants. I had a spinach and feta pie, and Alex had a strudel. Then we saw a plate of “sirniki” (сырники) that had been added to the chalkboard menu, and couldn’t resist. Made from Russian cottage cheese–like tvorog, they were like creamy silver-dollar pancakes with raisins, served with a side of sour cream. An ingenious combination of milk products, really!
The atmosphere was also a relief–the main server was a charmer. He never left his tiny nook behind the counter, concocting smoothies, making change, plating croissants, and filling tiny one-person teapots. His conversational style was great, too. As laconic as the usual Soviet shopkeeper (“May I have some sirniki, please?” “Yes.”), his responses were tempered by a playful glint in his eye, instead of the usual blank-eyed reluctance you so get here in Russia.
Last night we dined at a Japanese fast-food restaurant, Udonyason (http://www.udonyasan.ru/). The combo dinners are quite filling, and not bad for Moscow, only about $9 each. For me, that included a Japanese salad, a huge bowl of udon soup, a few rice balls, and a cup of puffed rice tea. Of course, there were some strange Russian accents–the Asian staff was more likely from Central Asia than from Japan–and one of the rice balls accompanying my meal was undoubtedly topped with a pink lump of canned tuna. Other than that, the miso soup was decent (though it had nearly doubled in price since the “Moscow in the Pocket” reviewer had visited), and the udon dishes were super filling. Admittedly, coming from the American Midwest, I have about as little idea about authenticity in Japanese cuisine as the average Russian does, but I did wonder–do they usually top udon soups with tempura? It seemed an odd choice, as the usually delicate tempura batter covering my shrimp quickly went flaccid after a few seconds absorbing broth.
