Not everyone can understand the Russian people, Russian lifestyle and Russian cuisine. Our realities are sometimes surprising, and everyone reacts in their own way - some admire it, while others are in complete misunderstanding. How could anyone even come up with the idea of frying cottage cheese? Why make unsweetened jelly from meat? Is it even possible to eat normally in Russia if you are a foreigner?
Moscow is extremely diverse in food and provides foreigners with the opportunity to plunge into the gastronomic world of any culture in the world. Thus, RUDN University students Sandra Pamela Alfaro Garcia from Peru and Lee Zhong from China turned out to be real gourmets. They not only found places where their national dishes are prepared, but also got acquainted with many new traditional cuisines.
The guys enjoyed sharing their impressions of Russian cuisine, their favorite restaurants in Moscow and food that pleased and, in some way, even surprised them.
Impressions of Russian cuisine
Sandra and Lee have been living in Russia for three years. During this time, they managed to taste the dishes of Russian cuisine and told us their opinion about them.
"The main thing in Russian cuisine is meat. I like shashlik the most. The food here is very healthy: people often eat vegetables, don’t overeat, and drink tea all the time. I've never seen people drink so much tea. People in Russia drink it all the time: for breakfast, lunch and after dinner. Even in clubs, at three o'clock in the morning, some people order tea. I’m already used to it, and I drink it myself because I think it’s good for my health", says Sandra.
"Milk soup is a very unusual dish that is prepared only in Russia. I tried to make it at home, but it didn't work out. And for the first time I tried it at "Mu-Mu" - an excellent cafe with real Russian food, by the way. I also often eat dumplings. It is a very original fast food, a good substitute for sandwiches. Breakfast in Russia is very different from ours: we don't have such a variety of dishes. Every day there is something new: cottage cheese, pancakes, fritters, scrambled eggs, sandwiches", Lee shares.
"And my favorite fast food is "Kroshka Kartoshka". It's so unusual: mutant potatoes with meat, salad, mushrooms, and whatever you want. I've never seen anything like it in China. It's the nation's fast food - a brilliant idea. There are tents on every corner and most people eat there. It's also clean, and I've seen how neatly they prepare everything with gloves on", he added.
Like at home
On the RUDN territory there is a huge number of cafes and restaurants, 90% of which are run by the university graduates. These establishments are a godsend for foreigners and lovers of authentic exotic food: they offer Arabic, African, Indian, Chinese and other national cuisines.
For example, Sandra’s favorite was the restaurant of Peruvian, Mexican and Indian cuisine "Dionysus", where she wrote several student papers after classes. "Students from Peru often go to the places that prepare ethnic dishes to stay connected to their homeland and enjoy familiar flavors", Sandra said.
There she met the daughter of the restaurant's founder, Christina Salloum. She also graduated from RUDN, after which she got her MBA in Switzerland. It was Christina who came up with the "Dionysus" current concept. Her father, Mustafa Salloum, initially insisted that the menu should be "like everyone else's".
The decision to open a restaurant came by chance. "My father has good relations with the RUDN administration. Besides, all Lebanese are famous restaurateurs: if you say you are Lebanese, people ask if you have a restaurant", says Christina. Her father asked to rent a room and in 2001 received a small cafe with ten tables, and called it "Peti".
The establishment was opened with a focus on students. There were no other Lebanese restaurants nearby at the time. A year and a half later, Mustafa rented the premises of a closed Afghan restaurant at the other end of the street, made renovations and opened "Dionysus".
New gastronomic discoveries
Lee discovered Ethiopian cuisine. He liked the "Avenue" restaurant, which is also located on the RUDN University territory, where he really likes to eat tibs - longitudinal fried pieces of beef or lamb, served in a spicy sauce. Lee noted that he loves meat, like many Chinese.
The owner of the cafe – Tefera Wasie –has known Lee for two years and often tells him his student years’ memories with a smile. For example, he admitted that three things struck him most about Russia. The first is snow. "I went outside and was able to catch snow with my hands". The second surprise was the diversity of nationalities among white skin people: "In Ethiopia, I thought that all whites were Russians". The third was the Russian language complexity.
After completing his studies, Tefera married a Russian girl Anna. After a short trip home, Tefera returned to Russia - the government had changed in Ethiopia, and Anna would have a hard time coping with her husband’s working trips to gold and rock deposits. But when his friend suggested opening a cafe together, he immediately agreed. However, soon after the young restaurateurs began to reach heights, the partner had to return to his family in Ethiopia due to the unstable situation in his homeland. Therefore, Tefera continued this path alone.
It was his former partner who came up with the name "Avenue". The word sounds the same in many languages, says Wasie. The restaurant initially did not have an ethnic concept - it relied on European cuisine. But, at Tefera’s suggestion, they started cooking Ethiopian dishes on weekends. They turned out to be in demand, and two months later they were in the main menu.
In addition to Ethiopian food, other African dishes also appeared on the menu over time. Wasie was pushed to take this step by his student clients. They kept asking when "Avenue" would serve pepper soup, a traditional dish in many African countries (a dish made with meat, poultry, fish or seafood, but always with a lot of hot pepper), so restaurant hired a third chef to expand.
Exotic food for every taste
After a long university day, Sandra and Lee went for a walk around Moscow, to relax, take pictures against the backdrop of the capital beauty, and, of course, to eat.
The Bich Cau restaurant on "Voykovskaya" is one of their favorite places. Here you can taste delicious Vietnamese cuisine prepared by friendly Vietnamese people. Despite the fact that they do not speak Russian very well, this does not interfere with mutual understanding.
"It’s nice that the food here is quite spicy and the portions are huge. Here you can enjoy traditional pho, a noodle soup with beef, chicken or pieces of fried fish. Also on the menu are my favorite nems, Vietnamese rice paper rolls", said Lee.
However, in Moscow restaurants serving Vietnamese cuisine you can try not only classic dishes. If you are a fan of unusual cuisine, feel free to choose goat meat, frogs or snails. These exotic dishes will definitely delight gourmets and give you new experience.
"I have only positive emotions regarding this place. Here I can fully enjoy the tastes and the atmosphere of Eastern culture", said Sandra.
There is another unusual place that our heroes told us about. The "Tibet Himalayas" restaurant on Nikolskaya serves not only Tibetan but also Indian cuisine.
"The restaurant will appeal to both meat-eaters and vegetarians - the menu is large and varied. There’s also an incredibly large selection of tea: there are about 30 types, including real masala chai, and they serve it with seeds in honey", says Lee.
"Among the signature dishes of our establishment, rice with chicken and shrimp has become especially popular. This dish combines tender chicken meat and tender seafood. This is one of my most often ordered dishes", the restaurant waiter claimed.
Sandra and Lee decided to opt for the real Tibetan flatbreads and a couple of appetizers with real Indian curry – they are hard to come by in Russia.
Conclusion
The food industry in large Russian cities is extremely well developed, so students have nothing to worry about, they definitely won’t be hungry: they will find simple, intricate, and exotic food from cuisines from all over the world.
If you want to try classic national dishes, you will find a lot of cozy restaurants and cafes serving Russian cuisine in Moscow. There you can taste dishes like beef stroganoff, stuffed hare and potatoes with dill.
Of course, sometimes foreigners want their native cuisine, and they find it. The capital offers restaurants with real culinary masterpieces from different parts of the world. You can travel across the Italy and enjoy flavorful pasta and pizza, or try authentic sushi and sashimi in a Japanese restaurant. You can find national dishes of any country, whether it is Ethiopia, South Korea, Mexico and many others.