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More than two decades have passed since the fall of the Soviet Union and with it the days when dining choices in St. Petersburg, or any Russian city for that matter, were limited to traditional, often uninspired, but always inexpensive Russian-style eateries. In fact, dining is among the great pleasures in the city of Peter the Great these days. Yes, you can dine like a tsar, and in just about any other fashion and on any kind of cuisine you prefer. Top chefs have taken over the dining rooms of some of the best hotels—including the Grand Hotel Europe, the Kempinski, and the W—where they serve top-notch food in beautiful settings. You'll also find a growing number of ethnic choices, and even vegetarians, often at a loss to find a meat-free meal in Russian, have some options, too.
Traditionalists need not worry, however. Homey and jovial budget eateries serving quick, substantial, and good meals for less than 250 rubles have mushroomed around the city. Stands selling Russian blini, the hearty Russian cousin of the French crepe, are everywhere, and they make a great pit stop.
Here are a few things to keep in mind. Few restaurants in St. Petersburg have no-smoking sections; in fact, some places have cigarettes listed on the menu. But attitudes are changing and you'll sometimes be offered a seat in a no-smoking section. The dining sections of St. Petersburg Times and St. Petersburg in Your Pocket are worth checking out, for both the restaurant reviews and the ads for tempting business lunch deals, which are typically priced between 300R and 600R.
It's not necessary to plan ahead if you want to land a table in a nice establishment on weekdays, but it's generally a good idea to reserve ahead for weekend dining. Ask your hotel or tour guide for help making a reservation. Most restaurants stop serving food around 11 pm or midnight, although more and more 24-hour cafés are opening.
The stuffed camel, Turkish carpets, and sizzling kebabs prepared in the middle of the room create an exotic ambiance in which to enjoy what many aficionados consider to be the best Middle Eastern food in St. Petersburg. Whatever the variety of kebab you choose, begin a meal with kutab, a lightly fried pocket of dough filled with shrimp, pumpkin, or cheese.
A haven for local Armenians, and named after an ancient region in modern-day Turkey, this restaurant serves sizzling beef stew and a tempting variety of expertly cooked kebabs in sprawling, dimly lit rooms. The seemingly endless menu may confuse the uninitiated, but the staff is ready to help. A bargain-priced, three-course business lunch is popular with locals and budget-minded travelers.
A lot of thought was put into creating this busy and authentic Georgian restaurant, which evokes the atmosphere of old Tbilisi, the capital of Russia's southern neighbor. There may be political tensions between the nations these days, but Russians' love affair with Georgian cuisine, from lobio (bean salad) and grilled meat and fish shashlyks (shish kebabs) to lavash (flat bread) and khatchapuri (cheese-filled bread), remains passionate. Tbiliso satisfies this appetite and then some, with servers in national costume and a Georgian choir to serenade diners. If you visit only one Georgian restaurant in St. Petersburg, make it this one.
The lamb, herbs, and other ingredients here are laudably fresh, and flown in several times a week from Baku, Azerbaijan. It is easy to get lost in the long menu, but much harder to be disappointed in your choice. Juicy kebabs, chops, and khatchapuri (cheese bread) are served in vast portions—a bowl of soup is a meal in itself. Not as appetizing is the music blaring in the three dining rooms, decorated with oriental carpets, pillows, and pottery.
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