Café St. Petersburg

This restaurant is cozily tucked away in Newton Centre.  In the 18 years I’ve been living in the area, I had only just heard of whispers of a Russian restaurant. This family owned restaurant i located in the lower level of a large brick building with a quiet and clean ambiance. There are photographs of the family with diners spaning a few generations, and even a few photographs of them posing with celebrities, only one of whom I recognized. Mikhail Baryshnikov dined here!

On a Tuesday night, it was very quiet, but perfect for enjoying a quiet meal opposite the bright and neatly laid out bar displaying bottle after bottle of clear alcohol : vodka (водка)

Our meal began with the horseradish house-infused vodka. Spicy! Definitely not my favorite, but according to the waiter, this is one of their most popular selections. We also tried the cranberry house-infused vodka. That one was sweeter and easier to take and made a nice accompaniment to the food.

As a starter, the Russian Herring served with boiled potatoes and assorted breads. Not bad at all. The Herring was tender and salty, which was a perfect match to the potatoes and the sliced onions it came with. 

For the main course, I had the Stuffed Cabbage, which was, as you can gather, stuffed with beef and rice and topped with cooked sweet peppers. In addition, I got a side of buckwheat. I misread the menu and thought it came with it... fortunately, the waiter said he could give me a side of wheat nonetheless. It was great. My favorite part of the dish was the second cabbage component. More cabbage! it was in a slaw-type preparation. The seasoning was tangy and delicious.

Finally, my dinner companion had the Siberian Pelmeni, which the menu describes as Russian style meat ravioli, served with sour cream or vinegar. They were very hearty and the unleavened dough from which they are made was very tender and surprisingly flavorful. 

All in all, a winning meal. 

il caffè

There are so many types of coffee available in Italy. Whether you are an experienced and passionate connoisseur or a casual drinker, it is a wonderful idea to take advantage of all Italy has to offer. 

Someone once told me that the longer the foam (la crema) remains in the cup- frothy and bubbly- the better the espresso brew is. If the foam dissipates quickly, then the drinker has reason to distrust the quality of the brew. 

Whether this theory holds up in all instances of coffee, it is surely a good indicator of the quality of the machine at work and of the overall freshness of the drink. 

I didn't quite believe this until I saw it for myself. I added just a tiny bit of sugar and stirred.   Incredibly, my friend and I sat for more than half an hour, and "crema" remained until the last sip. Molto squisito!