St. Petersburg upheld its status as the culinary capital of Russia. Russian, Georgian, Italian, Japanese, Indian, and fusion cuisines were represented in over 75 culinary directions across the city’s establishments. The dishes of St. Petersburg cuisine gained growing popularity, with traditions actively being revived.
The northern capital boasted more than 7,600 restaurants, cafes, and bars that delighted residents and visitors with exquisite or casual dishes, stylish interiors, and panoramic views – each establishment strived to be unique in its own way. In the lead-up to New Year’s Eve and after this, top restaurateurs in St. Petersburg prepared gastronomic surprises and original shows.
A historic restaurant on Nevsky Prospect offered guests a jazz-themed New Year’s celebration with the city’s best performers. The highlight of the menu featured dishes from Russian aristocratic cuisine. Guests were served a rolled dish made of bear, venison, and ox with root vegetables, a rabbit roulade with moose kidney, dumplings made from wild boar and venison, sturgeon baked in white wine with porcini mushrooms, capers, and gherkins under a crayfish sauce.
One of the oldest restaurants in the northern capital, located on Sadovaya Street, participated in the «St. Petersburg Cuisine» project; therefore, the New Year’s menu included exquisite dishes from this direction: tartlets with sturgeon, éclairs filled with trout caviar, pike and sturgeon, Olivier salad with crayfish tails, and a show dish «By Pike’s Order.» In the first days of January, an immersive performance titled «A Murderous Evening at the Majestic Hotel» took place as part of a theatrical-restaurant collaboration. Guests participated in solving a detective story.
A hotel recently recognized as the best in the country prepared five different programs across its five restaurants for New Year’s Eve. The gala dinner «Swan Lake» was infused with the elegance of ballet and music. This theme resonated with a New Year’s fairy tale designed for both adults and children. A fashion night styled after the famous film «House of Gucci» immersed guests in Italian glamour. Those seeking vibrant sensations were invited to a celebration inspired by a French circus theme, while fans of Eastern culture enjoyed an exotic evening at an Asian restaurant. Each program was accompanied by a corresponding thematic menu.
Another iconic St. Petersburg hotel offered two programs: a Gatsby Party styled after early Broadway and a party titled «Ivan Vasilyevich Changes Profession or Operation ‘New Year’,» reminiscent of beloved films by famous Soviet film director Leonid Gaidai. The menu featured hits from Soviet feasts: sprats on crispy bread, jellied meat from three types of meat, tongue with horseradish, herring under a fur coat, and Olivier salad with doctor’s sausage – all presented in new interpretations.
The New Year’s dinner at a panoramic restaurant on the banks of the Moika River took place in the style of a round-the-world journey and was accompanied by performances from actors of the «Wandering Puppets of Mr. Pezho» theater. Guests were offered pancakes with gravlax, caviar from salmon and sturgeon, Russian salad with veal and crayfish tails, among other dishes.
A famous café that once hosted Russian poets Alexander Pushkin, Mikhail Lermontov, and writer Fyodor Dostoevsky focused on Russian classics: romances, excerpts from operettas, folk songs, and gypsy dance theater. An exquisite menu based on masterpieces of Russian cuisine was presented in a 19th-century style; for example, «Mr. Lucien Olivier’s Salad,» a pride of dining clubs prepared meticulously according to a recipe from 1860 at the «Hermitage» restaurant, featuring meat from young bulls, shrimp, chicken, salmon roe, and Kamchatka crab meat under an airy veil of lanspik.
Many restaurants and hotels began creating festive atmospheres early on by offering New Year’s programs for children and hosting themed dinners.
Source: Press Service of the Committee for the Development of Tourism in St. Petersburg
