Outstanding Ethnic Food in Moscow
This summer I was in Moscow visiting some friends and we had spent
the day getting stuck in traffic jams and fighting our way through
crowds to get around town. It had been a very hot day and unlike
many cities in Russia there aren't many roadside Kvas sellers to
help keep you cool in Moscow. By the evening I was tired and ready
for a rest. My friend Alexei could see that I was worn out and
suggested that we went to an Azerbaijani restaurant that he knew
nearby.
We walked down Novy Arbat and arrived at Shesh Besh. As soon as we
went in and walked up a short flight of steps, it was as if we had
entered another world. In the restaurant, everything was laid out
like an oriental village square. Flickering lanterns lit the room
and in the centre of this charming space was a large ancient olive
tree growing up through the warm terracotta tiled floor. The tables
were dotted about here and there, some in intimate private corners,
others pushed together for family feasts. After the heat and fumes
of the city, the cooler, calmer atmosphere was an immediate tonic.
Soft music and the low hum of conversation completed the ambiance
so far removed from the hustle and bustle of the city.
I asked my friend what Shish Bash meant and smiling, he replied
that it was Azerbaijani for six and five, pointing to the picture
of two dice on the menu. We looked at the menu (in Russian and
English) and settled on our choices, a selection of preserved fruit
and vegetables with lavash bread followed by Kharcho soup. My
friend insisted that we have the house wine which we ordered too.
When the waitress returned with our wine, she was carrying a box
like a backgammon board and a tumbler with two dice. I was puzzled
but she explained that it was the restaurants tradition that
customers had the chance to win their wine in a dice game. Now the
restaurant's name became clear, we had three chances to roll five
and six. I went first, three and four, so no luck, Alexei went
next, again nothing. Last of all, my friend Katja shook the dice
and amazingly rolled five and six! The waitress struck off the cost
of the wine on our bill and congratulated us.
By the time we finished I was back on form and delighted to have
discovered this fantastic restaurant with its lovely decoration and
delightful traditions.
David Turner
Oct 22, 2008
10.22.2008
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