PRICE:
Frommer's Very Highly Recommended

For expats and visitors, this is St. Petersburg's most popular spot to sample cuisine from the former Soviet state of Georgia, which features Caucasus Mountain spices and fruits not usually found in Russian cooking. Cozy and tastefully decorated with Georgian pottery and tapestries, the restaurant is just a block north of Nevsky but the atmosphere is relaxed. Garlic is used liberally, so if you'd prefer a dish without it, be sure to ask. Try the enormous khinkali, spiced meat dumplings you're supposed to eat with your hands; the tandoor-style chicken (chicken tabaka); or the eggplant slices slathered in walnut-garlic paste. Meat dishes come with tkemali, a sweet and spicy sauce made from Georgian sour plums, plus you get stalks of fresh cilantro, dill, and lemony cheremsha to munch on. The food is reasonably priced, but the wines, mostly Georgian and French, cost more than they should. If you want to try Georgian wine, stick with the dry reds. Don't be turned off by Kavkaz's cheesy ads in the local magazines and brochures found at most hotels.

Copyright: Excerpted from Frommer's Moscow & St. Petersburg, 2nd Edition, (c) 2008, Wiley Publishing, Inc.

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