Russian cuisine has its special features. We should urge you to try some of the specialties of the Russian cuisine as many a visitor develops a taste for its rather exotic flavors.

Russia is a vast country but it is unnecessary to visit every corner of it to taste the typical regional delicacies. The restaurants and cafes in St. Petersburg specialize in a variety of Russian national dishes. The itinerary includes visiting (for lunches and dinners) the most popular of these places, as well as a special course of Russian culinary art taught by famous local chef cooks and culinary instructors.

The Russians undoubtedly excel in preparing hors d'oevre. These appetizers may consist of mixed salads, jellied sturgeon, pikeperch or salmon, crab salad, cucumbers in cream, tidbits in aspic that rival one another in inventiveness and succulence. A variety of Russian national dishes comprising borsch (beet roots soup), shchi (cabbage soup), cold "okroshka", a favorite Russian summer dish made of vegetables, meat balls, and kvass (a fermented liquid made of bread and yeast), pancakes served with a number of different fillings including caviar, salmon, jam, sour cream and many others, pelmeni (meat dumplings), pirozhki, and kissel (jelly like drink) will be offered to an interested visitor.

Collections of the Russian porcelains exhibited in the Winter Palace, and former summer residences of the Russian Emperors give an idea of how the tables were laid when Russian national dishes were offered to the numerous aristocratic guests entertained by the Royal families. The itinerary also includes a diverse sightseeing program, trip to Novgorod, and the oldest of the Russian cities, where visitors will have an opportunity to enjoy the highlights of the ancient city, to taste a typically Russian lunch, and the folklore music (balalaikas) will add to this very Russian atmosphere.

At the end of the tour each guest will be handed a menu with recipes, articles of a Russian chef cook's uniform, and an album of photos to commemorate their trip. The menus of all the meals included in the program will be offered to the guests in advance.

Day 1

Arrival in St. Petersburg, check in;

Day 2

General sightseeing tour of the city, visiting a farmers' market; lunch at the hotel - presentation of the hotel cuisine specialties by the chef cook of the hotel restaurant; fish delicacies will be offered for dinner at the Yusupov restaurant;

Day 3

Tour of the Hermitage including the Golden Treasury; lecture by a Hermitage expert on traditions of serving meals, and the art of table lay-out in Russia; lunch, and a practical course of Russian culinary art at the culinary school; dinner at the restaurant "Taleon", evening theatre performance;

Day 4

Trip to Pushkin and Pavlovsk, tour of the Catherine's and Paul's Palaces, lunch at the restaurant "Podvorye", demonstration of cooking of Russian "pelmenis", "Guryevskaya kasha" (gruel), pirozhki. Family dinners at the Russian homes (5 to 6 guests per family).

Day 5

Trip to Novgorod, excursions, lunch in the old Russian traditions including tasting "pokhlyobka", bliny, sbiten, kvass, etc. Return to St. Petersburg, farewell dinner at the restaurant "Dvoryanskoye Gnezdo".

Day 6

Transfer to the airport, departure.