EASTERN EXCELLENCE
By Matt Brown
St.Petersburg Times.ru, Russia
Friday, September 14, 2007
ARTS + FEATURES
Vostochny Ugolok // 52 Gorokhovaya Ulitsa. Tel: 713 5747 // Open 24
hours. // Menu is Russian and English // Dinner for two 1,296 rubles
($50)
For a small country with a troubled past and a relatively arid climate,
Azerbaijan, like its Caucasus neighbors Georgia and Armenia, has a
culinary tradition overflowing with intricate and belly-filling taste
combinations derived from a number of influences.
This tradition is honored at Vostochny Ugolok, a restaurant in a
prominent location where Gorokhovaya Ulitsa crosses the Fontanka river,
offering a hearty range of Azeri dishes.
Since Azeri cuisine is partly a cross-pollination of Turkish, Georgian,
Iranian, Russian and even "Soviet" methods and ingredients, the menu
at Vostochny Ugolok is at once familiar and exotic. It is divided
into sections featuring such specialties as kubak (pastry turnovers),
dolma (stuffed leaves), pilaf (flavored rice), shashlyk (kebabs),
and khatchapuri (cheese bread) with an imaginatively prepared range
of traditional soups, salads and garnishes. And as befits its roots
on the Caspian Sea, Vostochny Ugolok’s menu features an unusually
large range of fish dishes that would suit vegetarians who otherwise
might be put off by the tendency of Caucasian cooking to use parts
of sheep – offal, testicles – that European cuisines tend to eschew.
Among the Russian dishes is ukha po-tsarsky (180 rubles, $7), a watery
fish soup prepared "Tsar syle" that comes in a pot with a lid that
when lifted lets free a cloud of aromatic steam. At Vostochny Ugolok,
this standard dish is pepped up with southern spices bathing chunks
of white fish. Another traditional Slavic obsession – mushrooms – is
given a dose of southern sunshine with Vostochny Ugolok’s mushroom
salad (120 rubles, $4.70). Jam packed with marinated forest fungi,
the salad has a tangy dressing that gets the juices flowing for bigger
dishes at the center of the meal. One of the more Caucasian starters
is a rulet baklazhan s orekhovoye nachinkoi (roulade of eggplant
with nuts) for 160 rubles ($6.30). This familiar dish of chilled
eggplant rolls stuffed with a paste of mashed eggplant flesh and
crushed walnuts was accompanied by a satisfying dollop of mayonnaise
with chili in it for an extra kick.
Between starters and main courses there’s a chance to try one of the
glories of Vostochny Ugolok’s kitchen: its fresh and airy khatchapuri
or hot bread stuffed with cheese (150 rubles, $5.90). Sometimes
described by dullards as a pizza without the topping, this irresistible
classic of Georgian cuisine can be heavy, soggy or stale, dripping
with grease and difficult to digest – but not at Vostochny Ugolok
where they are so proud of their khatchapuri they serve it on a cake
stand and slice it lovingly with a sense of ritual.
The service was exemplary with professional waiters and waitresses
gliding smoothly about attentively but unobtrusively, without a
shred of attitude. Details such as complementary bowls of dewy grapes
and boiled sweets make for the welcoming atmosphere of a family-run
enterprise and Vostochny Ugolok is a large and busy restaurant much
in demand – prices are low and quality is high – so it is advisable to
book or be prepared to wait to be seated. A recently added year-round
pavement terrace indicates that the "little eastern corner" (that’s
what "vostochny ugolok" means) has grown in popularity since it opened
a couple of years ago. Full of oriental knick-knacks like carpets,
coffee pots and wooden ornaments, Vostochny Ugolok’s interior offers
interest without overwhelming the center of the dining experience:
the food.
A lamb chop served with boiled potatoes (320 rubles, $12.50), was
tender and moist, but a chicken shashlyk (170 rubles, $6.60) was a
bit of a puzzle. Prepared in an explosive garlic and spice marinade
and char-grilled to perfection, it was a shame that inferior cuts of
chicken were used but the dish was saved by a garnish of cauliflower
florets sensationally deep-fried in batter (60 rubles, $2.35).
With Vostochny Ugolok’s extensive choice of superlatively prepared
dishes, few will leave this corner of St. Petersburg disappointed.