Interestingly Plated Chicken Kiev!

Day 1 in St Petersburg and most of my photos are pretty awful because I let Tom have my good lens (as his decided this would be an opportune moment to clap out). I was reduced to using my iPhone and a small camera with no viewfinder and just a screen to look at, which was impossible to see because of the glare and my awful close-up vision. All my landscape shots ended up sloping. Oops!

But I digress.

Tonight after a gruelling day of touring St Petersburg, and a quick 30 minute shower and change of clothes, we are heading back out for a 3 hour "Car and driver evening experience", aka white knuckle ride back into town with an approved taxi, then dinner at an approved restaurant.

We have chosen Sadko because it is highly rated for both food and lively atmosphere. We walk in and the place is empty. It is apparently a big pre and post theatre dinner restaurant. Ooops, nul points for atmosphere at this time of day!

On to food...

Bread came out first, delicious rustic brown bread with different types of butter flavoured with a variety of herbs and garlic. We started with soup, a ceps and barley one for me, and and spicy lamb for Tom. I had Chicken Kiev served with rice, and it's the closest Chicken Kiev I've tasted to my favourite ones that Marks and Spencer sold in the 1980's! Tom had Beef Stroganoff, and he had my rice and I had his fried potatoes. Both were really good. Tom had a rather nice russian beer and I had a glass of french rose. The bill came out to about $75 which wasn't bad for a very enjoyable meal.

I should mention the decor, red walls with lots of white plates decorated with red flowers and autographed by famous people who had eaten there including Gerard Depardieu, (thank goodness they had restocked the wine cellar!!!) and lots of other people we had never heard of.

A white-knuckle ride back and a 20 minute wait while the solitary immigration officer ignored people trying to get back onto the ship, and focused solely on the occasional person trying to get into Russia from the ship.

We were knackered!