I had originally been assigned to review an Armenian cafe, something I was not looking forward to. And so when my companion and I discovered that the cafe is presently under reconstruction, we (with some relief) decided to drop in at the 1913 Restaurant.
Because of its name, I had always pictured it as a dark and cozy (if slightly fusty) bar with a lot of smoke and men in suspicious suits. It's location, on the corner of Ulitsa Dekabristov and Voznesensky Prospect, doesn't suggest glamour, either.
However, we were pleasantly surprised. The decor is light and elegant -- lots of mirrors, marble and art-deco furniture. Potted plants and fans make it airy and cool. I felt decidedly underdressed in my Phillies Blunt t-shirt and sturdy shoes.
The only thing that detracted from the classy atmosphere was the tunes -- house music played just a little too loud, which made me feel like I was being pursued while I ate.
We sat down and our waitress asked if we spoke Russian. We said yes and received Russian menus (they also come in English) about the size of a road atlas.
Most of the menu is taken up by alcohol. Vodka, whiskey, cognac, rum, gin, martinis, cocktails, liqueurs, beer, wine and champagne each have their own separate headings with at least five listings under each one.
The rest of the '13 menu is just as proliferate. Not counting the separate alcohol listings, there are 14 menu headings: cold appetizers, hot appetizers, salads, main dishes, soups, sauces, garnishes, desserts, cigarettes, candy and chewing gum, snacks, hot drinks, cold drinks and fruit.
Faced with this staggering array of culinary delights, my companion and I copped out and ordered small.
We ordered salads simply for their names: I chose the Russian Beauty Salad (17,500 roubles) while my companion went for the more modest Vitamin Salad (5,800 roubles). Unfortunately, these did not live up to their intriguing names. The Russian Beauty was basically glorified potato salad -- potatoes, peas, hard-boiled egg, carrots, spooky meat, lots of dill and all of it swimming in mayonnaise.
The Vitamin Salad, instead of being a pile of pills, was an average coleslaw with a lot of lemon juice.
The waitress asked in a very concerned fashion if I didn't like the Russian Beauty. I said no and she withdrew the dish, expressionless.
The meal improved as it went along. My companion ordered another appetizer, the calimari (5,200 roubles), and I chose the spaghetti carbonera (10,800 roubles).
The calimari had a lot of onions, but it was tender and flavorful, and we were impressed that any restaurant had fresh calimari just sitting around every day for anybody.
The spaghetti was served with a raw egg planted disconcertingly on the top -- anyone for a little salmonella? Fortunately, the chef had courteously nestled it in a lettuce leaf for easy disposal should the diner choose to toss it, which I did.
Egg disposed, the spaghetti improved immensely. It was slightly overcooked but tasty. The carbonera was a random ham-like meat, not too bad, but nothing huge. However, since dinner for me usually consists of a peanut-butter sandwich, the spaghetti was good enough for me.
For dessert, we ordered chocolate ice cream (17,000 roubles). We expected the standard tiny, half-melted scoops garnished with a sad piece of mint. Thus we were that much more excited when the waitress put down proper tall dishes full of ice cream topped with whipped cream, sugar sprinkles, a wafer cookie and a cherry.
The '13 is a versatile little restaurant. It's a good place to take your parents, especially if they're paying. It's possible to really go crazy and run up the bill -- try the glazed tongue for starters (33,200 roubles), the lobster fricassee (103,000 roubles), a bottle or two of Veuve Cliquout champagne (363,500 roubles) and fresh strawberries (37,400 roubles) for dessert.
On the other hand, it's also the place to go if you feel like eating out but don't feel like spending a wad. Most main dishes run from 30,000-35,000 roubles, or you can fill up an appetizers. While some of the food I had wasn't outrageously impressive, I think the '13 deserves another chance.