Hazelnut Snickers

I was in Russia recently and noticed that a hazelnut Snickers double bar was at the checkout. The hazelnut added an interesting tang. The cost was 40 roubles. That is about 70 cents. In the US at a similar checkout at the store it would be around $2. I noticed that while food was more expensive in roubles than it was on my last trip, it was a lot more inexpensive in dollars due to the drop in the rouble.

Coffee was an issue for me as instant coffee is not my first choice. Instant coffee is the staple for coffee drinking in Russia. However this is more an issue of space, as the average Russian kitchen is small. But I did notice that the Russian version of Best Buy, Eldorado, had all the coffee machines one might want, including a $1200 coffee machine from Germany. The fact that Eldorado carried it meant that some Russians were buying these expensive machines. Turkish style coffee machines are also popular. 

We had the lunch special at the downtown café several times. It was 320 roubles. It began with a salad. (Think more like a three bean style salad instead of a lettuce salad.) Then I had the Spicy Georgian soup. (Think the Eurasian country next to Russia, not the American state.) Then the main entrée was cabbage rolls stuffed with ground beef. 320 roubles is $4.50. There is no sales tax and a tip is optional more than expected. Yes, you buy the bottled water, but this is really a necessity as Russian water is of varying quality. Oh, let me add that this was for both my wife and me and it included tea. This type of lunch special is called the "businessman's lunch." 

Food in Russia is of a generally better quality. Yes, the fruit and vegetables are not as pristine as an American would expect, but they are organic. The tomatoes are especially nice in the summer as the varieties are designed to be eaten locally and are not made tough genetically for transportation. It was difficult to get the exact food I wanted, but the choices were large in some areas, like deli meats. I love Russian deli meats like lamb sausage, or chicken roulette. Alas, since I was in vacation mode I ate too much of these meats. Now I must pay!

Next time I will talk about Russian transportation.