Flor

FLØR is tucked away in a courtyard on Chistoprudny Boulevard — to find it, you need to pass through a hidden archway, and not everyone manages it on the first try. But that's exactly the charm of the project, according to our guide's team: Konstantin Samarin proved that a good restaurant doesn't need to sit on a busy street. FLØR has been running for several years now, earned a Bib Gourmand in the Michelin Guide 2022, and continues to please both the eye and its guests.

"A great example of how you can make delicious food fairly simply, without huge investment," say our undercover restaurant critics.

The kitchen is led by chef Nikolai Katsemba, who previously worked at Saint Petersburg's BoBo, run by the Grebenshchikov brothers. Samarin's approach — the signature of his projects — is not to overcomplicate but to bring out the ingredient through quality and precise technique. Among the dishes guests keep coming back for: roast beef with onion cream, a strawberry salad with Uzbek tomatoes in sesame sauce, roasted cabbage with pecorino, and a hot thin-crust galette with tomatoes and stracciatella. Breakfast is served daily until noon: cheesecakes with mascarpone and chocolate crumb, a prosciutto cotto sandwich, salmon or crab Benedicts on brioche, and a big breakfast assembled on the plate to personal preference.

The wine list is curated by sommelier Yulia Petchenko — more than 40 labels, grouped by flavor profile, with a focus on small producers from both the Old and New World. The cocktail menu by head bartender Alexander Mitin takes a culinary approach: prosecco with wormwood in the FLOR SPRITZ, salted gin with cornichon in the ATLANTINY, strawberry gin with pea shoots and bergamot in the PEACE. Mocktails are on offer too, for those who prefer the non-alcoholic route.

The interior combines crystal chandeliers, candles and a piano — an atmosphere equally suited to a date, a business lunch or a dinner with friends. Being next door to the Sovremennik Theatre adds another reason to stop by: dinner before a show or a glass of wine to close out the evening after one. In summer, a terrace is available — a rarity for a courtyard location.