Summer Veranda at Lotus Bistro Opens on Fontanka.

A new draw has appeared on the Fontanka embankment — the summer veranda at Lotus Bistro, opened by Alexey Alekseev's team. The restaurant sits across from Mikhailovsky Castle, between the Summer Garden and the Anichkov Bridge, where busy pedestrian routes and tourist trails cross. The space is designed to combine city energy with a sense of coziness, and the terrace's bright red canopy shields against the sun, letting you enjoy the view of the water.

At Lotus Bistro, the atmosphere matters as much as the menu. On Fridays, DJs play on the veranda, providing a musical backdrop for evening meetups. On Thursdays, there are tastings of Japanese delicacies, with fresh catch from the seas and oceans appearing on the menu. Once a month, the venue hosts evenings with guest mixologists presenting signature cocktails. Events like these make the bistro a place people come to not just to eat, but to spend time in an interesting way.

The summer veranda menu includes Lotus's signature dishes, which take on a special vividness outdoors. Guests are offered langoustines in crispy kataifi pastry, beef tartare with marinated shiitake, and steak with baked sweet potato and an Asian-hollandaise-based sauce with sweet chili added. Special attention goes to the rolls: with eel and orange tartare, almond, and takuan; with langoustine and salmon tartare with mango purée; with salmon and passion fruit. These combinations pair well with the refreshing cocktails served on the veranda.