While we were visiting my parents in Northern California for Easter, we decided to go into the Inner Richmond District in San Francisco, otherwise known as Little Russia.
My mother had never been to a Russian restaurant before, but she really wanted to try it after all of our rave reviews of Moscow Deli in Costa Mesa and Marivanna in Los Angeles. My dad kindly drove us all into the city for a lovely outing the day before Easter.
After a quick stop at Gastronom Deli and popping our heads into the Russian Orthodox Cathedral (thankfully I had a chapel veil in my purse) we went out for a lovely dinner at Katia's Tea Room.
From the moment we walked in and saw the adorable little pieces of dill on the pats of butter, I could tell that they were big on attention to detail -- people after my own heart.
My name is Mama Stork, and I am a tea addict. Their tea is amazing -- and was served in a beautiful Russian railway-style glass and holder. They kept my tea well filled, thankfully -- it was a chilly day, and the warm goodness was appreciated. :)
Our lovely Zakuski (Russian appetizer) platter with (clockwise from top) eggplant caviar (an eggplant spread that doesn't actually contain caviar), pickles made in house, marinated mushrooms, and Vinegret (a type of potato, beet, and carrot salad). Very yummy!
Borscht. So, so, delicious. :)
My mom is vegetarian and had these lovely potato cutlets -- they were a lot like my husband's chicken cutlets but without meat. Served with veggies and buckwheat kasha.
My husband's chicken cutlets with mushroom sauce. Served with crispy potatoes and veggies. The potatoes remind him a lot of the ones he had growing up -- apparently they're something his mom makes as well.
My dad's lamb dish with rice and veggies.
My yummy beef stroganoff with rice and veggies.
Merengue Pavlova with fruits and kissel.
Their glorious Napoleon, also served with kissel. Napoleon is one of my dad's favorite desserts and this is one of the best versions of it that I've had. The kissel really does add something amazing to the whole dish. :)
Katia's Tea Room is a great spot. The food was wonderful, and even though they were super busy (especially with people picking up large take away orders for Easter the next day) we still had good, friendly service. Katia even took the time to stop by our table. A wonderful experience and we will definitely be back. :)
Looks yummy! I absolutely love eggplant "caviar".
ReplyDeleteThere's one more delicious spread that we call "your mother-in-law's tongue" (it's really hot and spicy) =D It is made from zucchini and bell peppers and hot red peppers (not typically Russian, I guess, but still a piece of tradition).
And the railway tea...oh, that brings back memories ;)
Thanks! :)
DeleteI can understand a mother-in-law having a spicy tongue. :P
Yeah that's it =D
ReplyDeleteOne more funny detail - in Russian, it is the mother-in-law from wife's side, aka wife's mom...a spicy tongue that poor husband has to bear with =D
That's awesome! I'll be sure to share that with the hubby! :P
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