Musings about Moscow #2

This post is mostly about KFC Russia, since that's what brought us here in the first place. Not to mention, I've now EATEN MORE FRIED CHICKEN in the past 2+ years than the last 20! :-) But I've also included a few 'Moscow musings' too.

Cool digital menu boards at the "Sophia" KFC location.

1. Beer -- they sell beer at KFC! Scott tells me that Russia and Nigeria are the only two countries in the entire world that sell beer.

2. Coffee (general musing) -- everyone, including KFC, sells espresso drinks (cappuccinos, espressos, mochas and lattes). Interestingly, the coffee shops here (Starbucks included) don't sell regular 'drip' coffee, only the espresso-based stuff.

3. Women (general musing and KFC) -- Moscow has many more women than men, everywhere! Old and young, working class and upper class, just more ladies, LIVING LIFE. Literally there is a dearth of men because of WWII and alcoholism. The lifespan for Russian men is 55. The women who eat at KFC? Most of them look quite professional and well-groomed (at least this is what I've observed at the "my" KFC which is in the city center). Fascinating!

Two professional women drinking espresso drinks and eating KFC, thus supporting a couple of my points.

4. No-Paper-Allowed Public toilets (general musing) -- yes, that's right. There are toilets where you're not supposed to flush any paper; instead, there's a trash can to the side that contains wads of USED toilet paper from prior patrons. Probably because of bad plumbing, but omg, soooo gross….

Disgusting public toilet with trash can for paper disposal.

5. Sides/Desserts -- KFC sides are much more limited in Russia. There's coleslaw (of course: cabbage and mayo, perfect for the Russian palate!), fries, corn, and Caesar and regular salads. No biscuits(!!!!), no mashed potatoes/gravy, no green beans, no Mac n Cheese. On the other hand, they do have ice cream sundaes, soft serve, belgian waffles and I think blintzes on the menu. Russians L-O-V-E love their sweets.

Soft serve cone and regular fries instead of 'wedges.' 

6. Police presence and loitering (general musing) -- there are a lot more police around town on the street and in police cars. Just a few weeks ago were driving to Beau's swim class on a Saturday morning and we were stopped by the police for literally no reason at all. Gulp. Our driver, R, just said it was "normal" and didn't think twice when we pulled over. Nothing ended up happening; R showed his license to the officer and quietly had a few words with him and then we got back on the road. Seems like they want to remind people of who exactly is "in charge." And as for loitering, theres a lot of that too. In our courtyard, there are always at least 3 big, burly men standing around chain-smoking and…waiting. No idea what they're waiting for - but their presence is intimidating and a little disconcerting when you first walk outside.

Oh, and Siena thinks the guys in the courtyard are waiting to play with her when we go outside. Every. Single. Time. Sweet girl, I love her so much.

7. Chicken at KFC -- all fried. Period. No grilled, no roasted. Just fried, fried, fried, on-the-bone, strips (like chicken tenders but better), bites (like popcorn chicken but better), many iterations of sandwiches, fried, fried, fried.

"Streeps"

"Bah-eetz" and a "Tveester" wrap.

8. Food volume consumed at KFC -- there seem to be two kinds of customers at KFC Russia, the snackers and the big volume eaters. The women (and teens) are the snackers. Then there's the guys who get like 2 big sandwiches, a large fries, AND 2 twister wraps. Oh and probably an ice cream, which they eat first because it will melt if they put it down or leave it till the end. KFC is clearly much more affordable vs all the other options around town so the big guys take advantage of that.

Big guy having lunch. You can't see it here, but he had a pint of BEER  behind that box of wings.

9. Time spent at restaurants (especially KFC) -- people spend HOURS hanging out at KFC! It's a business meeting spot, a date-night restaurant, a lunch place and a cafe all in one. People just set up shop - free wifi!! - and hang out for a long time. Friday nights, it's like a nightclub! 

10. No recycling (general musing) -- so sad. Despite being way ahead of the game with the "bring your own bag" concept, Moscow doesn't seem to have a public recycling program. Actually, it's even hard to find a regular old trash can on the street, so I think everyone just hangs on to their trash til they get home.

Musings about Moscow #1

This post originally started as a "things I like about Moscow" list but I ran out after 3 (I think I need to give that list a little more time!) so I've changed it to general musings and observations.

1) The Metro system. Very clean, always on time, runs frequently (as in, you never have to wait more than 90 seconds for a train), and cheap!

2) Borscht. Fuschia colored soup made from beef broth and beets. Very tasty and one of the few authentically Russian dishes that I really enjoy. Often served with sour cream on top that you mix in. Served at pretty much all restaurants, even non-Russian ones, since it's like their version of chicken soup.

3) The air. It seems very dry, which also seems great for my hair and skin, but that might also be the pregnancy? I will say that it is much easier to get my hair straight, and we all know that is one of my priorities in life. :) I believe Scott feels it's too dry and often makes fun of me for luxuriating in the dryness too much. On the other hand, I know that this city is very, very dirty (too many cars and buildings and not enough trees) so the air can't be all that good.

4) Excessive PDA. Muscovites seem to feel strangely comfortable showing all stages of public displays of affection in all public places. Literally. Scott and I have seen embarrassingly steamy make-out sessions on the escalator riding down into the subway tunnels, on benches in crowded public parks, at restaurants while sitting on the same side of a two-person table, even right in the middle of the sidewalk, oblivious to their surroundings, such that it requires everyone to take an alternate path...you get the idea. I've already seen this type of very public PDA to a certain degree in NYC but this takes the cake. We think people do it in public vs "getting a room" because many young people continue living at home with their parents and/or grandparents even after they've finished school and started working. These apartments are tiny so they don't afford much privacy, and so...out they go. Again, this is similar to NYC but for whatever reason, the Russians take it to an extreme. And it's older "young people," not just teenagers (which is what I recall seeing in New York).

on the street

by a fountain

in a booth at a restaurant

-------> 4a) Females holding hands. A subtopic of #4 above is female hand -holding -- pairs of adult and young adult straight women holding hands while walking around town. In the US you really don't see a lot of same sex adults holding hands unless their gay. However, I've seen far too many women doing this in Moscow for them all to be gay. Nothing wrong with it of course, but it's just not something you see everyday in the States. Kind of nice to see such open companionship, but also sort of surprises me every time.

5) Caesar Salad. You can't order a Caesar salad here without a protein (e.g. "shrimps" as they say, chicken or salmon). It's another ubiquitous item on the menu, which is nice, but forget it if you want it as a starter without a protein. Scott and I tried to do this a couple times, since it's something used to do all the time in the States ("You want to split a Caesar?"). We tried to order the salad "бес курица" (which means "without chicken") and it would cause ALL sorts of chaos and confusion for the waitstaff and we get lots of head shakes and hear lots of "нет" ("NO."). Substitutions in general are not handled very well here in Moscow, but for some reason, trying to get a protein-free Caesar salad is really just taking things TOO FAR. Who knew?

6) Ordering and dining at restaurants. This could probably be an entire post unto itself but I'll try to keep it brief.

• Substitutions. As mentioned in #5 above, food substitutions are not good. The one thing Scott and I have been able to do is sub out home fries / hash browns for french fries. Thank goodness. :)
• Phased ordering. The concept of ordering appetizers to arrive first and then ordering main courses a little bit later is not practiced. If you try and order an appetizer and keep the menu, they look at you like you're crazy.
• Service stinks. Probably because tips are optional, the servers aren't very attentive. You might sit down and not see someone for 20+ minutes, or until you flag them down. Or, if you have seen someone and you make / get your order, forget seeing them again to ask for extra ketchup or an additional plate or anything else. Scott and I have learned to decide quickly and consider everything we might possibly want or need during the one exchange we have with the server. We also go to a lot of the same restaurants over and over (there aren't very many casual dining options) so we kind of know which places are worse than others.
• Timing. Even though all the orders for food are placed at the same time, the food isn't always delivered at the same time. And there's no rhyme or reason regarding which things get delivered first (i.e. hot food might come out 20 minutes before a cold salad). This is particularly true when you order bread, which normally would come out right away. It often doesn't arrive until the main course arrives. Speaking of bread...
• Water and bread are not free. This is a European thing (not just Russia), so not really a big deal, but it fits in with the whole dining out experience list.

That's all for now. I'm keeping a running list of observations for another post. I bet after I have the baby I'll have all sorts of good ones!