Lovecraft
Hops, Not Horror
Twenty-nine beers on tap on the wall, 29 beers on tap … If you don’t want to go where all the expats go, try this little Russian basement pub right next to the triumphal arch on Kutuzovsky Prospekt. After all, you can drink Heineken or Stella anywhere, but what about a Rouge de Bruxelles, Hacker-Pschorr, Mad Viking or Belhaven Black? The owner’s love of craft beer is proudly represented by the 29 taps behind the bar — and here you were thinking the name of this place was an allusion to horror writer H.P. Lovecraft! One final bit of advice: This place may have nearly 30 types of beer, but it only has a handful of tables, so make sure you arrive early to get a good view of the screen. While you wait, you can give yourself a good start for an evening’s beer sampling: Try their pelmeni — they’re homemade and hand-folded.
Ploshchad Pobedy, 2k1 facebook.com/lovecraftbarmoscow/
Haggis
A gastropub with style
When the menu boasts “fragrant rice with chili” and four different styles of veal cheeks, you know you aren’t at an ordinary pub. Haggis, a 5-minute walk from the Bolshoi Theater, is a gastropub and it makes sure you’re aware of that fact — fries with parmesan and truffle oil, anyone? That being said, it’s where those football fans whose hips and wallets have acquired some padding come to watch games. It’s also a good choice if you don’t eat meat, which can be tricky in more mainstream Russian restaurants and bars. If you arrive early enough, try and get a seat on their gallery, where nobody can block your view of the screen by standing in front of you. Now, what kind of drink to get with those truffle oil fries?
Ulitsa Petrovka, 15. haggispub.ru