TALK OF THE TOWN

Published: November 21, 2012 (Issue # 1736)

From the people who brought the city the Unified Documents Center, that bureaucratic Mecca that aims to allow long-suffering Russians to resolve all their official document-related nightmares under one roof (for a price), now comes an unlikely follow up: Buddha-Bar.

Irrefutably last week’s biggest opening, Buddha-Bar opened to the public on Friday, Nov. 16 (after a “closed opening” on Thursday for journalists and VIPs, including Zenit FC’s Hulk) in the vast — 2,500 square-meter — premises of a former factory on Sinopskaya Naberezhnaya.

As in its other locations around the world, including Paris, New York, London, Kiev, Delhi, Mexico, Budapest and Tbilisi, St. Petersburg’s own Buddha-Bar will serve Pan-Asian, European and Russian food, and almost every drink known to mankind.

This is not the city’s first Buddha-Bar: An unlicensed — and far smaller — copy existed briefly on Bolshaya Morskaya Ulitsa back in 2006. Now the city has the real thing, and it looks set to be a hit with well-heeled yuppies and fashionistas, despite its rather unusual location.

For gourmet cuisine from a little closer to home, the miX restaurant at the city’s W hotel is preparing for another visit from its brand chef, Alain Ducasse. The celebrated French chef will visit St. Petersburg for the third time to host two gala dinners on Nov. 29 and 30. The dinners are open to the public, but would-be diners are advised to book in advance — during Ducasse’s last visit, the restaurant was fully booked.

The experience of sampling a six-course meal prepared under Ducasse’s expert eye, featuring marinated gilt-head bream, gold caviar, Kamchatka crab and lightly spiced duckling, among other things, will set gourmands back 8,200 rubles ($260). The price includes selected wine.

This week will see the opening of the Crystal Spa & Lounge on Ulitsa Zhukovskogo. The latest addition to the city’s extensive beauty industry is described by its owners as a “luxury day spa,” and is equipped with 10 treatment rooms, as well as a fitness room, Turkish bath and “ice fountain.” The spa also boasts its own cosmetic product, Crystal Charisma.

Meanwhile, on the parallel street, Ulitsa Nekrasova, an opening of a different kind is set to take place at the beginning of next month. Sergei Shnurov, frontman of local stadium rockers Leningrad, is to open a bar and restaurant called Kokoko together with LavkaLavka, a farmers’ cooperative that prides itself on offering locally grown produce.

According to a press release sent out by the company, the establishment will be run by Shnurov’s wife, Matilda Shnurova.

This is not the first venture into the hospitality industry made by the notoriously foul-mouthed singer. Several years ago, he opened the Siny Pushkin (Blue Pushkin) bar on Khersonskaya Ulitsa.