Botanika
A prime example of vegetarian haute cuisine, a kingdom of innovative gourmet dishes, the oldest vegetarian restaurant in St. Petersburg; one of the biggest stars of St. Petersburg’s foodie scene, Botanika isn’t afraid of big words and high aspirations. Powered by a tight-knit team enthused to spread the vegetarian and vegan message, this food spot offers an impressive abundance of dishes, from various starters (pirozhkis, tapenade, hummus, lots of cool salads), to soups, sandwiches, burgers, blinis, pasta, sushi, dahls, stir-fries, and, of course, desserts. You name it, they have it. Vegan, raw, and gluten-free options available.
Ukrop
Credit: Jeswin Thomas (@jeswinthomas) on Unsplash
Looking for a cool vegetarian spot with good breakfasts and lunches? Ukrop is a St. Petersburg café chain with pretty fair prices, a creative menu, and amazing presentation. Their breakfast menu abounds with oatmeal granola with coconut milk, black rice porridge, tofu scramble with basil and tomatoes, and chia syrniki topped with mango sauce. They also offer green salads, vegetable bowls, soups and a variety of second courses, from vegan pad thai and mushroom risotto to raw lasagna and vegetarian pizza, not to mention their mind-blowing desserts: sourish mango and raspberry sorbet, airy agar-agar cheesecake with cherry topping, and black currant mousse. Ukrop gives preference to plant-based whole-grain foods with minimal processing, so if you’re on a healthy diet, you definitely need to give it a go!
MIR vegan cafe
Founded in the Berthold Center creative space in December 2018, MIR vegan cafe serves amazing all-day breakfasts (pancakes with orange marmalade, syrniki, scramble with mushrooms and vegetables, and granola smoothie bowls), as well as soups, pasta, and lots of vegan desserts. Among their highlights are Buddha bowl, banana bread and raw cashew cake with mango and vanilla mousse.
Kashmir
Trying to describe the Indian restaurant Kashmir is a task in itself, their offerings being so incredibly numerous. Loads of colorful dahls, delectable soups, crunchy samosas, moreish salads, quirky rice dishes, pastas, breads, desserts; the list seems to go on forever. The drinks menu deserves a special word: we bet you’ve never seen so many types of coffee (coffee on the sand, anybody?), hot chocolate, and tea (oh, the tea: black, red, green, white, herbal, rooibos, oolong, masala, Pu'er, matcha, maté, and that’s just some of the many choices available)!
Mantra bar
Credit: Trần Toàn (@kentro) on Unsplash
A vegetarian cafe with a distinctive Indian vibe, Mantra bar serves lots of interesting vegetarian and vegan dishes, coupled with a good selection of unusual teas and good-quality coffee. Big portions, nice staff, beautiful presentation, and cozy atmosphere will definitely make you come back for more!
Auroville
A vegetarian cafe that is also an art-space, Auroville is a perfect place to namedrop at posh dinner parties: what we have here is a house of fusion cuisine where East meets West and modern meets traditional, with its luscious meals created by the city’s most famous chefs extraordinaire. The choice is humongous, featuring a potpourri of appetizers, salads, soups, mains, and desserts, with a drinks menu that is as impressive as that at Kashmir. The best part? The prices are more than reasonable, so no wallet will be hurt in the (wining and dining) process.
RA Family
Situated in the very heart of St. Petersburg, RA Family serves tons of delicious yet healthy veggie salads, pasta, soups and rolls. Among the highlights are vegan Philadelphia rolls, green pea soup, and amazing mouth-watering pizza. They also have nice breakfasts such as flax porridge, coconut syrniki, almond scramble (!) and vegan ‘Nesquik’.
Keep your eyes peeled for the next article in the series, which will take you through our city’s best vegan and vegetarian street-food spots. And while you’re patiently waiting to discover the secret world of healthy (ish) fast-food, here’s our guide on surviving as a vegan in St. Pete.
Written by Anastasiia Labunskaia and Anastasia Krasilnikova.
