This restaurant is like a time capsule. The decor is very old-school (early 80s style) and the stern, middle-aged service staff were still as intimidating as I remembered them from a few years ago. Everytime I go there, I feel like an errant student that had been hauled into the Principal's office. The service staff have a "no-nonsense" attitude, which makes me feel compelled to place my order in 30 seconds flat (ok, I never timed myself but you get the idea that you should not waste their time).

Shashlik is famous for their Borshsch, which we love! It arrived on a creaky wooden trolley in a tureen. The waitress ladled our portions into soup plates, gave a generous dollop of sour cream and served us without even so much as a grunt when we thanked her. Well, the service here is just as cold as I remembered it.I've not been to Eastern Europe yet (hope to do someday) so I can't compare this with the real McCoy. Borshsch (aka Borscht / Borsch) is a Ukrainian vegetable soup which is traditionally cooked with beetroot as the main ingredient, hence the characteristic strong red colour. Apparently, an orange coloured, tomato paste-based version exists, which is probably the version that's served here.Whatever the matter, the Borshch here is delicious! It's like a cross between Italian Minestrone and Hungarian Goulash. I loved its robust flavour and the texture of the softened cabbage leaves, carrot chunks and potato chunks. I also loved how stirring in the sour cream thickened the soup and added a creamier dimension to its flavour. Authentic or not, this soup is most satisfying and I must say that its my favourite dish here. This is a Must-Try!

This place is also famous for its namesake, "Shashlik" (a dish after which the restaurant is named). Shashlik is a skewered meat dish that is generally made with beef, pork or lamb that have been marinated overnight with herbs and spices.The beef shashlik served here is marinated tenderloin that has been cooked on a grill and then placed onto a hotplate. It was succulently tasty and is served without any sauce. It doesn't need any sauce as the beef is very flavoursome and tender. The picture above is that of GH's main course.

CT and I wanted to try the Tournedos Rossini for a change as we've always ordered Beef Shashlik whenever we visit. It sounded interesting : steak topped with foie gras. I go weak in the knees when I see foie gras on the menu, so I had to try it. It didn't turn out the way I expected. I thought they would pan-sear the foie gras before serving but a thin sliver of foie gras was placed onto my steak. This dish was good but not as good as the Shashlik. It was served with sides of French fries, tomato and frozen vegetables. I hate frozen vegetables so I gave them away to CT.