The Best Burger in Moscow: Part III
My final burger recommendation from my time in Moscow is a little more unusual. Although Moscow (and Russia) may at times seem like a meat lover’s playground, vegetarianism is a growing trend. Fresh (Фреш) is a restaurant which serves only vegetarian food for Moscow’s vegetarian community, and people like me who love to try delicious and healthy food. It has two branches in the city and a cabin in Gorky park which is open during Moscow’s hot summer.
The Menu
The Fresh menu is varied and has something to suit almost anyone, from salads to burritos. However, what attracted my attention was the range of vegetarian burgers on offer. Fresh offers six delicious veggie burgers, all of which feature their signature vegetarian patty and a variety of sauces and garnishes. My favourite has to be the Barbeque burger! It comes with salad and a generous helping of barbecue sauce and is served with homemade (healthy!) onion rings and garlic mayonnaise. My friend, a fellow Fresh addict due to the lack of dairy in their meals, swears by the Thai burger, which is served with a peanut sauce. Finally, we couldn’t leave without having dessert, and I would strongly recommend the carrot cake which is served with coconut cream icing and was delicious!
The Ambience
Sweet Potato Fries
The atmosphere in the restaurants in Fresh is welcoming and peaceful: you feel healthy from the moment you step inside! They serve a range of smoothies and juices to take away in addition to their full restaurant menu. Even if you are a meat eater like me, Fresh uses such a delicious range of flavours and fresh ingredients that you don’t even notice the lack of meat in the meals. Every time I have eaten there I have left feeling satisfied but not so full that I can’t move! Fresh is a little pricier than the other burgers in the top 3 but I feel that the fresh ingredients and atmosphere make up for the increased spend. Here a veggie burger with a side and a smoothie will cost around 1000 rubles.
Fresh, Bolshaya Dmitrovskaya Ulitsa 11 and Ermolaevskiy Pereulok 10/7. Opening hours vary. Nearest metro: Teatralnaya or Barrikadnaya. See website for more details: http://freshrestaurant.ru/en/
Megan Beddoe, currently studying Russian at Liden & Denz Moscow.
