This classic, popular restaurant is famous for being the spot where Pushkin and other famous local luminaries often visited; indeed, Pushkin was last seen in public here before being killed in a duel in 1837. There are two different dining spaces available: expect quirky, vintage-style décor (antique lamps, a stuffed bear, portraits of Pushkin) in the casual café on the ground floor, and a more formal second-floor space with elegant parquet floors, chandeliers and regal striped chairs. The European and Russian dishes in both are excellent (think salmon-topped pancakes, toasts with herring, baked beets and borscht), as are the wines.

Cafe, Restaurant, Russian, French, $$ Don’t be misled by the name, this elegant restaurant, with its refined atmosphere, and gourmet food is a far cry from your average café. Literary Café‘s blend of fantastic food and fascinating history is a winning combination that attracts fashionable Petersburg’s chicest residents and tourists alike to its glamorous interiors. The restaurant is where beloved Russian poet, Aleksandr Pushkin, ate his final meal before heading off to fight in the duel that ended his life and cut short a brilliant career.

Literaturnoye (Literary) Cafe: Located in the 18th-century building once owned by the confectionery Wolff & Beranget, this cafe was a gathering place for writers such as Alexander Pushkin and Fyodor Dostoevsky. When an elite restaurant replaced the confectionery, celebrated musicians Feodor Chaliapin and Pyotr Tchaikovsky often dined there. Today, visitors are attracted by the elegant interior decorations, art performances based on Russian music and poetry, and Russian-French cuisine prepared according to 18th-century recipes.

Nevsky Avenue has been a great source of literary inspiration in the work of the great Gogol, Dostoevsky, Gorky or Leo Tolstoy. Nikolai Gogol even has a short story that bears the name of the avenue which represents a character in itself. The Literary Café, now a charming restaurant, is still standing (at number 18 Nevsky Avenue) and was frequented by these writers, prodigies of the Golden Age of Russian literature in the 19th cent.