right opposite the church of our saviour on spilled blood (my, such a long name) there’s a souvenir and local crafts market; aimed to trick us tourists to spend as much money as possible. its here i learnt that the babushka dolls are actually called matryoshka; not babushka (only foreigners call them this).. and its here i also met my first trans-siberian person, who looked so oriental i thought he was from mongolia.
the market opens from 9am; till.. not sure when. but naturally i got suckered in and bought myself a small faberge egg pendant. they’re so beautiful i could not resist. one day; i’ll have so much money i promise to buy myself one of those musical ones that twirl around and tell the time. soon soon.
i had a bit of extra time to spare so i decided to go looking for some meat pies! well recommended by lonely planet; lol. Stolle (Штолле) can be found all over the city, but its nice to go to the one off the beaten track into this semi underground cafe that has early 20th century written all over it.
it’s so kitsch-y, i can just image all the russians smoking their cigars in here! anyways the highlight of stolle are their pies, and they serve a wide selection of savoury and sweet pies. a large slice (250g) costs about 200-250Rubles/8USD while a small one (175g) costs about 100-150Rbl/5USD.
Dont’ they just look so pretty in display? i got myself a fish pie and a wortleberry pie. i’d say a small slice is enough for a meal as they can be quite filling. Then again i’m not a big eater.
I walked in as they opened, so the pies were all freshly made. So you can imagine how beautiful they all the smelt. It had a crispy burnt crust; with a dense breadlike texture that was salty sweet. The fish was just meh; it did taste fresh and really moist though. The wortleberry was pretty yummy; however it is an acquired taste. The jam wasn't too sweet as it was balanced by the pie crust and doesn't soak into it making it soggy which is a good thing. Reviews recommended the rabbit pie, unfortunately they didn't have any when i was there; but i did see many people order the minced meat ones, so I'm assuming they must be good as well.
and that is how i spent my 24hours in my very first Russia trip and also my very first layover. i manage to do quite a bit i must say. onwards to the next trip! yay!
ps: stolle can be found here:
Штолле
Конюшенный пер., 1/6, г. Санкт-Петербург, Russia, 191186
just follow the road from the church towards the river and you will see it on the left
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