CDL: Central House of Writers (Tsentralny Dom Literatorov)

CDL: Central House of Writers (Tsentralny Dom Literatorov) Review

The CDL is an exclusive club for members of the Writers' Union. The club (at 53 Bolshaya Nikitskaya; it's the same building, but the club entrance is on another street) is off-limits, but the dining room is open to the public and is now one of the city's very best restaurants. There's also an art-house cinema on the floor above the restaurant. Next door (No. 52) is a large mansion, enclosed by a courtyard, that houses the administrative offices of the Writers' Union. It's commonly believed that Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910) used this mansion as a model for his description of the Rostov home in War and Peace. A statue of Tolstoy stands in the courtyard. Mikhail Bulgakov (1891-1940) set part of his wonderful satire of Soviet life, The Master and Margarita, here.