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St. Petersburg's cultural life is one of its top attractions. The city oozes musical history, and there's a fascinating and thrilling concentration of the brightest names in classical music here. Russian classical ballet was also born in St. Petersburg and you can almost always catch a performance of Swan Lake at any time of the year.
The city's nightclubs and discos can't compete with Moscow's glamorous establishments in terms of grand scale, pomp, and attitude, but they offer a more laid-back environment and friendlier crowds.
Your best source for information about what's going on is the St. Petersburg Times (www.sptimes.ru), a free, local, independent English-language weekly that's published on Wednesdays. It can be found at airline offices, bars, clubs, hotels, cafés, and other places generally patronized by foreigners or students. The publication has a calendar of events in the Arts and Culture section, with theater and concert listings, a club guide, and a restaurant column.
A long-standing favorite of local expats, this jolly inn with great pub food, cozy wooden furnishings, and a reasonable selection of beer stands across the street from the Mariinsky Theatre. The company's younger talent can be often spotted having a quick bite or beers here at any time of day. Live Irish music is played every night, except Tuesday and Friday, and a bargain-priced set lunch is available weekdays.
This outlet of a chain that originated in Riga, Latvia serves up a lot of Merrie Olde England kitsch. The food is pricey but good.
Designed as a cozy hunting lodge, this German pub is one of the quieter drinking venues in town. It has vaulted brick ceilings, antique bric-a-brac, and stuffed wild animals and game trophies.The spirited and highly herbal Jägermeister digestif pops up in just about every other drink offered here, including the popular Grizli and Jager-Cola cocktails. There's also a sauerkraut-heavy German menu available and a filling three-course business lunch on weekdays. The pub, open round the clock, also has branches at 17 ulitsa Pravdy and 64 Srednii prospekt.
This peculiar hybrid of a bar and a laundromat started life as the graduation project of a German design student. Here you'll find underground rock DJs, international bands, a good sound system, a small bar, and comfortable soft furnishings. Guests are welcome to follow in the footsteps of Led Zeppelin and the Rolling Stones—it's said they made use of the venue's washing machines and dryers while in town on tour.
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