Nowadays St. Petersburg has hundreds of new cafes and restaurants offering all kinds of cuisine.
All bars, cafes and restaurants bill guests and take payment in roubles only - though more tourist-oriented places may list prices on their menus in dollars or so-called “Conditional Units” (using the Cyrillic abbreviation OA), which amounts to the same thing. In that case, the total is converted into roubles at the current central bank rate or the rate of exchange advertised on the premises (which may be less favourable). It’s often (though not invariable) true that a menu in dollars is an indication that the establishment is overpriced by local standards.
Credit cards are accepted by most top-range or foreign-managed restaurants. (Amex - American Express, DC - Diners Club, MC - Mastercard, EC - Eurocard, JCB - Japanese Credit Bank). As for paying with travellers’ cheques, forget it.
Menus are usually written in Russian only, although more and more places offer a short English version. But beware, because the Russian menu is usually typed up every day, whereas the English version will give only a general idea of what might be available. In such cases, you’d probably be better off asking what they recommend (shto-by vy porekomendovaly?), which can elicit some surprisingly frank replies.
Prices
Cheap - under $10
Inexpensive - $10 - 20
Moderate - $20 - 40
Expensive - $40 - 80
Very expensive over - $80
In a café - the cost of a snack or light meal plus a non-alcoholic drink (although in many of them you can have a full meal); for restaurants, it includes a state, main course and a desert, but no alcohol, which in many restaurants can easily double your bill.
