cunning Aksyonov decided
Cats, rats and elephants: what Parisians had at the end of the 19th century
The capital of France is famous for its gastronomy. It was in Paris that the first restaurants appeared, as well as many popular gourmet dishes. But there were Parisians and difficult periods. So, during the four months of 1870-1871. The basis of the Parisian menu was horsemeat, meat of dogs and rats. They even ate an elephant from the zoo.
In the summer of 1870, a bloody war broke out between the French Empire and the North German Union. German troops invaded France, Emperor Napoleon III went to the front and was captured in the battle of Sedan. A day later, on September 3, an uprising began in Paris. The September Revolution replaced the emperor and, once again, established the Republic. France was losing the war, and in Paris they were preparing for a siege. In anticipation of the blockade of the 2 millionth city, all products and fuel were taken from neighboring regions, herds of animals they could find were driven in. Continue reading
The legendary restaurant “Yar”
The French tavern “Yar”, and later the legendary Russian restaurant, was a cult place of the Moscow bohemia of the 19th and early 20th centuries. In terms of luxury, high quality gastronomy and extravagance, the pre-revolutionary Yar was considered the number one institution and not a single Moscow restaurant has been able to surpass it until now. History has preserved many amazing facts about this unique institution.
The Yar restaurant, founded by Frenchman Tranquil Yard (Yar), was opened in 1826 in the center of Moscow, on the corner of Neglinnaya and Kuznetskiy, and then moved to Petrovka. When the tavern could no longer accommodate all the visitors, he had a branch outside the city. The beginning of Leningradsky Prospekt, which now you cannot even call the outskirts (rather, the center), was then considered a backwater. However, it was this building beyond the Tverskaya Zastava that became incredibly popular, making Yar one of the best restaurants of those years. Over time, the old building was completely closed, and the branch began to expand, modernize and grow rich. Continue reading
