Think of yourself as a bit of a health nut or simply looking to detox after all those raucous City Day celebrations? From the best fruit and veg in town to a rejuvenating massage or a delicious, healthy lunch — that’s not an oxymoron — here’s where you can feast, relax, shop and feel good about yourself in the city.
Gorod Sad
Hipster foodie hive
Gorod Sad, with its speciality organic products, smoothie bar and gluten-free everything could just as easily be based in Tribeca as in central Moscow. The company bills itself as a modern food market with an emphasis on promoting a nutritionally-balanced lifestyle. Alongside the stacks of sugar-free products, pulses and picture-perfect salads you can find speciality biodynamic wine and beauty products made from natural ingredients. At the branch on Bolshaya Dmitrovka there is also a small on-site cafe where you can tuck into products cooked from ingredients in the shop, including a wide array of salads, wraps and falafel.
Rock ’n’ Raw
Live foods delivered to your door
It might not be for everyone, but live food diets are pretty popular these days. So much so that Moscow has its own raw food delivery service — Rock ’n’ Raw. If you’re scratching your head at this point imagining livestock being delivered at your apartment, let us explain. A live food diet involves eating raw, uncooked fruits and vegetables, sprouted grains, nuts and seeds. The ethos centers on the belief that cooking destroys or alters food’s innate goodness. In steps Rock ’n Raw, a service that aims to make eating live foods delicious and easy. Dishes on offer include zucchini pasta with avocado sauce, a rock burger made from crispbreads, golden gram sprouts and veggies and even desserts containing raw cacao and unrefined sugar. The minimum order is 800 rubles and delivery is free from 1,400 rubles. Go on, get your rock ’n’ raw on.
LavkaLavka
Organic, homegrown produce
LavkaLavka is a farmer’s cooperative and cafe chain that brings fresh, seasonal produce from small and midrange farms across Russia to your table — or shopping trolly. Genetically modified food is actually prohibited by law in Russia, which makes sense when you think about the strange extraterrestrial formations your local supermarket carrots sometimes take. Via the LavkaLavka website you can order cheese, dairy products, meat and much more from individual farmers straight to your door. Lamb from Tatyana’s herd in Dagestan anyone? Alongside cafes in their shops, there is also a LavkaLavka restaurant on Petrovka that takes a farm-to-table approach, serving wholesome, delicious fare to hungry foodies.
Thai Pattara Spa
Refresh body, soul and appetite
The Thai Pattara Spa isn’t your typical Moscow massage place. It aims to be not only the best Thai spa in Russia and the entire CIS, but also to use only the best organic products, bring Thai food and health products to the Russian market and even improve interstate relations. Stop in for an authentic massage by Thai women who barely top five feet but have hands of steel. Later, pop downstairs for a homemade Thai meal. And before you leave, pick up some Thai food specialties (the only place in Moscow that has green papayas in season) or some beauty products, like coconut shampoo. Best of all, this reviving trip to the spa won’t break the bank.
26 Ulitsa Begovaya, Metro Begovaya, Dinamo thaipattaraspa.ru
Cafe Sok
Veggie fix in the museum district
If you love vegetarian food and have a penchant for art, Cafe Sok could be the perfect lunch stop for you. Situated just across the street from the Tretyakov Gallery, Cafe Sok offers Instagram-friendly dining in a warm, cozy interior. In warmer weather you can enjoy dining on the terrace, but even if the chill forces you inside, you won’t be disappointed by their spinach pelmeni and freshly-prepared salads. With free Wi-Fi, friendly owners and an informal atmosphere, it’s a lovely city center pit stop.
+7 (495) 953 7963.15 Lavrushinsky Pereulok, Metro Tretyakovskaya cafe-cok.ru
Krasnopresnenskiye Bani
Turn into a soft, wet noodle
There is nothing better to relieve the emotional and physical stresses of Moscow life than an evening at the bathhouse, and one of the best and most authentic is in the Presnya neighborhood. Here in separate sections for men and women, you can go through the rituals of the stream room and cold water pools, be beaten — in a nice way — with supple tree branches, enjoy a hot stone massage, have a massage under water, be wrapped in a variety of substances from seaweed to chocolate, indulge in a mani-pedi, have dinner … and that’s just part of the menu of activities. They say that the bathhouse even washes away your sins. Give it a try.
Bani na Presne. 7 Stolyarny Pereulok, Bldg. 1, Metro Ulitsa 1905 Goda baninapresne.ru
Fresh
Healthy is the New Sexy
Fresh opened its doors just as the healthy lifestyle craze started to take off in Moscow. Since then they have opened a second eatery in the glamorous Patriarch’s Ponds neighborhood and a summer kiosk in Gorky Park serving juice and smoothies. The menu includes snacks, like falafel (590 rubles with mezze combination), wraps and burgers (try the Thai vegan burger with peanut sauce for 380 rubles) and hot dishes (we recommend the “Beach” options with grilled peppers and zucchini, sun-dried tomatoes, soft goat cheese and brown rice for 600 rubles). Pair with the “Energizer,” a juice made from pineapple, cucumber and ginger (350 rubles).
+7 (965) 278 9089. 11 Ulitsa Bolshaya Dmitrovka, Metro Chekhovskaya, Pushkinskaya freshrestaurant.ru
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