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| - There is something about this Russian restaurant that always makes me feel like I'm having a homecooked meal. You wouldn't guess based on the outward appearance, basically a storefront in the shopping center by the Copp's in Fitchburg, but this is really a top-notch restaurant. I'd never really tried Russian cuisine other than the beef stroganoff that was my father's speciality and a couple of late-night stops at Pelmeni (RIP) before coming here with a friend last year. He's part Polish descent and he kept saying how much the food reminded him of the meals his grandmother used to make when his family would visit Milwaukee years ago. I'm not Russian or Polish and my two grandmothers' delicious meals were standard American fare, so I wasn't expecting to share his nostalgia. But the food here has the unmistakeable quality of good comfort food that just feels like home.
I set the bar pretty high on my first visit, trying the "Zarski" stuffed pork loin with a spring salad and buckwheat (kasha). This coupled with several Baltika #6 Porters made for a very filling meal and a strong desire to return. The next time I came with my father, who went for the beef stroganoff to see how it measured up to his own. This entree comes without accompanying noodles like my father has always done, but the beef with sauce is so rich and thick it did not seem to require anything else. My father really enjoyed this, and has subsequently ordered it every time since, but his real love was the kasha. I went with the stuffed cabbage, which is a dish that I've never really loved before. Arbat's has a something more, maybe the spice or the tomato sauce, that puts it over the threshold. This turned out to be the perfect meal on cold March night, and I came away convinced that this was going to be a regular destination.
I've tried a decent amount of the menu to date, and I still put the stuffed pork loin with the kasha as my all-time favorite. The pelmeni dumplings are delicious but it always seems like they're missing something without the spicy red sauce I used to get at Pelmeni on State. The potato and cheese vareniki are really amazing, and the meatballs with mushroom sauce are pretty good themselves. I'm personally a big fan of the Russian and Lithuanian beers that are served, but be careful because these are powerful - around 6 to 8% ABV - and come in big half-liter bottles. There are only a couple of things that keep this place from being a no-doubt five star place. The location does leave a bit to be desired for atmosphere, and the restrooms aren't even in the same place - you need to walk into the lobby of whatever is next door, and once the lights didn't even work. Last winter we were seated next to the door, which led to cold blasts of February air every time someone came or went. This didn't bother me as much as it did my mother, but it would be nice if they had some kind of curtain or something. Also, there only seems to be one server every time I've been and on busy nights it can be a wait. But these are minor trifles compared to the greatness of the food. Whenever the winter seems to drag on forever or I just feel the need for something comforting, I'll make my way here.
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