Among the many famous and successful restaurateurs in Russia and England, the first is the name of Arkady Novikov, a Russian entrepreneur who created a galaxy of famous establishments with his hands - from respectable and elite ("Biscuit" or "Imperial Hunt") to simple and democratic ("Christmas trees - sticks "). Over the years, the Novikov restaurant on Tverskaya Street, in the very center of Moscow, as well as other establishments located in prestigious quarters of the capital and other large cities, including London, have always made a splash among such projects with their innovation and originality.
Biography of Arkady Novikov and the beginning of a career
Before becoming a restaurateur, Novikov himself went through a severe school of cookery. He graduated from the ordinary Moscow culinary school and the Academy. Plekhanov specialty "Economics of catering." Then he went to serve in the army, where for several months he had to undergo training at a school of military dog breeding and to train dog dogs. Upon his return, Arkady did not lose interest in the culinary art and got a job at the Universitetsky restaurant as a regular cook, where he worked for five years. In the early 90s, Novikov first became a deputy chef in a large restaurant in Moscow "Havana", and then was invited to a similar position in the "Olympic Lights" and Hard Rock Cafe.
Career Arkady Novikov in the second half of the 90s
But a rather prestigious position in the Universitetsky restaurant turned out to be too simple for the future entrepreneur. During the great changes of the 90s, Arkady Novikov started his own business, the first sign of which was the Sirena restaurant, which opened in 1992. Among the many establishments, “Sirena” became the first high-quality “fish place” in Moscow and introduced visitors to exotic dishes for that time.
Any menu of the Novikov restaurant, especially when it comes to elite establishments, is a real masterpiece and includes dishes that are currently not yet familiar to the general public. Often Arkady himself is involved in the process of choosing refreshments for a new institution, based on his own experience and the trends that are present in the business at the moment. Over 11 long and stressful years of work, Novikov restaurants, that is, more than 30 projects, have formed a whole group of companies. This is one of the largest such holdings in Moscow and London.
The concept of restaurants Arkady Novikov
Arkady Novikov is rightfully considered the founder of traditions and principles that are considered milestones in the development of the modern restaurant business. An illustration of the first stage is called "Club T" with its French cuisine. This institution in 1994 was created by Novikov. The restaurant receives extremely positive reviews, both from critics and from the visitors themselves, and for many years is considered the best "French place" in Moscow.
And in 1996, Arkady opened the Tsar's Hunt, which became a kind of symbol of post-Soviet traditional Russian cuisine, returning the interest of visitors to it. The restaurant is located in the center of Rublevo-Uspensky highway, in the village of Zhukovka, and is known for its impressive surroundings of wooden beams, carts and barrels, skins of wolves and bears, noble Russian cuisine and a high level of service. Here you can taste pies stuffed with meat, herring under a “boyar” coat or Siberian game dumplings. Over the years, the walls of the institution have repeatedly seen dignitaries, including Boris Yeltsin and Jacques Chirac.
Other restaurants of Arkady Novikov, opened in the 90s of the last century
Also in 1996, the first democratic restaurant-restaurant "Fir-sticks" was created, which later grows into a whole fast-food chain. Restaurants Novikov "Christmas trees-sticks" (there are several) - is a kind of symbol of Russian national cuisine, focusing on homemade dishes and the organization of high-quality healthy nutrition. One of the concepts of the institution is the orientation of the menu on the features of some holidays. For example, before Easter, a
Lenten menu is offered
, pancakes for Shrovetide, and discounts for fans during the Olympics. The Elok-Palok franchise is used in many cities of Russia.
Novikov also introduced fashion to create thematic and nostalgic institutions with the advent of the famous restaurant "White Sun of the Desert" (opening - 1997). It was framed using plots, photographs and frames from the filming of the same film. A popular institution was built on the site of the former Soviet "Uzbekistan", so the cuisine remained Uzbek, Azerbaijani and Chinese. The visiting card of the “White Sun” is a buffet - dastarkhan (in oriental style), barbecue grilled on open charcoal, as well as a traditional Uzbek pilaf.
Novikov restaurants opened in the 2000s
In 2002, the opening of the Biscuit restaurant gave popularity to a new direction in the field of this business, namely the so-called lounge establishments. This year is also notable for the fact that at that time the Agronom greenhouse was organized on Rublevskoye Shosse with an area of 6 hectares. It is still the main supplier of environmentally friendly products to Novikov's restaurants, as well as to many other catering enterprises in Moscow. In 2004, he launched several retail projects and, in cooperation with businessman Lev Khasis, opened the Russian branch of the French fashion chain of gastronomic boutiques and deli stores Hediard, organized a network of premium grocery stores Globus Gourmet and opened Yelki-Palki supermarket selling semi-finished products and working in the middle price segment.
Mid 2000s: new trends and new restaurants
On average, Novikov implements several projects a year. In 2005, he launches the second point of Japan’s Mom and Little Japan, jointly with the Crocus group Shore House, a casual French restaurant, and also opens five establishments on Novy Arbat: the Italian Porto Cervo and the October karaoke bar. "and the DJ bar" Black October Bar ". In total, the entrepreneur has more than 50 projects on his account, which should include, in addition to the above, new restaurants of Novikov. Among them are Vanilla, Cheese, Vogue cafe, GQ Bar, China Club, as well as network projects: Prime Star, Kish-Mish, Little Japan and others. Many of them became laureates of well-known contests, their cooks are famous all over the world, and the dishes are loved by the metropolitan audience. Many establishments become truly iconic, for example, Vogue Cafe, GQ Bar or the Cheese restaurant.
Lunch at the Quay
Among the many interesting concepts and ideas, one of the most unique and non-trivial is perhaps the idea of creating a “Berth”. This is a restaurant by the river, where in summer vacationers are served drinks and snacks on the beach, and in winter, when the pond freezes, guests are given ice skates and offer hot mulled wine after skiing. Novikov's restaurant “Berth” has a variety of dishes in its menu: from carpaccio and pizza to herring under a fur coat, sushi and rolls. In addition to 50 conceptual institutions and Agronom LLC, Arkady Novikov’s business includes Novikov Catering, which organizes parties and banquets, NRG product (seafood supply), Mainstreet (real estate), and Flower Studio 55, a network of flower shops.
Novikov Restaurant & Bar, London
In 2012, in connection with the development of the business and the expansion of the restaurant chain, not only Novikov's restaurants were opened in Moscow, but also its points in London. The first British institution under the Novikov brand was a restaurant located in a prestigious London area and combining Chinese, Japanese and Malaysian dishes, as well as Italian cuisine and a large bar. He was extremely abused by the liberal newspaper The Guardian for his excessive bourgeoisie and, as a result, became famous throughout the world and became extremely successful.
In the middle of the summer of 2013, his Russian double Novikov Restaurant & Bar opened, which is distinguished by pathos and pomp. After, in 2013, in the same place, in London, Novikov opens the Rextail restaurant. Its main focus and signature dish are the highest-quality meat steaks, including Irish bull meat steaks, as well as fish dishes and game dishes. The chef of this restaurant is the Englishman Adrian Martin, whose specialties are fragrant black cod and roasted kid.
Products and cooking technologies in restaurants of Arkady Novikov. Participation of institutions in international competitions
Novikov Group focuses not only on cooking technologies, but also on the freshness of raw materials and its exceptional quality. As mentioned earlier, vegetable products are delivered to restaurants by a businessman’s own company, Agronom LLC, and, for example, fish is brought by plane. As for the unique cooking technologies, for example, the Novikov coffee house Krispy Kreme has a patented technology for the production of donuts and has its own production line located in the cafe. Novikov Group annually presents its culinary positions and individual master classes at the international festival of the best restaurants in the world - Taste.
Pan-Asian cuisine is represented by Mr. Lee, while the Italian "Cheese" prepares delicious fish and meat dishes.
Cooks restaurants
Among the chefs of the restaurant giant are many talented chefs who have worked all over the world. At the China Club, Andrey Likhachev is in charge of the kitchen, whose hits include wild seabass carpaccio, a dairy kid kid baked in a salt oven, a Peking duck, which is considered one of the most “correct” in Moscow. It is worth noting the Pan-Asian cuisine of Novikov Restaurant & Bar performed by the chef Sae Yamaoko, specially invited from London.
Restaurant "Cheese" is the famous chef
Mirko Dzago, thanks to which the institution is one of the most popular Italian places in Moscow. The Nedalny Vostok restaurant with an open kitchen is also noteworthy, where visitors are on a par with the cooks and observe the preparation of dishes. Unlike other well-known owners of such establishments, Arkady Novikov, whose restaurants are neither like others nor each other, takes care of the uniqueness of the interiors, cuisine, menus and concepts. Today, the businessman has over 50 successful projects on his account, and in the summer of 2012 the company celebrated its 20th anniversary.