Maria Santa

A chicchetteria and Italian restaurant with the slogan "la dolce vita for everyone."

"Maria Santa" is the most anticipated cafe from the team led by Tatiana Melnikova, the creator of the concepts "Khachapuri," "Odesa-mama," "Tagine," and "Pig and Roses." The mother of three children constantly cooks her children's favorite pasta with shrimp and tomatoes or risotto with mushrooms, speaks fluent Italian, and simply loves Florence, Turin, Sardinia, and especially Naples. The concept for the new cafe has been in her head for the past three years: to offer cacio e pepe with pecorino shavings, just like in Rome; to have pizza crusts that are crispy, like those on the Neapolitan coast; or to be able to stop by for a few cicchetti, like in Venice, with a glass of chilled white wine. And then, of course, to have another one – with shrimp, mortadella, and artichoke. And generally, to just stay.

Two years ago, the entire team was in Rome and Naples together with the chef and the art team. We bravely endured a packed schedule of breakfasts, lunches, and dinners, with scoops of gelato in between, a couple of pizzas, and definitely an aperol spritz in the middle of a hot day somewhere in Trastevere. And if doubts crept into our minds about another dinner, a cheerful Italian waiter would instantly bring a table with a snow-white tablecloth right onto the square, clinking plates and glasses, and we would only have to choose: white or red? Prosecco, please.

Italy is like a mild drug, and Italian food creates a sweet addiction. It's impossible to break away from it. We are obsessed with pizza with tempting circles of spicy pepperoni, although some of us only recognize Margherita! The cheese is made by the Lebedev-Kurdo family at "Berezhkovskaya Cheese Factory," and the guys learned this craft in Italy. We are crazy about their delicate burrata with sweet, homemade sun-dried tomatoes. We constantly find ourselves twirling spaghetti on our forks, dropping droplets of tomato sauce like tears. Our eyes dart between the four types of tiramisu: strawberry, banana, pistachio, or the simplest one – which one to choose? We even argued once on the Piazza di Spagna – back then, you could not only sit on the beloved staircase, but also quietly eat the most delicious dessert in the world with a spoon. And what about the pork loin in a parmesan crust? Or the alluring creamy risotto with a slightly vulgar pink tartare of shrimp? Speaking of tartare… there's also salmon tartare and beef tartare with fennel. My heart is pounding with these thoughts. It's getting hot. This is the perfect time for an Aperol spritz. Or maybe a spritz with Campari? Or a Bellini, Rossini, or the signature Pallini? No, just a bottle of white wine. And then Vin Santo with cantucci. Oh. That's how much we missed Rome, Venice, Tuscany, and Piedmont, and that's why we opened a simple Italian cafe called "Maria Santa." Maria Santa! That's what Italians say when they are surprised, happy, amazed, experiencing mixed emotions, or simply blown away and don't know what to say. Our chef, Zhenya Tsvetkov, cooks better than Sicilian grandmothers. He makes the most delicious everything.

Crisis, virus, minus? We haven't heard of it. Our team knows how to enjoy "la dolce vita"! And our cafe will give you a new pizza to think about. Or maybe it's not a pizza? What was that saying? It doesn't matter.

The Telegram channel and its team.