Mayak

Bohemian cafe-bar popular with the Moscow intelligentsia
Word to the wise: The entrance to the toilets are hidden in what looks like a cupboard to the left of the bar.

Noteworthy for: Mayak is owned by a trio of respected Russian actors, who wanted to create a bar for their theatrical friends to hang out in.
Situated on top of the avant-garde Mayakovsky theatre, Mayak is the second home of Moscow’s intellectual set. Don’t be surprised to find yourself surrounded by chain smoking writers, journalists, artists and theatre actors philosophising into the night over their beers.

Huge antique cupboards and sideboards cluttered with colorful bric-a-brac add to the bar’s bohemian vibe, which is especially lively at weekends when the musician friends of Mayak’s owners drop by for impromptu concerts.