Conversation (Bolshaya Nikitskaya)

Primarily a neighbourhood café serving coffee, fruit juice, cakes, ice cream, sandwiches and pasta, Conversation also has a small but satisfying bottle selection of mainly English beers with a couple of Belgians (Delirium Tremens and Gulden Draak) too. It has a nice relaxed atmosphere and very friendly service. There are bare brick walls painted with a radio motif (the café is just opposite the ITAR TASS (ИТАР-ТАСС) news agency) and there are copies of the Moscow Times, an English language newspaper, available for customers to read. Most striking are the Smeg fridges - two union jacks and a denim one - which are filled with delicious looking homemade cakes. Worth a visit if you’re in the area and looking for a hearty sandwich and a beer, although you won’t find any Russian brews here. (Visited 3 September 2013).