Samovar Cafe

A Taste of Russia in Rural Alaska | Eater

"Tucked in Nikolaevsk on Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula, this tiny, overstuffed cafe is more an immersive cultural show than a conventional restaurant: every surface except a U-shaped bar and its six seats is piled with Soviet-era memorabilia and Slavic tchotchkes, and the hostess, Nina Fefelov, presides with a big personality—pushing piroshkis, pouring “real Russian” tea, serving plates of pelmeni and cream puffs, and eventually dressing guests in old‑world regalia for photos (a staged souvenir experience that often costs about $20). Reviewers split between delight and annoyance: some call it a tourist trap with opaque pricing and a pushy sales approach, while others value the rare, intimate glimpse it provides into the local Russian Old Believer community, its crafts, clothing, language, and customs. The food itself is simple, traditional fare (borscht, pelmeni, piroshkis, desserts and tea—much of which the owner sources from Costco), but the draw has always been the cultural encounter and storytelling by a founding Old Believer family whose roots in Nikolaevsk date to 1969. Since the pandemic, visits have dwindled, the owner—now in her seventies and coping with family health issues—has largely closed the dining experience, and plans to operate instead as a takeaway window on the balcony, preserving the food but likely ending the on-site “Russian experience.”" - Bailey Berg