bush food tour uluru

Bush Food Experience - Free

Learn about Australian and local native bush foods with a tasting of seasonal seeds, fruits and spices. Your knowledgeable guide will describe how for centuries the Indigenous people used the bush for food.

You'll find out about the uses of certain plants, fruits, grains and spices and about traditional food preparation methods. Enjoy a cooking demonstration of a recipe using some of the ancient native bush ingredients.

・Tour duration approx. 45 minutes. ・Daily 13:00 ・Location: Wintjiri Arts & Museum

* Introduction to Indigenous bush food

* Cooking demonstration

* Free activity runs daily

* Located at the Resort's Town Square lawn area

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Travel bucket list idea:

Bush tucker tours

Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, Northern Territory, Australia

Bucket List Experience

Credit Tourism Australia

Credit Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia

If ‘Bush Tucker’ makes you think of witchetty grubs and other horrors from the TV, a tour or workshop will provide a tasty introduction into the real native foods that characterise Australia’s outback dishes.

Unusual seeds, nuts and fruit – many increasingly sought out by chefs around the world because of their distinct flavours and health-giving qualities – feature in these tours, with plenty of opportunity to taste and try. Some include a cooking demonstration, showing how to use some of these ingredients once you get home.

Who to go with: tour operators

Bush food experience.

An introductory ‘bush tucker’ talk and cooking demonstration that’s held daily at 1pm at the Ayers Rock Resort’s Arkani Theatre. Sessions last around 45 minutes and can be booked online at the resort’s website. Entry is free.

Good for age: 8+

Duration: 1 hour

When: Daily

Freq: daily

Karrke Aboriginal Cultural Tours

Watarrka National Park, Northern Territory, Australia

These 1-hour tours near Kings Canyon with a traditional owner will introduce you to the native foods and bush medicines used by Aboriginal people for thousands of years. They’ll also introduce you to dot-painting and traditional medicine.

Adult price: 60

When to do it

Tours operate all year round.  The best time to do any kind of walking or outside tour is between May and September, when temperatures are usually between 20-30°C and there is little rain.

Destination guides

Destination guides including or relevant to this experience

Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park

Northern Territory, Australia

Destination guide

The place to come for the Australian outback experience – jaw-dropping geological formations (including world-famous Uluru), sleeping out in swag bags, sampling bush tucker, and connecting with authentic Aborginal culture.

The best Uluru dinner experiences

By Author Toni Broome

Posted on Published: July 17, 2021  - Last updated: August 23, 2021

Before arriving at Ayers Rock most people have a fair idea of how they will fill their days. What surprised me was the highlight that a special Uluru dinner can add to your experience. These are our top picks.

Uluru, or Ayers Rock as it was previously known, has an almost magnetic pull on visitors drawing both local and international travellers into the Red Centre. The rock has stood here for 300 million years, it’s an iconic sight, peaceful, spiritual and as I and stood beneath it looking up, it’s more than a little awe-inspiring.

Having our most recognised natural landmark on your bucket list as an Australian is almost universal and for international visitors, the ‘travel triangle’ of Sydney , Uluru and Far North Queensland is one of the most popular itineraries.

While the main reason for visiting is undoubtedly Uluru itself, the foodie experiences here could be considered a very close second when deciding to add it to your travel plans. If you’d wondered what you were going to eat in the middle of the desert our experience was more creative, full of flavour and delicious than I could have imagined.

The introduction to local delicacies and discovering ways of preparing and incorporating a new ingredient are among the great joys of travelling for me and Uluru definitely pushed my thinking on Australian indigenous foods.

In Australian food culture the focus is on an abundance of fresh and delicious ingredients combined in a fusion of cooking styles and flavour profiles that reflect the diverse cultural background of Australians. The food at Ayers Rock Resort incorporates the best of modern Australian cuisine while using indigenous bush tucker to create something that is truly delicious, unique and Australian.

Bush tucker in Australia

Indigenous Australians are one of the oldest human cultures on the planet.  Genetics has shown us that they arrived in Australia at least 40,000 years ago and over the generations have established not only what can and should be eaten from the local environment, but how to protect that land and food supply for later years and generations.

The diversity of indigenous foods came as quite a surprise. Vanessa Grace, Executive Chef at Ayers Rock Resort gave us our first introduction to the many special indigenous ingredients they regularly make use of in the menu. I found it interesting here that rather than use a strong ingredient almost as a garnish or overpowered it with other flavours as we’ve often experienced, the culinary team here spend time studying and experimenting with different preparations, figuring out what works together and tfrom that they create flavour profiles that draw out the unique attributes of each. It’s a gourmet food experience with a unique twist.

Sourcing the bush tucker ingredients is also given a lot of consideration, it’s done with a focus on supporting local communities, being sustainable over the long term while also being gentle on the environment. An unexpected addition to one dessert was green ants. As someone who heads rapidly in the other direction when I spot a green ant nest overhead, it took a bit to get my head around swallowing them. Anyone who has been bitten by one of the little blighters can tell you they sting and burn like the blazes when they nip you. These however were baked into a shard of sweet meringue and while I didn’t personally feel their slight citrus-like flavour justified the $700 a kilo price tag, they are perfectly safe to eat.

The price is a factor of scarcity and ensuring sustainability in supply. The ants are wild harvested in a traditional way, with a stick and personally, anyone who’s game to knock one of those nests out of a tree and hang around to collect it deserves all of that price and more.

The Sounds of Silence Experience

The Sounds of Silence experience is perhaps the best known of the Uluru dinner tours but the evening is about far more than just the food. You arrive out at the private dune location just before the sun begins to set. With live music playing, drinks and canapes are circulating and you can relax and enjoy the magic as the colour of the sky gradually changes and the sun sinks closer to the horizon.

Before it’s fully dark you head around the corner towards the seated area and notice, perhaps for the first time, that Uluru isn’t the only remarkable backdrop here. From the outdoor dining room you look across at Kata Tjuta, also known as The Olgas, in the distance. It truly is the most beautiful location.

Large round tables are set with white tablecloths and unless you are travelling with a big group you will be seated with other travellers as you dine. On our visit, the service was alternate plate drop but the normal format is buffet style where you go up to the assisted chef station and they’ll plate your choice. The menu changes each season but has a consistent focus on fresh, bush tucker inspired dishes.

A selection from the menu I enjoyed on our night here was warrigal green and mushroom rissoni, native thyme-scented lamb rack, saltbush potato pave, bush honey-roasted heirloom carrots, glazed greens and bush tomato jus. For dessert a whipped panna cotta, berry salad and rosella glass.

The whole setup is fabulous, it’s well away from the resort so everything is set up and managed on location and the staff are incredible, they really make the evening. It’s a large production, there’s a lot of guests but the staff manage to make everyone feel noticed.

Later as the meal progresses there is a presentation on the night sky which is really interesting and although I still struggle to make out the basic constellations that isn’t in any way a reflection on the presentation. I must admit that when I look up at the intensity of stars out there away from all the light pollution of the city or even the resort it always blows me away.

Something to think about when booking any of these dinner tour experiences is that you will be outdoors all evening and depending on the time of year it can be very cold at night in the desert so make sure you have enough layers with you to keep you warm. You are also walking in red sand, so flat shoes not heels are best and ideally ones that will wipe or brush clean.

Tali Wiru is a fine dining experience. Like the Sounds of Silence location, it is also well away from the resort in the seclusion of the desert. I couldn’t pick where we were in relation to the other venues, it’s really flat out here and I expected to be able to pick them out in the distance but it’s a massive space and there were no light or sound clues. It’s easy to see how you could get lost out here.

The site is prepared with a couple of terraced levels that are oriented with Uluru in front of you, around to the right and further into the distance is Kata Tjuta. As far as you can see in all directions, there is the simple beauty of nature. You start off on the lower level again with pre-dinner drinks and nibbles.

At the Sounds of Silence everything was on a big scale, at Tali Wiru it’s a more intimate experience. The attention is even more personalised and your glass doesn’t have a chance to be empty. The meal at Sounds of Silence was excellent but Tali Wiru is at another level, it’s a higher price point but while there are similarities in the structure of the evening they are quite different experiences.

This is the one to pick if you are after a romantic table for 2 or you are a small group sharing a meal to remember. While the image below shows tables set for our larger group of seven, they are configured based on the evenings bookings.

Again the menu changes for the new season but includes 4 courses plus canapes with wine pairing on point for each dish. For main I enjoyed waghu fillet, salt baked celeriac, paperbark smoked onion soubise, king brown mushroom and smoked bacon jus accompanied by a Yarra Valley Syrah. I was also unable to resist the textures of chocolate for dessert with quandong and Davidson plum and served with a Murray Valley Muscat.

During the course of the evening a didgeridoo is played, we learned about bush tucker ingredients and get to see and taste raw versions of what will be included later in the menu, we watch the sunset and soak up the serenity. There is an astronomy presentation, I still can’t pick the constellations until they are pointed out to me, but surely after this one, I will be able to. The storytelling is more detailed, the setting more intimate, a truly memorable evening.

Field of lights dinner

With only two nights in Uluru, we went on the pre-dawn field of lights experience tour which included breakfast up on the dune as the sun came up. There is however an alternative that may suit many visitors better where you can do the experience in reverse.

Arrive at the dune and enjoy the panoramic views as the sun go down over Uluru with a glass of chilled bubbles and canapes. There’s a three-course dinner, again featuring bush tucker ingredients and a presentation helping you navigate the milky way gleaming overhead. Then after enjoying the view from above, take a wander down through the field of lights at your own pace.

The Field of Lights dinner runs for around 4.5 hours including transfers from the front of the resort and time to wander at your own pace through the paths inside the light field. The attraction comprises 50,000 glass light orbs and was original designed by British artist Bruce Munro in 2016. It was intended to be a temporary art installation but after a couple of extensions it remains as popular as ever and I believe it has now been extended indefinitely.

Making bush tucker accessible

Ayers Rock Resort make an effort to ensure the bush tucker menu and experience is accessible to all visitors. While the dinner tour experiences aren’t in everyone’s budget there are elements included in the food and drinks menus at the venues across the resort and amongst their free daily activities on the agenda that are well worth looking into.

The Bush Food Experience gives guests the opportunity to see, taste and cook with the local ingredients. Another free activity well worth taking up is the Garden walk with an indigenous guide who will introduce you to the desert garden and how some of the plants grown there are used in both food and medicine.

As you shelter from the afternoon sun, a wild orange negroni in the hand contemplating the evening’s activities we hope you enjoy your dinners, sunsets and night skies in Uluru as much as we did whichever options you choose.

If you found this article useful please consider saving it to Pinterest. It makes it easy for you to find it again, it helps us, and it helps other travellers to find the information they are looking for.

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Brenda Petersen

Sunday 1st of January 2023

Thank you for the detailed descriptions of the Uluru fine dining experiences.

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Dining under the stars: sunsets, bush tucker and that view at Uluru

Most travel to Uluru to experience the magnificence of the region but a host of dining options is transforming it into a food destination

People don’t travel to Uluru for the food. That rock eclipses everything, with food almost an afterthought.

Distance, too, has traditionally been a problem. Sourcing a variety of food, plus hospitality staff, has long been a catering problem for this remote destination.

Yet, over time, a significant garden has been established, Indigenous staff have been trained and mentored, native ingredients have been embraced, and talent from overseas – attracted to this unique desert location – have transformed Uluru into a foodie destination.

Dining options that incorporate the incredible landscape have also evolved. In addition to Uluru itself, the Field of Light – the Bruce Munro-designed lightbulb landscape – has been a huge hit with visitors. It offers dining experiences that range from a cup of tea and damper to Tali Wiru, the four-course dune-top dinner that costs around $360 a head.

So while you’re likely to have a “life-changing” experience at Uluru , here are some of the top dining experiences to be enjoyed as well:

Dinner at Sounds of Silence

Celebrating its 25th year, the Sounds of Silence dinner has become a tourist attraction in its own right. Voyages, the hotel group that runs the al fresco dinners, say it is the first under-the-stars dining and touring experience in Australia – and perhaps the world. It’s certainly one of the most unique dining destinations.

Guests are collected from their hotel an hour before sundown and taken to an isolated spot in the desert dunes. Sparkling wine, beer and canapés are served before the hosts arrive at the top of a dune and lead diners down to a stunning outdoor dining room.

The backdrop to all this is Uluru and, as the sun sets, guests feast on a barbecue buffet of Australian bush tucker including barramundi, kangaroo, emu and crocodile, salads using Indigenous ingredients and desserts, complemented by Australian wine.

Between courses, when it gets dark, some of the world’s best stargazing begins. There’s no light pollution out here. A star guide, with a laser pointer, gives a tour of the southern night sky. The tour incorporates traditional Dreamtime stories, as well as western astronomy.

Dinner ends with tea, coffee or port. And, in winter, you can finish off the night around a fire and sipped mulled wine.

Diners not only enjoy an incredible view and food (with a big emphasis on native Australian ingredients) but also the company of people who have travelled from all over the world to be there. In 2016, I had a memorable dinner at Sounds of Silence with a table full of fascinating strangers, including a Texan personal injury attorney and a member of the rock band INXS.

For an even more high-end experience (think a la carte, not buffet), the Tali Wiru dinner serves up such delicacies including native thyme and garlic-grilled Darling Downs wagyu fillet, wattleseed rubbed kangaroo carpaccio and cognac to finish.

For more information, visit Sounds of Silence . From $210/person for Sounds of Silence dinner; from $360/person for Tali Wiru dinner.

Champagne at sunrise at the Field of Light

When artist Bruce Munro and his team planted 50,000 bulbs in a field near the base of Uluru, they had no idea how it would be received.

They need not have worried. Field of Light has been an enormous success, with the season extending three times, and now finishing at the end of December 2020. During the day it’s not much to look at, but last year I braved a 5am wake-up call to see the field as the sun rose.

It was magic. You enter the field in the dark, exploring the shapes, patterns and changing perspectives of the lights, before a sunrise reveals Uluru and the desert coming to life. Allow a minimum of 45 minutes to explore the field.

When the sun comes up, head to a viewing platform in the dunes to enjoy a champagne breakfast with pastries, tea and coffee and bacon and egg rolls.

For more information, visit Field of Light sunrise . From $89/person

Breakfast at Voyages Desert Awakenings tour

The early morning start of this tour is rewarded by one of the most memorable sights you’ll experience in your life: Uluru waking up.

From a dune with a good view of Uluru and Kata Tjuta, guests watch the sunrise, while a guide cooks a damper (golden syrup optional) and puts on a billy of tea.

There’s also coffee and bacon and egg rolls. You’ll need your energy. After the sun rises, the guide will then take you into the Uluru-Kata Tjuta national park and to the base of Uluru, where you will explore Mutitjulu waterhole, rock paintings and finish with a visit to the cultural centre where you can learn more about the traditional owners, the Anangu people.

For more information, visit Desert Awakenings tour . From $179/person

Sandwiches and cakes at Kulata Academy Cafe

Food can be pricey in Uluru, and one of the more affordable, casual options is Kulata Academy Cafe. They served standard cafe fare including sandwiches, muffins, cakes, coffee and milkshakes.

Run by Voyages (which currently has 38% Indigenous employment), it operates as a national Indigenous training academy where up to 100 young Indigenous Australians embark on a hospitality career each year.

There’s no cafe at Uluru itself, so order and pick up a packed lunch here to take away with you and enjoy the day at the rock.

For more information, visit Kulata Academy Cafe

• Brigid Delaney was a guest of Voyages .
• Northern Territory holidays
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Karrke Aboriginal Cultural Tour, Watarrka, Northern Territory © Archie Sartracom, Tourism Australia

Culinary experiences

Embark on guided bush tucker walks, experience sophisticated outback dining, try your hand at traditional hunting and more.

Bundyi Cultural Tours, Wagga Wagga, New South Wales © Joseph Mayers, Destination NSW

Bundyi Cultural Tours

The Riverina region of New South Wales holds millennia-old Aboriginal secrets, many of which are revealed on a Bundyi Cultural tour with local Wiradjuri man Mark Saddler. Experiences can last from a couple of hours to a full day – whichever one you choose, you’ll gain eye-opening insights into the Aboriginal communities who hail from the Wagga Wagga region, around a five-hour drive south-west of Sydney . Discover “scar trees” and ancient shell middens, and then glimpse sacred sites including Galore Hill Scenic Reserve and The Rock Nature Reserve – Kengal Aboriginal Place. This spiritual Dreaming and ceremonial location is believed to be where the Creator of all things, Baiame, left his dingoes before ascending to the sky. Your adventure will also give you a taste for bush tucker, whether in its raw form (try saltbush) or infused in Mark’s wattleseed damper; pick a longer tour and he’ll also prepare a delicious barbecue lunch. 

Firescreek Aboriginal Storytelling and Wine Tasting Experience, Holgate, New South Wales © Nathan Lowe

Firescreek Aboriginal Storytelling and Wine Tasting Experience

From Davidson plums and lilly pilly to mountain pepper and aspen, native produce is on the menu when you sign up for the Firescreek Aboriginal Storytelling and Wine Tasting Experience . Held on the lush grounds of Firescreek Botanical Winery in Holgate, 90 kilometres north of Sydney on the New South Wales Central Coast, the tour is led by Kevin ‘Gavi’ Duncan – a Darkinjung Elder with a passion for the environment, bush tucker and music. He will mesmerise you with tunes on his didgeridoo and reveal the stories behind the Indigenous artefacts he brings along. One is a coolamon (a traditional carrying vessel) stocked with seasonal native plants that have sustained and healed Aboriginal communities for millennia. Much of this flora is grown on the Firescreek estate and is infused into the distinctive wines made here by Nadia and Francis O’Connell. You’ll also meet them and sample their drops – perhaps chilli citrus or pomegranate and apple wines.  

Ngaran Ngaran Culture Awareness, Callala Bay, New South Wales © Archie Sartracom, Tourism Australia

Ngaran Ngaran Culture Awareness – Yuin Retreat

See some of the prettiest coastal scenery of New South Wales while gaining an insight into traditional culture, on a two-night Aboriginal experience with Ngaran Ngaran Culture Awareness . The two-day, two-night Yuin Retreat invites guests to come, walk and listen to a sacred Dreaming of Djirringanj country, heartland of the Yuin people. Experience ceremony and Dreaming stories that have been passed down to connect to Country with tour highlights including a traditional smoking ceremony, sunrise beach ceremony and traditional reflections yarning circle. Enjoy resort-style accommodation and Aboriginal cuisine, including local seafood with a range of native spices. This tour is based in Narooma and the neighbouring village of Tilba – about four-and-a-half hours’ drive south of Sydney. Transfers are available from Moruya, Sydney and Canberra airports. 

The Royal Botanic Garden Sydney, New South Wales © Tourism Australia

The Royal Botanic Garden Sydney – Aboriginal Bush Tucker Tour and Aboriginal Harbour Heritage Tour

Discover the rich culture of the Gadigal People and their deep connection to Country on an Aboriginal Bush Tucker Tour or Aboriginal Heritage Harbour Tour at the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney . Led by a First Nations Education Officer, the tours provide a unique opportunity to learn about native flora and fauna and their significance and use by Aboriginal Peoples. On the traditional land of the Gadigal people, one of twenty-nine Aboriginal communities of the Sydney region , the Gardens were and continue to be a significant cultural site for Aboriginal people. The one-hour Aboriginal tours provide a unique opportunity to learn about the uses of native trees and plants by Australia’s First Nations People to make bushfoods, medicine, tools and technology. 

Karrke Aboriginal Cultural Experience & Tours, Watarrka, Northern Territory © Archie Sartracom, Tourism Australia

Karrke Aboriginal Cultural Experience & Tours

The breathtaking Watarrka National Park (Kings Canyon), located in Australia’s Red Centre, provides the ultimate backdrop for the one-hour Aboriginal Cultural Tour by Karrke . Learn about dot painting, tools, weapons, bush tucker and medicinal plants used by the Central Australia desert people during this hands-on experience. Be introduced to native foods such as bush tomato, discover the significance of dot painting and see how mulga wood is shaped into tools such as spears, hunting clubs and boomerangs. There is also an opportunity to ask questions about Luritja and Pertame (Southern Arrernte) language and culture, and how people have thrived in this extreme but often bountiful landscape for tens of thousands of years.

Nitmiluk Tours, Nitmiluk National Park, Northern Territory © Peter Eve, Nitmiluk Tours

Nitmiluk Tours

Three hours south-east of Darwin lies a network of 13 towering gorges, through which snakes the Katherine River. This is  Nitmiluk National Park : home to the Jawoyn people and a riot of rugged beauty.  Nitmiluk Tours , a 100 per cent Aboriginal-owned company, lets you enjoy the best of Jawoyn country and culture via its smorgasbord of cruises, hikes, cave tours, swims, canoeing trips and scenic helicopter flights – not to mention its accommodation offerings, which include everything from a camping ground and cabins, through to the luxurious  Cicada Lodge . Be sure to walk to the first gorge lookout point for sunset or sunrise – or, if you find yourself closer to Katherine, join one of Nitmiluk Tours’ guided walks through the fascinating Cutta Cutta Caves. 

Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia, Ayers Rock Resort, Ulu r u-Kata Tju t a National Park, Northern Territory © Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia

Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia – Ayers Rock Resort

In the sand dunes beside Uluṟu rests Ayers Rock Resort , an accommodation and cultural experience collective comprising five different stays and more than 65 tours. The resort offers a restful base from which to explore the awe-inspiring Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa National Park and its famous monoliths (both 348-metre /1,141-foot high Ulu r u and the lofty domes of Kata Tju t a), as well as to connect you more fervently with the rich Aboriginal culture and landscape of the Red Centre. Take a camel ride into the sunset; meander through the lush greenery at Ulu r u’s base – viewing rock art that illustrates the site’s Creation stories as you walk; or dine under a canopy of stars at a Sounds of Silence dinner , an atmosphere-laden evening of food, culture and astronomy held amid sand dunes and silent surrounds. Experience fine dining on a private dune with Tali Wiru , or take a guided tour of the new Gallery of Central Australia (GoCA) which provides a platform for the Indigenous community to share their stories and their culture.

Adventure North Australia, Daintree Dreaming Tour, Cairns, Queensland © James Fisher, Tourism Australia

Adventure North Australia – Daintree Dreaming Tour

Adventure North Australia offers close to a dozen experiences departing from  Cairns  and  Cairns , from day trips to three-day journeys that take you to hard-to-access areas of Cape Tribulation. If you’ve ever wanted to know how to spear fish, catch a crab or fossick for bush tucker, here is your chance. After learning these techniques with guidance from Kubirri-Warra brothers Linc or Brandon Walker, you’ll cook up your haul and enjoy it with damper, a traditional bread. Go off-road in 4WDs to access some of the most important sights Tropical North Queensland has to offer, including excursions to far-flung corners of the state. The Walkers share their knowledge of the environment and traditional foods while following in the footsteps of their ancestors. Full-day and multi-day trips take you through the World Heritage-listed  Daintree Rainforest , to sacred Aboriginal beaches and ancient rock formations.

Aboriginal Rock Art Experience, Culture Connect, Queensland © Tourism and Events Queensland

Culture Connect

Far North Queensland is a spectacular amalgam of rainforest, reef, beach and outback, and Culture Connect , a tour company based in Cairns, offers visitors wonderful ways to connect with ancient Indigenous culture in the region. At Normanby Station, a vast cattle property outside Cooktown, Traditional Owners the Harrigan brothers introduce guests to their way of life as cattlemen and as guardians of extraordinary galleries of Aboriginal rock art. Back on the coast, another pair of brothers, Linc and Brandon Walker, invite visitors to join them on Cooya Beach, traditional Kuku Yalanji fishing grounds, to learn everything from how to throw a spear to search for plants used to create medicine.

Flames of the Forest, Port Douglas, Queensland © James Fisher, Tourism Australia

Flames of the Forest – Aboriginal Cultural Experience

Flames of the Forest’s Aboriginal Cultural Experience involves heading into the World Heritage-listed Wet Tropics rainforest, near Cairns , for a seven-dish banquet dinner served under a silk canopy illuminated by hand-made crystal chandeliers. Cultural experiences are interwoven with the dinner, as your Kuku Yalanji hosts share music, ceremony and storytelling, as well as inviting guests to spend some time sitting quietly, listening to the sounds of the rainforest at night. The food is modern Australian, locally sourced where possible, and features plenty of bush tucker ingredients accompanied by a selection of premium Australian wines.

Pamagirri Aboriginal Experience at Rainforestation Nature Park, Kuranda, Queensland © Phil Warring, Tourism and Events Queensland

Pamagirri Aboriginal Experience at Rainforestation Nature Park

Pamagirri Aboriginal Experience at Rainforestation Nature Park offers unique experiences in the beautiful World Heritage rainforest in Kuranda, just 30 minutes from Cairns . Watch dance performances by the Pamagirri Dancers, and take a Dreamtime Walk to learn and master the skills of boomerang and spear throwing. The Pamagirri Indigenous Guides come from different language groups across Queensland, but all share a strong connection to culture. Other experiences include the Pamagirri Mini-Mob and the Pamagirri Art Experience.

Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia, Mossman Gorge Centre, Queensland © Liam Brennan, Tourism and Events Queensland

Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia – Mossman Gorge Centre

Aboriginal-owned  Mossman Gorge Centre  is located 20 minutes’ drive north of Port Douglas in the World Heritage-listed Daintree Rainforest, where the Kuku Yalanji people have lived for centuries. It is also the starting point for their multi-award-winning signature experience, the Ngadiku Indigenous Guided Dreamtime Walks . Ngadiku means ‘stories and legends from long ago’ in local Kuku Yalanji language, and that’s exactly what you can expect on this memorable rainforest exploration. Learn about bush foods and bush medicine, pick up skills such as how to make ‘bush soap’, and experience a traditional smoking ceremony. The guided experience ends with bush tea and damper.

Walkabout Cultural Adventures, Port Douglas, Queensland © Tourism and Events Queensland

Walkabout Cultural Adventures

Discover where two World Heritage sites meet – the Wet Tropics Rainforest (home of World Heritage-listed Daintree ) and the Great Barrier Reef – and learn about the environment and wildlife from an Aboriginal perspective with Juan Walker or one of his knowledgeable team at Walkabout Cultural Adventures . On these deeply personal, intimate tours, guests will cruise mangroves scanning for mud crabs in tidal flats, forage for pipis in the shallows and learn how to throw a spear to catch their next meal. Take a guided rainforest walk at Mossman Gorge and visit several culturally significant locations around Port Douglas and the Daintree area. Half-day, full-day and private journeys are all available. 

wukalina Walk, Bay of Fires, Tasmania © Rob Burnett

wukalina Walk

This four-day/three-night fully accommodated Aboriginal owned and guided hiking and cultural experience takes place within the magnificent landscape of wukalina (Mt William National Park) and larapuna (Bay of Fires) in North-East lutruwita (Tasmania). Enjoy innovative world-class accommodation, traditional foods, and cultural interpretation as you walk palawa Country. wukalina Walk involves two main days of hiking and a day dedicated to sharing some of the cultural practices that connect First Nations peoples to their Ancestors, such as shell-stringing and clapstick making. You will be well fed and will sleep in comfort. First, at the purpose-built coastal standing camp called krakani lumi (resting place) in timber pavilions. The last night is spent in a beautifully renovated lightkeepers cottage.

Borrgoron Coast to Creek Tours, Dampier Peninsula, Western Australia © Dan Paris, Tourism Western Australia

Borrgoron Coast to Creek Tours

Bardi man Terry Hunter of Borrgoron Coast to Creek Tours enjoyed a unique bush childhood on Australia’s oldest continuously operating pearl farm – and you’ll learn all about this, and much more, on his captivating two-hour walking tour on Western Australia’s Dampier Peninsula, north of Broome . Blazing red dirt meets bone-hued sand and turquoise seas in this ruggedly beautiful corner of the Kimberley region, which is lapped by the world’s largest tropical tides. Discover how the Bardi Jawi people have lived to the rhythm of the tides for tens of thousands of years as you explore the dramatic landscape surrounding Cygnet Bay Pearl Farm. Terry’s Coast to Creek tour is highly interactive – you’ll forage for bush foods, learn how to find fresh water on salty tidal flats, seek out medicinal plants and hear extraordinary stories. Cooking oysters while they’re still stuck onto the rocks is a particular highlight – just one of many bush secrets the charismatic Custodian will share with you. For those seeking a slower pace, join Terry’s one-hour Culture and History tour where you’ll hear the stories that shaped the pearling industry.

Dale Tilbrook Experiences, Swan Valley, Western Australia © Tourism Australia

Dale Tilbrook Experiences

With Dale Tilbrook, a Wardandi Bibbulmun woman, enjoy a captivating dive into Aboriginal food, medicine, culture and art with an emphasis on bush tucker as a food and medicine. During Dale’s two signature bush food  experiences  enjoy tasting a huge range of bush tucker like quandongs, Kakadu plum, native finger limes, muntries, salty grapes, native spinach, saltbush and other herbs and spices. Bush herbs are added to kangaroo and emu to provide extra flavour. In the ‘Aboriginal Art and Dreamtime Stories’ experience, the history of Aboriginal art and dot painting is explored, and participants create their own piece to take home. Dale’s storytelling skills come to the fore when she delves into ‘Local History and Culture’. Meet in the Swan Valley at Maalinup Aboriginal Gallery or Dale can meet you at your location. Bush Tucker Talk and Tasting is also available at Mandoon Estate Winery .

Koomal Dreaming, Margaret River, Western Australia © Tourism Australia

Koomal Dreaming

Wadandi man and guide Josh Whiteland adds another dimension to Margaret River’s winemaking appeal by connecting you to its Noongar culture. Expect your skin to tingle as Josh plays the didgeridoo in Ngilgi Cave’s natural amphitheatre. He may share his knowledge of bush foods and medicine, show you how to make Aboriginal tools and fire, take you on a short walk on the Cape to Cape Track or to the top of Cape Naturaliste lighthouse for stunning ocean views. He could cook you a barbecue lunch where you can savour meats such as kangaroo seared by flames, with tangy native herbs in a tranquil bush setting. A day with Koomal Dreaming is unlike any other.

Ngurrangga Tours, Pilbara, Western Australia © Daniel Njegich

Ngurrangga Tours

Owner of Ngurrangga Tours , Clinton Walker, is a descendant of the Ngarluma and Yindjibarndi people, Traditional Owners of the West Pilbara in the north of Western Australia . And there are no better tour guides to this vast swathe of red dirt than Walker and his team, who hold deep knowledge of their country – ngurra – passed down from Elders and are passionate about bringing visitors to the Pilbara in general, but to the Burrup Peninsula in particular. The peninsula is virtually unknown yet is home to an estimated million Aboriginal rock carvings, some dating back as far as 40,000 years. Walker is also armed with lightning-quick humour: on Ngurrangga’s Instagram feed, he describes a goanna scurrying away from the sound of his boots as “fast food”.

Waringarri Aboriginal Arts Centre, Kununurra, Western Australia © Tourism Western Australia

Waringarri Aboriginal Arts & Tours

An artist dances in the afternoon light, telling a story with his movements through the red-dust landscape. The Aboriginal Elder has led a group to Thegoowiyeng, a hilltop lookout in Western Australia’s Kimberley region that’s also a Dreaming site and a vessel of cultural history. Afterwards, he’ll reveal surreal rock formations that tell stories of his childhood. This is just one of the immersive experiences offered by Waringarri Aboriginal Arts & Tours . More than 100 artists come to this community-owned art centre to create; some lead interactive tours of the centre, while others guide adventures into traditional lands, sharing the rich culture of the Miriwoong people. Guests experience a traditional welcome, taste Aboriginal bread and pick bush fruits. They learn the connection between land and identity, and see how it emerges in paintings, carvings, ceramics and textiles. They feel the heartbeat of the world’s oldest living culture, still pulsing after more than 60,000 years. 

Wula Gura Nyinda Eco Cultural Adventures, Coral Coast, Western Australia © James Fisher, Tourism Australia

Wula Gura Nyinda Eco Cultural Adventures

Learn about the deep spiritual connection that the local Nhanda and Malgana people have with Gutharraguda, the traditional Aboriginal name for Western Australia’s Shark Bay , which translates to “two waters”. Wula Gura Nyinda’s guides will teach you how to understand “the way Country talks to you” and give an insider’s view of local Aboriginal culture through animal tracking, tasting bush tucker and traditionally caught seafood, and identifying the uses of various medicine plants, as well as didgeridoo lessons and Dreamtime stories. A range of active adventures are on offer, from a tour of Little Lagoon on stand-up paddleboards (SUPs), 4WD bush tucker tours or kayak adventures and fully catered overnight or multi-night exclusive escapes on secluded beaches that provide an experience unlike anywhere on Earth. 

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Places to eat

From fine dining under the night sky to family-friendly budget options, Ayers Rock Resort at Yulara has plenty of places to eat.

Check out the resort’s range of restaurants and cafes below.

If you’re looking for a meal or a drink inside the national park, head to the community-owned Ininti Cafe at the Cultural Centre or join the AAT Kings BBQ dinner .

Sounds of Silence

This award-winning outdoor dining experience in Yulara treats you to a delectable buffet on a special viewing platform overlooking Ulu r u.

As the sun sets and the sky lights up with stars, you’ll enjoy bush tucker-inspired cuisine, sparkling wine, a didgeridoo performance and a special astronomy lesson from an expert star talker.

Sounds of Silence can cater for vegetarian and other dietary requirements with prior notice.

More information

Tali Wi r u

This seasonal gastronomic experience in Yulara combines stunning views of the park with a spectacular four-course dinner in the great outdoors.

Each dish uses the finest native ingredients and is paired with premium Australian wine.

Ilka r i Restaurant

Located at Sails in the Desert , Ilka r i offers a selection of superb international dishes.

Breakfast is presented buffet-style, while the three-course dinner menu includes seafood, roasts, pasta, Asian dishes and specialities from the grill. There’s even a chocolate fountain for dessert!

Open for breakfast and dinner. Reservations essential.

Wa l pa Lobby Bar

Laid-back and welcoming, the Wa l pa Lobby Bar at Sails in the Desert is the perfect spot for a coffee, casual lunch, dinner or evening drink. The menu features burgers, sandwiches, salads and more.

Open from sunrise until late.

Pira Pool Bar

Unwind with a poolside cocktail and a selection of share plates, light meals, burgers and desserts.

Located at Sails in the Desert . Open from mid-morning until sunset.

Manga t a Bistro & Bar

Situated at the Desert Gardens Hotel , the Manga t a Bistro & Bar boasts a wide range of light meals encapsulating the best Australian and international flavours.

Help yourself to a buffet breakfast or order a la carte burgers, sandwiches, pasta, salads and tapas for lunch and dinner

The contemporary indoor dining area opens onto an outdoor terrace where you can enjoy a drink or bite to eat amid the hotel’s lush gardens.

Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Reservations essential.

Arngu l i Grill & Restaurant

Overlooking the pool and grounds at the Desert Gardens Hotel , Arngu l i serves premium Australian fare in beautiful surrounds.

The menu includes a signature grill selection and features many native spices, grains and seeds. There is also a fantastic wine list.

Open for dinner only. Reservations essential.

The Bough House

Start the day with a classic buffet breakfast at the Bough House, located at the Outback Hotel & Lodge .

For dinner, the Bough House offers a succulent roast of the day accompanied by your choice of buffet options and dessert. Vegetarian options are available.

Open every day for breakfast and seasonally for dinner.

Outback BBQ and Bar

What else would you eat in the heart of Australia but a good old Aussie barbecue?

This popular eatery lets you choose your own cut of meat or fish and cook it yourself so it’s just the way you like it. You can also help yourself to side dishes from the salad and dessert bars.

Located at the Outback Hotel & Lodge . Open from 11.00 am until late.

Outback Kitchen

Not in the mood for anything fancy? This budget-friendly eatery at the Outback Hotel & Lodge has great burgers, pizzas, salads, sandwiches and wraps.

Open for lunch and dinner daily.

Ayers Wok Noodle Bar

This Asian restaurant in the town square whips up sizzling stir fries and noodle dishes.

Open every day for dinner and seasonally for lunch. Takeaway only

Gecko’s Cafe

Set on the town square in Yulara, Gecko’s keeps hungry travellers happy with terrific pizza, pasta, salads, burgers and more.

Open for lunch and dinner. Takeaway available.

Kulata Academy Cafe

Want to do good while eating well? This cafe on the town square helps trainees from Yulara’s National Indigenous Training Academy kickstart their career in the hospitality industry.

With sandwiches, salads, smoothies, coffee and a range of cakes and pastries, this is a fantastic place for a quick breakfast or leisurely lunch.

Open for breakfast and lunch. Takeaway available.

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A Guide to the Sounds of Silence dinner

If your idea of a great evening out is about the best dining experience in a setting that can only be described as stunning, you will want to check out Sounds of Silence. It is the kind of indulgence that will set standards for many an evening to follow. 

What is the Sounds of Silence Dinner?

Welcome to a magical evening of sights, sounds and taste in the surreal backdrop of an Ulu r u sunset. What is on offer ranges from an award-winning dining session to immersive activities that include taking in the mesmerising Field of Light.

It all begins with a comfortable drive, with pick up right from your hotel and onward transfer to Ulu r u. The real action unfolds as the sun sets and the horizon lights up the Ulu r u Kata Tju t a National Park to create the perfect backdrop for the music and the wine to flow. 

• Dinner Timing: 5pm to 10pm
• Dinner Price: From $234/adult, $117/child (10 years +)

As you wait for the spectacle to unravel before you, the wining and dining begins. Relish a three-course bush tucker menu that includes canapes, entrees, salads, desserts and the main course made from indigenous ingredients, even as the drinks flow from the best Aussie beer to chilled sparkling wine. 

Dune top canapes and sparkling wine

Ulu r u Dinner Under The Stars

If an absorbing star talk is your preference, get ready to take in an interesting session. Immerse yourself in the night sky, lit up with all those stars as a star talker unravels the mysteries that shimmer up there. Watch him decode the different constellations, planets and Zodiac signs as he points out to each of them using a laser pen.

Sounds of Silence with Field of Light (A Night at Field of Light)

As you savour the scrumptious spread and sit back with your choice of drinks, be it wine or beer, tea or coffee, this is one of the highlights of the evening. Before you, the lights from 50,000 coloured glass spheres illuminate the outback and it is enlightening to hear the local expert decode the glittering spectacle up above. 

And when it is time to step into the Field of Light, prepare to see up close the awe-inspiring art installation as you walk the pathways that lead you on among the rhythms and colours that spread before you. This is the kind of exhibition that can be witnessed only at Ulu r u and that gets as unique as the other local experiences like listening to a didgeridoo performance or feasting on a bush tucker spread. 

The Night at the Field of Light comes to a spectacular culmination as you stand atop the dunes to marvel at the brilliance of the illuminated sight below. 

This tour lasts approximately 4.5 hours and transfers are once again ensured. The cost of the package is $280/adult and $140/child.

A Night at Field of Light

Sounds of Silence FAQ

Where is the sound of silence dinner, what should i wear to the sounds of silence dinner uluru, what is "sounds of silence", does the sounds of silence dinner include the field of light.

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Can anyone personally recommend a walking food tour? I'm seeing several on Airbnb that look wonderful, but would love to hear any first hand accounts.

Hi Alisha, did you manage to do a food tour, can you recommend some good restaurants?

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Moscow Food Tour

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Description

Visiting Russia is like flashing back in old times – the times of Tsars and Tsarinas, Peter the Great, Lenin, Communists and Stalin.

On our Food Tour you’ll see all  the most historical areas of Moscow , and try  Russian pelmeni, Ukranian borsch, Georgian Khachapuri , as well traditional hospitality, coziest and amazingly beautiful interior.

All food is included!

We can add/drop some places to make it more/less historical, cultural or foodie.

We can include food markets and street food.

The price and menu for this tour varies depending on number of people, season and duration of the tour. All tours are always customized to make you happy. You are welcome to pay $20 per extra person in cash on the tour (starting from 2nd traveler).

The menu for our food tour is pre-set, but you can buy something extra in cafes, if you wish. 

Let the Fun begin!

Hotel pickup

We’ll start with historical downtown and walk around Kuznetsk Bridge, Petrovka street, Kamergersky lane, Stoleshnikov lane and Mokhovaya street. Expect architecture from different epochs, monuments to Russian leaders, Moscow Mayor’s house and Russian state library – the biggest in Europe.

Lunch at Korchma, Ukranian traditional restaurant

Korchma is famous for its great atmosphere, interior and food. Best Russian and Ukranian traditions in one place! Our lunch will include:

• Lean sorrel borsch
• Podolsky Salad,  incredibly juicy and crispy salad with cucumbers, tomatoes, radishes, cauliflower, carrots and greens;
• Zrazy with mushrooms and spinach
• Chicken soup with noodles
• Spring salad with cucumbers, radish, eggs, green onions, lettuce and mayonnaise
• Chicken schnitzel with stewed cabbage

Walk around Kitay Gorod, Bolshoi Theater, historical streets of Moscow.

2 options for snack: either Georgian or Siberian cuisine

1. Tbilisi snack in traditional Georgian restaurant (choose  one)

• Khachapuri with compote (Russian sweet drink from berries), or
• Porridge with persimmon, or
• Chirbuli – fried eggs with saffron, or
• Tkvila chakhokbila – fried eggs with tomatoes, or
• Borano – omelette with Imerulo cheese, or
• Curd rissoles with greens, or
• Home-style matsoni yogurt with honey or jam, or
• Penovani – cheese puff pastry, or
• Sinori – fried pastry rolls with tvorog (cottage cheese) filling, or
• Churchkhela – Georgian nuts dipped in thickened grape juice, or
• Pumpkin cake with orange juice, or
• Baklava, an Eastern sweet made form puff pastry, honey and walnuts, or
• Medovik – classic honey cake with smetana cream.

2. Snack in Altai restaurant, Siberian cuisine with old Russian traditions in historical Zamokvorechye area (choose one)

• Atlantic herring fillet, onion rings with roasted potatoes on the coals, fennel and amber vegetable butter, or
• Julienne chicken – sliced ​​chicken with fried mushrooms and onions cooked in cream with cheese crust, or
• Traditional Russian pancakes with the main ingredient of your choice – rustic sour cream, homemade jam, Altai honey, or
• 3 kinds of little pies: 1. with sauerkraut, carrot, salt, pepper, eggs; 2. with potatoes and mushrooms; 3. with potatoes, onions, mushrooms, mushrooms, salt, pepper, eggs, or
• Sausage-roll with beef, pork, onion, butter, salt, pepper, eggs, or
• Vinaigrette – classic Russian salad with boiled potatoes, carrots, beets, sauerkraut, cucumbers, beans flavored with fragrant herbs and butter, or
• Deer milk – two kinds of rep milk caramel crust.

Walk along Tverskaya, the main street of Moscow.

Walk around zamoskvorechye area, the most beautiful and ancient district of moscow., fun time in gorky park.

• The most popular place among locals, absolute must do when in Moscow. Sitting on a bench on fresh air in front of fountains and sipping traditional Russian tea, or having a yummy ice-cream, specialty of Gorky Park – whatever you prefer.
• Your guide will leave you in Gorky Park after the tour so that you take your time and discover the park, as it’s huge. From there you can head to Neskuchny Sad (Not boring Garden) and Sparrow Hills, as they are now part of Gorky Park.
• You can just as well take a night river cruise from Gorky Park or Sparrow Hills – it would be a perfect end of the day

What you get:

• + A friend in Moscow.
• + Private & customized Moscow tour.
• + An exciting pastime, not just boring history lessons.
• + An authentic experience of local life.
• + Flexibility during the walking tour: changes can be made at any time to suit individual preferences.
• + Amazing deals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner in the very best cafes & restaurants. Discounts on weekdays (Mon-Fri).
• + A photo session amongst spectacular Moscow scenery that can be treasured for a lifetime.
• + Good value for souvenirs, taxis, and hotels.
• + Expert advice on what to do, where to go, and how to make the most of your time in Moscow.

Write your review

Moscow Food Tour - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)

2018 Primetime Emmy & James Beard Award Winner

A History of Moscow in 13 Dishes

Jun 06 2018.

War, hunger, and some of the world’s great doomed social experiments all changed the way that Moscow eats.

Moscow, the European metropolis on Asia’s western flank, has always been a canvas for competing cultures. Its cuisine is no different. The ancient baselines of winter grains, root vegetables, and cabbage acquired scaffolding from both directions: eastern horsemen brought meat on sticks, western craftsmen brought pastries, and courtly French chefs came and drowned it all in cream.

History has a place on the plate here, as well: war, hunger, and some of the world’s great doomed social experiments from Serfdom to Communism to Bandit Capitalism all changed the way that Moscow eats. So in the spirit of all of those grand failures, we—a Russian chef and an American writer—will attempt here to reduce the towering history of this unknowable city to 13 dishes, with some Imperial past but a special emphasis on the more recent decades of culinary paroxysms as Moscow emerged from its Soviet slumber.

Olivier Salad

To visualize the long marriage between French and Russian cuisines, picture Peter the Great, on a diplomatic sojourn to Paris in 1717, a “ stranger to etiquette ”, meeting the 7-year-old boy-king Louis XV and lifting him in the air out of sheer elán. These things were simply not done, and yet, there they were. Peter’s joyful (and often envious) fascination with all things French took hold, among other places, in the kitchen. He brought French chefs back to his palaces, and then the lesser nobility followed suit, and when the first restaurants emerged in Moscow, they also spoke French. The Hermitage Restaurant, which was open from 1864 until history intervened in 1917, had a Francophone Belgian named Lucien Olivier as a chef, and he made a salad that was a perfectly unrestrained combination of French flavors and Russian ingredients: grouse! Veal tongue! Proto-mayonnaise! The ingredients now tend toward the pedestrian—boiled beef, dill pickles, various vegetables all bound with mayonnaise—and it has become a staple of Russian cuisine, especially on New Year’s. And yes, if you’ve ever seen the lonely Ensalada Rusa wilting behind the sneezeguard of a Spanish tapas bar, that is supposed to be a successor to the Olivier. But in Moscow, you should eat Matryoshka ’s version, which is not the original recipe but has some of that imperial richness: crayfish, quail, sturgeon caviar, and remoulade, all under a translucent aspic skirt, for 990₽ ($16).

There’s a type of expression around bottling things—bottled lightning, summer in a jar, etc.—that feels very apt here. What exactly is bottled with vareniye (jam)? A lot more than just fruit. These jams, which tend to be thinner than western varieties—with whole berries or fruit chunks in syrup—are bottled with a lot of Russian identity. There’s the Russian love of countryside. Deep dacha culture of summer cottages and personal orchards. Traditional naturopathy (raspberry vareniye taken with tea will fight fever). And above all, friendship is bottled here— vareniye made from the overabundance of fruit at one’s dacha is the most typical Russian gift, real sharing from real nature, even in the often-cynical heart of Europe’s largest megacity. Visitors who are short on lifelong friendships in Moscow can pick some up fine vareniye at any Lavka Lavka shop (we recommend the delicate young pine cone jam) or, curiously enough, at many Armenian stores.

Borodinsky Bread

The clinical-sounding title of Lev Auerman’s 1935 classic Tekhnologiya Khlebopecheniya ( Bread Baking Technology) doesn’t promise scintillation. But Auerman’s recipe for rye bread changed Russian bread forever. An older legend had it that the bread was baked dark for mourning by a woman widowed in the battle of Borodino in 1812, but the real birth of the bread came from Auerman’s recipes. A modification on sweet, malted Baltic breads, Auerman’s Borodinsky bread was 100% rye and used caraway or anise. The recipe has evolved a bit—today it is 80% rye and 20% wheat high extraction flour and leans more on coriander than caraway. But its flavor profile (sweet, chewy) as well as its characteristic L7 mold —a deep brick of bread—has made it easily identifiable as the traditional, ubiquitous, every-occasion bread of Moscow. You can buy it everywhere, but the Azbuka Vkusa high-end markets have a reliably good sliced version.

Buckwheat Grechka

Look closely at those Russians who have followed their money to live in London, or are vacationing in Cyprus or Antalya. See the slight melancholy that not even cappuccinos or sunshine can erase. It’s not because Russians are gloomy by nature; it’s probably because there is no real grechka outside of Russia and Ukraine, and that is devastating. Buckwheat grain and groats— grechka (or grecha in Saint Petersburg)—are deep in the culture. It’s a wartime memory: May 9 Victory Day celebrations feature military kitchens serving buckwheat like they did at the front. It’s a little slice of Russian history that lies somewhere between oatmeal and couscous. In Moscow, eat it at Dr. Zhivago with milk (180₽/US$2.90) or mushrooms (590₽/US$9.50), and rejoice.

Mimoza Salad

This fantastically expressive egg-and-canned-fish salad is a testament to Soviet ingenuity—it’s the ultimate puzzle to make a drastically limited food chain sparkle—and the universal human thrill of layering foods. The geological creation starts with a base layer of fish, then layers of grated cooked potato, mayonnaise, shredded cheese, grated carrots, sweet onion, diced egg whites and then capped with a brilliant yellow crumble of boiled egg yolk. It sits there on the plate, dazzling like the flowering mimosa tree it is named after. The taste? Well, it’s comfort food. Pick some up to go at any Karavaev Brothers location —the excellent deli chain sells it for 650₽ (US$10.40) a kilo.

It seems odd, almost impossible, to imagine a time in Russia before shashlik. It’s meat on a stick, something that all humans should have had on the menu since at least the time of Prometheus. But shashlik as we know it know—cubes of marinated meat cooked with vegetables over a mangal grill—didn’t really take off in Russia until the early 1900s. And due to a lack of suitable meat in much of the Soviet era (there were no meat cattle herds, only dairy), we’re starting the clock on shashlik in the late Soviet period. Despite its relatively recent (re)appearance, it is now the ubiquitous grill phenomenon of Russia, a welcome ritual of summer.

Much of Russian cuisine has borrowed heavily from Central Asia and further east over the millennia ( pelmeni anyone?), but plov is a striking example of an entire eastern dish making its way directly into Russian households. With the collapse of the Soviet Union and upheaval in many Central Asian Soviet Republics, mass economic migration to Moscow took off in the late 80s and early 90s. Central Asians today are the lifeblood of the Moscow labor force (part of up to 10-12 million Central Asian migrants living in Russia), and plov—rice steamed in stock with meat and vegetables—has jumped from the migrant communities to the homes of Muscovites everywhere. It has developed an unfortunate reputation for being a food that even finicky kids will eat, so there is a lot of harried domestic plov being made. But you can get a fully expressed Uzbek version at Danilovsky Market, online at plov.com , or at Food City—the surf-and-turf Tsukiji of Moscow.

The Big Mac

So many of the difficulties in American-Russian relations come down to one foundational attitude problem: The Americans (that’s half of this writing duo) were incredibly, distressingly smug through the entire fall of the Soviet Union. We mistook Soviet failure for an American victory, and that made all the difference. What does that have to do with a Big Mac? Well, when Russia’s first McDonald’s opened on Pushkinskaya in 1990 and 5000 people turned out to wait in line for the first taste of America, we back home in the states mistook it for culinary and commercial superiority. But there was something more complicated happening: Russians had been denied Western goods for so long and with such force that any outside identity was much-needed oxygen. And the long-term victory, as McDonald’s has continued to thrive in post-Soviet Russia, really belongs to the local franchise, which used higher-quality ingredients than in the U.S. and created a chain that was successful not because of its American identity but because of its Russian modifications. We wouldn’t recommend eating at any McDonald’s, especially not when there is Teremok for your fast-food needs, but having a soda in the original location is one way to sit and ponder the sin of hubris. And to use the free toilet and Wi-Fi.

The crown jewel of Levantine meat preparations, perhaps the single greatest street meat in the world: Shawarma. It first came to Moscow with a shawarma joint across from the Passazh mall, opened in the early 90s by Syrian cooks who dazzled masses with their sizzling, spinning, spiced meat emporium. Lines that stretched into the hundreds of people weren’t uncommon in those heady early days. And even though the original spot closed many years ago, Moscow shawarma only grew from there, mutating into the beast it is today, where you’re likely to find chicken, cabbage, mayo and a thin tomato sauce all combining to make the Levant a distant memory.

Fish Tartare aka Sashimi

One result of the aforementioned American smugness is that the West seemed surprised at how rapidly 1990s Russia assimilated some of the most hardcore capitalist traits, including but not limited to conspicuous consumerism. Moscow’s new elite was very, very good at that. What could be more conspicuous that recreating a restrained, exclusive seafood cuisine from Japan in the chaotic, landlocked megacity of Moscow? The very improbability of high-end sushi and sashimi in Moscow fueled much of its allure, and even though the trends have moved on from sushi, you can still tell the emotional attachment that the oligarch class has to those formative wastes of money. Sumosan restaurant started in Moscow back in 1997 and has since expanded to Monte Carlo and Londongrad , where they serve a dish that they call Fish Tartare, among others, in their restaurants and through their private jet catering service.

Blue Cheese roll

If the early elite sushi restaurants in Moscow were the frivolous edge of a food phenomenon, then Yakitoriya , a chain which started in the late 1990s, democratized it with affordable sushi rolls geared to local tastes. The Blue Cheese Roll, available now on their menu, seems like the apex (or nadir) of the Russianized roll: salmon, smoked eel, cucumber, cream cheese, Blue Cheese sauce. It might not be Jiro’s dream, but a true Russian middle class, one that can work honestly, earn meaningful salaries, and have a freaky sushi roll at the end of the week just like the rest of us—that’s something worthing dreaming for. Blue Cheese Roll, Yakitoriya, 417₽ (US$6.70)

If you’re American, have you ever wondered why tacos took over middle America but sopes remain virtually unknown? It’s curious how a country can assimilate some foods from their neighbors and but remain blissfully ignorant of others. That may explain what took place two years ago in Moscow, when the city seemingly discovered, as if for the first time, the bagged awesomeness that is khinkali , a soup dumpling from Russia’s southern neighbor Georgia. It became very trendy very quickly, and khinkali joints sprouted across Moscow like griby after a rain. But it wasn’t just that dish: what they were serving was a bit of the imagined southern, sybaritic lifestyle of the Caucasus, as promised in restaurant names like Est’ Khinkali Pit Vino ( Eat Khinkali Drink Wine ). Your best bets are at the stately Sakhli , around 100₽ (US$1.60) per soft, fulsome dumpling, or the more modernized Kafe Khinkalnaya on Neglinnaya Street , 100₽ (US$0.80) a dumpling.

We have named burrata—yes, that Italian alchemy of cheese and cream—the Perfect Dish of Moscow 2018, if only because it is the Dish of the Moment, ready to be enjoyed at the height of its faddishness now, and equally ready to be replaced when the city decides to move on. Read Anna Maslovskaya’s masterful breakdown of why—and where—to eat burrata in Moscow.

Top image: Olivier salad with chicken. Photo by: Kvector /Shutterstock

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The Perfect Dish: The Moscow Burrata

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