Howard Loves Craft Moscow

Once my doctor friend invited me to have a beer in a new cool "hipster" pub. The rule: always trust doctors, they know things best.

This small pub is in the very heart of the modern Art Moscow, at the Balchug island, inside one of the buildings of the former Red October chocolate factory, now converted to a club/dance/lecture/photo/exhibitions space crowded with all the art people. The atmosphere in Howard Loves Craft reminds me of an old English pub in London, shaken (but not stirred) with modern hipster culture. Friends chatting, crowds cheering, someone playing guitar -- and the beer. The beer is the coolest feature of this pub: they have more than 30 (all-local) craft beers on tap, and even more bottled.

The kitchen is pretty pub-style: a decent choice of burgers, salads, cured meat, cheese (try the factory-packed Dry Cheese Snacks!) and sandwiches. They have a good selection of tabletop games, from Monopoly to Mahjong and even Warhammer, and you can always join some group playing. The good thing about the nerdy and younger public is that they usually speak decent English (same with the staff).