40th anniversary of the legendary restaurant "Russian Samovar"

40th anniversary of the legendary restaurant "Russian Samovar"
There are places that are part of the cultural history of New York and our immigration, where music, photographs, familiar faces, and interior details seem to transport us back in time and remind us of people we once crossed paths with. For me, that's the "Russian Samovar." So, I accepted Zeyna Gagne's invitation to Theatre Appreciation Night with particular pleasure, but I also called Vlada von Schatz and heard, "Of course, come, we're waiting."
Once again, I found myself at the Russian Samovar, where its founder, Roman Kaplan, had personally invited me many times. Sadly, Roman passed away in 2021. But his legacy lives on.
At the entrance to the Russian Samovar restaurant, after the war began, a Ukrainian flag hangs, and every time I step over the threshold, I feel something special.
Here, on the second floor, I met talented people. They were the intelligentsia of my time—people for whom literature, music, theater, and art were not just entertainment, but a part of life.
That evening, I was once again surrounded by a familiar atmosphere. Floral scarves lay on the tables. I looked at them and remembered Kharkiv. About thirty-five years ago, when I was planning a trip to America, I bought similar scarves. What a surprising detail—to see almost the same pattern in the center of New York after so many years!
A collection of samovars, photographs of Roman Kaplan, Mikhail Baryshnikov, and Joseph Brodsky, paintings, a red pennant, the soft light of bright lampshades, a white piano, live music…
But despite much remaining the same, time marches on inexorably, and with it, an entire era is passing. The evening was also special because guests gathered to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the "Russian Samovar."
Vlada von Schatz warmly welcomed those who arrived. "We've had the honor of hosting guests for forty years. There have been difficult times—the pandemic, the fire, and much more. But we don't own the restaurant; the restaurant owns us," Vlada said. These words, perhaps, sum up the Samovar phenomenon.
A real restaurant becomes part of history when people connect their memories, meetings, love, friendship, and creativity with it.
"I promised Roman: as long as I'm alive, Samovar will live!" Vlada von Schatz confidently declared. And that promise is being kept. Roman Kaplan was a highly educated man—an American and Soviet literary scholar, translator, and art historian, born in 1937 in Leningrad. The "Russian Samovar" he founded became much more than a restaurant. It became a cultural center. Famous actors, writers, musicians, and politicians frequented it. Nikita Mikhalkov, Vladimir Zhirinovsky, and many other famous people could be found here.
Musical and piano evenings were held here, improvisations, interesting conversations, and new acquaintances were born.
And it seems the spirit of artistic freedom still lives within these walls. That evening, the Samovar stage once again brought together artists. Zeyna Gagne, the meeting's organizer, is a businesswoman for whom theater plays an important role. In 2023, I saw her in the play "The Baudelaire Passion." Her performance was so poignant that it inspired me to rediscover Baudelaire and reread the original. Zeyna has a knack for finding talented artists from different countries and opening the American stage for them, and audiences, through her, discover new names.
In an interview, renowned lawyer and art and literature connoisseur Tatyana Segal said: "The performers brought the works of Anton Chekhov and Anna Akhmatova to life with remarkable depth and emotion. The evening also included poetry by Sergei Yesenin, reflecting on the aftermath of World War I and reminding us how the themes of war, loss, hope, and the human spirit continue to resonate more than a century later, amid the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. Several of the performers revealed that they left Russia in 2022 after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began. Their personal experiences added a deep layer of authenticity and emotion to the performances, highlighting the power of literature and theater to unite people of different generations and historical events."
It was an unforgettable evening dedicated to art, culture, love, and the resilience of the human spirit, where actors, directors, screenwriters, and musicians treated guests to a true celebration of the living word.
Gala Orlovskaya read an excerpt from Anton Chekhov's "Long Tongue." Gera Sandler, a performer and director, sang along to the guitar and told a remarkable story about his love for Joseph Brodsky's poetry. Even while serving in the Israeli army, he dreamed of a Brodsky book and, having received it, kept it under his bulletproof vest. This is the true love of a creative person for literature! Tanya Rodos read Joseph Brodsky's poems about a ginger cat and others.
That evening, the difference between a reading and real theater was clearly visible. Professional actors didn't just mouth words. They made them come alive. Intonation, pause, gaze, movement, voice—everything was transformed into emotion. This is how theater is born.
That evening, the "Russian Samovar" brought together people who truly could be described as true intellectuals, united by a love of theater, literature, and art.
Among the guests were philanthropist Mikhail Petrov, thanks to whom many events in our community took place, and many other intelligent, creative people for whom New York's cultural life is not just empty words. Because culture isn't just about big stages and famous theaters. Sometimes it lives in a small restaurant hall, at a white piano, in a poem read by an actor, in a song accompanied by a guitar, in a conversation between two people who met by chance.
Much has changed today, including New York and life itself. That evening, I left the Russian Samovar feeling like I'd returned for a few hours to the time when, on weekends after work, we'd rush to hang out at a restaurant and listen to music. And now we're thinking about how to lose weight and cooking at home.
Interesting fact: it turns out that Vlada von Schatz wrote an interesting book about her life, and even a film was made with her participation, nominated for an Oscar.
And perhaps this is the true miracle of art: it allows time to stand still, at least for one evening, and to reminisce about youth in the "Russian Samovar," which is open and awaits you.
Marina Lagunova