Support The Moscow Times!

Putin-Backed Fast-Food Chain Gets a New Name

According to Nikita Mikhalkov, the chain will be launched in the Moscow and Kaluga regions in about a year and a half, TASS reported.

A Russian patriotic fast-food chain planned by two well-known movie directors and backed by President Vladimir Putin has changed its name to "Yedim kak Doma" ("We're Eating Like at Home") instead of "Yedim Doma!" ("We're Eating at Home!") in an abrupt about-face after over a month of intense media attention.

One of the directors, the award-winning Nikita Mikhalkov, made the announcement in an interview published Thursday by news agency TASS. He did not say why the name for the restaurant had been changed.

The project is designed as a patriotic initiative, serving food made from domestic products. Putin, when told of the idea earlier, "responded enthusiastically," Mikhalkov's partner and brother, Andrei Konchalovsky told The Moscow Times earlier.

According to Mikhalkov, the chain will be launched in the Moscow and Kaluga regions in about a year and a half, TASS reported.

Mikhalkov also added that "there is another idea, but it is too early to talk about it now," the news agency quoted the director as saying.

The brand "Yedim Doma" under which it was initially planned to operate the fast-food chain, belongs to Konchalovsky's wife Yulia Vysotskaya, who presents a television cooking show under the same name.

In April, newspaper Kommersant reported that Konchalovsky and Mikhalkov requested in a letter to  Putin an investment of 982 million rubles ($17 million) to create a fast-food chain that will "promote import substitution and create an alternative to Western fast-food chains." 

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter

Our weekly newsletter contains a hand-picked selection of news, features, analysiss and more from The Moscow Times. You will receive it in your mailbox every Friday. Never miss the latest news from Russia. Preview
Subscribers agree to the Privacy Policy

A Message from The Moscow Times:

Dear readers,

We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."

These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.

By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.

Once
Monthly
Annual
Continue
paiment methods
Not ready to support today?
Remind me later.

Read more