February 10th, 2006 | The lowdown by Josh Gowin

How to Survive Those Long, Cold, Moscow Nights.

When I met my friends one snowy Friday evening at Ploshad Revolutstiy and they told me we were going to FAQ, I thought my hearing must surely be failing me.

No, they reassured me, FAQ (say it as a word, not an acronym) could provide all the entertainment we’d need for one night. I soon realized what they meant by FAQ: it’s a bar, not some sort of strange Russian tradition when the bitter grips of winter make everyone a bit cold and lonely. It’s just off of Tverskaya Boulevard, which is the large thoroughfare connecting Red Square to Pushkinskaya and beyond, a veritable artery of social and commercial life in Moscow.

You can find it by leaving Red Square and heading up Tverskaya on the left hand side of the street, and then taking a left when you see McDonalds. It’s another 2 blocks, and you’ll find it on the right hand side of the road. You descend a set of stairs and open the door, and you’re in. During my first visit to this bastion of drink and fraternizing, a ska-ish band had the stage, and they entertained the patrons with upbeat horn melodies and devilish snare beats.

Once the band blew their last note, the crowd thinned, but the atmosphere hardly diminished. I wandered beyond the main room and into the vibrant lounge rooms via the staircase with the low ceiling. I passed through a narrow passage between chairs, tables, and intensely chatting faces, and entered another smoky chamber complete with couches, lofts, and drinks. It had a been a long day at work, and I was operating on minimal sleep and a few libations at this point, which made the comfort of the couch a dagger in my side if I intended to stay awake into the wee hours of the morning. Fortunately, the menu provided some assistance in my fight against the weight of my eyelids. They have a complete menu at all hours of the day, including coffee, many varieties of food, and a special lemon and sparkling water that contorts your face into such a bitter expression that you can’t possibly close your eyes.

At one point, I heard the rhythmic rumble of a djimbe from some corner of the dimness. Apparently, the bar occasionally lets the late-crowd provide some of their own entertainment, and the instrument was passed around the room from hand to hand as each willing drummer delighted in the novelty.

The vibe in the room, stemming from the quality of fellow companions and strangers, is superb. Most people are surprisingly friendly, and beyond that, interested in life and interesting in spirit. A great energy pours through the air, riding the wisps of smoke and draughts of cool from the door. The atmosphere is what vaults this venue from the gray march of mediocre waterholes into the realm of a truly worthwhile location to make a Friday night a wonderful finish to a week.