Cuban Restaurant Is A Nod To Soviet Era

In this Aug 20, 2014 photo, reproductions of Soviet propaganda posters hang on the wall at the new Nazdarovie restaurant as a waitresses prepares a table for the pre-launch rehearsal in Havana, Cuba. One poster in particular stands out amid the ongoing crisis between Moscow and Kiev. Created under Nikita Khrushchev to commemorate the 300th anniversary of the reunification of Russia and Ukraine, it shows two runners representing the then-Soviet republics simultaneously breaking the tape at a finish line. "To the indestructible friendship and to new successes in sports," the slogan reads. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

In this Aug 20, 2014, photo, reproductions of Soviet propaganda posters hang at the Nazdarovie restaurant during its pre-launch dress rehearsal in Havana, Cuba. Theres no rice, beans or fried plantains at Havanas newest private restaurant. The waiters speak Russian, and patrons are expected to do so too if they want to get served. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

Cooked vegetables served as an appetizer are presented in a bowl during the opening of the new retro-Soviet restaurant Nazdarovie in Havana, Cuba, Friday, Aug. 22, 2014. Nazdarovie, which is named for the popular Russian toast and opened Friday, is a nod to nostalgia for the island's Soviet ties during the Cold War, a time when Moscow was Havana's main source of trade and aid and hundreds of thousands of Cubans traveled to the Soviet bloc as diplomats, artists and students. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

In this Aug 20, 2014, photo, a guest walks past near a reproduction of a Soviet propaganda poster at the entrance to the Nazdarovie restaurant during its pre-launch dress rehearsal in Havana, Cuba. Nazdarovie, named for the popular Russian toast, serves Slavic fare like bowls of blood-red borscht and stuffed Ukrainian varenyky dumplings, hand-rolled in the back by "babushkas" who were born in the former Soviet Union but have long called Cuba home. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

In this Aug 20, 2014 photo, Gregory Biniowsky, left, and business partner Yociel Marrero pose with their new restaurant's sign on the terrace of their new eatery, Nazdarovie, that overlooks the ocean in Havana, Cuba. "The idea with Nazdarovie is really to celebrate a unique social and cultural link that existed and to a certain degree still exists today between Cuba of 2014 and what was once the Soviet Union," said Biniowsky, a lawyer and consultant who has lived in Havana for the last two decades. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

In this Aug 20, 2014, photo, Matryoshka dolls and bottles of vodka sit on display at the Nazdarovie restaurant during its pre-launch in Havana, Cuba. Occupying the third story of a historic building on the seafront Malecon boulevard, Nazdarovie is an homage to the old country. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

In this Aug 20, 2014 photo, guests eat at the new restaurant Nazdarovie during its pre-launch dress rehearsal in Havana, Cuba. Nazdarovie, which is named for the popular Russian toast and opened Friday, is a nod to nostalgia for the island's Soviet ties during the Cold War, a time when Moscow was Havana's main source of trade and aid and hundreds of thousands of Cubans traveled to the Eastern Bloc as diplomats and students. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

In this Aug 20, 2014 photo, a waitress works during the pre-launch rehearsal at the new restaurant Nazdarovie where the reproduction of Soviet propaganda poster hangs over the bar area in Havana, Cuba. The new retro-Soviet restaurant serves minty mojitos, but they come mixed with vodka instead of the traditional white rum. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)