Somehow the hardboard cut-out of a jolly fat chef by the steps down to the popular Old City (Kohna Shahar) restaurant implies a certain 'Little Chef' quality, which couldn't do the work of multi-award winning chef Shahhussein Kerimov a greater injustice. The two dining rooms are pleasantly kitted out in kilims and pieces of traditional Azeri art and crafts, the light perhaps a little over-bright, but the atmosphere works. It's when the food comes out, however, that your juices really start to flow. Lavangi are little bite-sized rolls of sturgeon or chicken filled with a paste of walnuts and cherry plums, the plovs (pilaf) are to die for. There really is nothing on the menu that doesn't sing and, with friendly waiters eager to practice their variable English, you'll manage to make the best of a difficult to penetrate menu.
