September in Moscow

It can be a little sad at the beginning of autumn because the carefree summer is over, even if the weather is lucky. But we know how to brighten up September in Moscow, as a new theater season begins, the concert schedule is filled with new events, and seasonal dishes appear on restaurant menus.

Tasting Seasonal Desserts

The crop is harvested, which means it’s time to prepare crumble and decorate with a ball of creamy ice cream, serve for dessert with tea. However, there is not enough time for baking in a big city. Then you can go in search of the perfect berry pie or please yourself with a fruit dessert, which is prepared only at this time of year. For example, seasonal flavors appear in Eclair Claire: apple with cinnamon and pecans and pear with caramel. French Madeleine cakes with blueberries and tarragon are being prepared in La Poste. Each place has its own version of autumn pastries. It can be very difficult to make a choice.

Catching Summer on Artists' Canvases

If the urban landscape outside your window is too monotonous, go to an art gallery to warm up. Endless sea horizons, sun-drenched meadows, still lifes with ripe fruit: summer looks different for everyone. The main thing is to know where to look for nostalgic episodes of the warm season. For example, in the Pushkin Museum there is an exhibition «After Impressionism», which presents bright works by Vincent van Gogh, Valentin Serov, Claude Monet, Ilya Repin. And the Tretyakovka opened an exhibition of Alexander Rubtsov’s works «Under the Sun of Carthage», dedicated to a trip to hot Tunisia.

Seeking New Knowledge

Knowledge Day can be organized on any day and at any age. It is always interesting to learn something new, the main thing is to choose a direction to your liking. One dreams of becoming a skipper on a yacht, another to join the complex mysterious graphics, and the third thinks about the perfect meringue at home around the clock. And before it gets colder and there is strength and will to go to classes, you can arrange a short excursus into a new discipline. And if regular study is not for you, take a look at the lecture hall of one of Moscow’s museums, where a new season is just beginning. The Moscow Museum of Modern Art is launching a course on fashion houses, and the Pushkin Museum is holding lectures on French culture.

Admiring Golden Autumn in the Park

Hundreds of photographers and models go out to scatter yellow leaves at the city’s museum reserves every autumn. But beautiful photos are not the only reason to visit the park. Cozy walkways, picturesque ponds and beautiful architecture have always inspired writers and artists. It is worth to follow their example and make sure that in the autumn noble estates are especially good. If you have already been to Kolomenskoye or Tsaritsyno, go for new impressions. For example, the wharf with Egyptian lions in Kuzminky is the best place for dates and a perfect photo location.

Master New Types of Transportation

Electric vessels started running along the Moscow River in the summer of 2023: an eco-friendly mode of transportation that can be faster than the subway. Surprisingly, the river route from the «Kievsky» pier to the «Heart of the Capital» operates all year round. Although it is certainly more interesting to see the city from the water in the autumn especially with audio excursions. For now you can ride past «Moscow-City» and count the bridges along the way, and soon electric boats will connect Avtozavodskaya and Pechatniki. If you have already mastered the new river transportation, go to Vorobyovy Gory: there is a great view of Luzhniki from the cabin of the cable car, Stalinist high-rise buildings and other sights of the capital.

Cheer Yourself Up with Music

The weather is not yet cold, but the leaves have already changed color and the citizens are dressed in trench coats, and people want to hold on to the warm season atmosphere a little longer. It’s too early for melancholic blues and festive «Nutcracker», but playful funk or cozy indie is the perfect bridge between summer and autumn. You can listen to tender and lyrical songs by Zhenya Lubich (ex-Nouvelle Vague) at Omega Rooftop, go to a concert by Sophie Okran at the Composers' Union club, or go to brunch at Esse, where every Saturday lunch is accompanied by the Ragtime Band. To each his own, the main thing is not to give in to melancholy, there will still be time for it in November.

Indulge Yourself with Festive Dinner for No Reason

Moscow restaurants offer a «harvest menu» in September: author’s dishes made from seasonal products. We know that delicious food can brighten up gray September days and help you survive any weather. If you’re not feeling sad, go for a light garden vegetable salad with feta and black currants at White Rabbit. If you feel that fall is coming in a huge cold wave, go to Pushkin for a set of «Fairy Tale», which includes reindeer tataki, quail with chanterelles and rose hips and coconut cream with strawberries. And if it seems that there is no life after summer, order a mysterious tasting set at Twins Garden and let your sadness wait.

Making Movie Dates in the Car

An evening movie is a great option for a date. In autumn, outdoor cinemas close, and people want to keep the romantic mood alive. It’s good that drive-ins have appeared in Moscow: special zones where you can watch movies on a huge screen without leaving your car. The auto-cinema «Cinema Park & Tri Vokzal. Depo» opened in 2023, where all year round they show rental novelties. Now you can see «Snowbird», «Marlowe» and «Righteous» there and even order food in your car from the foodmall’s corners. The screen is 15 meters high and 9 meters wide. The area with the best view can accommodate 40 cars, and up to 100 cars in total can be located in the movie parking lot.

Address: 23 Novoryazanskaya St. — entrance from Olkhovskaya St. and Olkhovsky Tupik St.
Opening hours: 21:00–03:00
Cost: free of charge, only parking fee is required — 50 ₽ / hour

Going to Theme Parties

Dressing up according to the dress code and having fun in the company of like-minded people is a great way to postpone autumn malaise indefinitely. For example, Cafe Publika organizes themed meetings on weekends: they celebrate Champagne Day, say goodbye to summer, or get inspired by French culture. Artspace organizes art parties with drinks and relaxed socializing. There’s even a radical way to celebrate the coming of autumn is to attend a Botanica training marathon at the new Supermetal creative space. Where you go is not so important, the main thing is the mood and the right company.

Photo: Alex Zarubi — Unsplash; Бутик-пекарня La Poste; архив редакции russpass.ru; ГБУК г. Москвы «Московский музей современного искусства»; портал Мэра и Правительства Москвы; Джаз Клуб «Эссе»; ресторан White Rabbit; Стройкомплекс Москвы; кафе Публика