food technology gcse coursework

GCSE Food Technology

Welcome to the GCSE Food Technology section at project GSCE

GCSE Food Technology revision notes

The following revision notes are available for GCSE Food Technology

Ingredients

Food Preparation

Safety & Hygiene

Specific Foods

Vegetarian Foods

Gcse food technology revision guides.

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GCSE Food Preparation and Nutrition

• Specification
• Teaching resources
• Assessment resources
• Introduction
• Specification at a glance
• 3.1 Food preparation skills
• 3.2 Food, nutrition and health
• 3.3 Food science
• 3.4 Food safety
• 3.5 Food choice
• 3.6 Food provenance
• 3.7 Food preparation and cooking techniques

Scheme of assessment

• Non-exam assessment administration
• General administration

Find past papers and mark schemes, and specimen papers for new courses, on our website at aqa.org.uk/pastpapers

This specification is designed to be taken over two years.

This is a linear qualification. In order to achieve the award, students must complete all assessments at the end of the course and in the same series.

GCSE exams and certification for this specification are available for the first time in May/June 2018 and then every May/June for the life of the specification.

All materials are available in English only.

Our GCSE exams in Food Preparation and Nutrition include questions that allow students to demonstrate their ability to:

• recall information
• draw together information from different areas of the specification
• apply their knowledge and understanding in practical and theoretical contexts.

Aims and learning outcomes

Courses based on this specification should enable students to:

• demonstrate effective and safe cooking skills by planning, preparing and cooking using a variety of food commodities, cooking techniques and equipment
• develop knowledge and understanding of the functional properties and chemical processes as well as the nutritional content of food and drinks
• understand the relationship between diet, nutrition and health, including the physiological and psychological effects of poor diet and health
• understand the economic, environmental, ethical, and socio-cultural influences on food availability, production processes, and diet and health choices
• demonstrate knowledge and understanding of functional and nutritional properties, sensory qualities and microbiological food safety considerations when preparing, processing, storing, cooking and serving food
• understand and explore a range of ingredients and processes from different culinary traditions (traditional British and international), to inspire new ideas or modify existing recipes.

Assessment objectives

Assessment objectives (AOs) are set by Ofqual and are the same across all GCSE Food Preparation and Nutrition specifications and all exam boards.

The exam and non-exam assessment (NEA) will measure how students have achieved the following assessment objectives.

• AO1: Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of nutrition, food, cooking and preparation.
• AO2: Apply knowledge and understanding of nutrition, food, cooking and preparation.
• AO3: Plan, prepare, cook and present dishes, combining appropriate techniques.
• AO4: Analyse and evaluate different aspects of nutrition, food, cooking and preparation including food made by themselves and others.

Assessment objective weightings for GCSE Food Preparation and Nutrition

Non-exam assessment, setting the tasks.

We will set the task for each of the non-examination assessments.

For the Food investigation (Task 1), one task is to be selected from the three tasks set by AQA issued on 1 September of the academic year in which it is to be submitted.

For the Food preparation assessment, (Task 2), one task is to be selected from the three tasks set by AQA issued on 1 November of the academic year in which it is to be submitted.

New tasks will be issued for each new cohort of students. The tasks will be made available via our secure website, eAQA.

It is the responsibility of the teacher to make sure that the correct tasks are used when preparing their students.

Teachers will be able to access the assessments any time after the release date, and schedule the assessment at a time appropriate to the school or college.

Taking the tasks

In order for students to be fully prepared for the NEA, the school or college must ensure that they have delivered the content needed for students to be able to access all of the marks available for the assessments.

Students must be provided with the opportunity to establish investigative skills, and be guided towards appropriate research areas in preparation for Task 1. For Task 2, students must possess an understanding of how and when all of the skills and techniques in Food preparation skills can be applied and combined to achieve specific outcomes.

We recommend 10 assessment hours for Task 1. For Task 2 we recommend a maximum of 20 hours which must include a single 3 hour session for candidates to produce their final 3 dishes. This allows 17 hours for the completion of the research, planning, trialling and evaluation of the final menu, to be completed in sessions timetabled at the discretion of the school or college. The single 3 hour session should not be undertaken more than once by each student.

For Task 1, students are expected to produce a report of between 1,500 and 2,000 words.

For Task 2, students must produce a concise portfolio (not exceeding 20 A4 sides or A3 equivalent).

Students who do not follow these advisory guidelines will penalise themselves by not meeting the expectations of the assessment appropriately. For those students that exceed the recommended length, they will self-penalise by not being appropriately focused on the demands of the task. Any students that produce work that is shorter than the advised word and page counts, will be penalising themselves by not allowing appropriate coverage of the assessment objectives.

Students must acknowledge where they have made use of secondary information. This can be through an appendix containing a bibliography, or through foot notes.

Authentication of tasks

Practical investigations are a compulsory element of Task 1 and Task 2.

In Task 1, photographs must be included to authenticate the work as the student’s own.

In Task 2, the photographs are needed to provide evidence of the dishes produced.

The photographs in Task 1 must be present in order to authenticate the work. If annotated, they can additionally be used as evidence to communicate findings.

For all photographic evidence, the candidate number and name must be clearly visible in the photograph.

Marking the tasks

When marking the tasks teachers must use the marking criteria in this specification.

Marking support

Teacher standardising will be available each year to give support in both the taking of the task and the application of the marking criteria. If you have any queries about the task, you are encouraged to contact us at [email protected]

Exemplar material and generic guidance will be available at teacher standardisation to help schools and colleges understand the quality of work associated with the different mark bands and how to apply the assessment criteria.

Exemplar material won't relate to the specific tasks that students can select from that year, but clearly show how the individual assessment criteria has been applied to previous work.

Your school or college will be assigned an AQA appointed subject adviser who will be available to assist you in matters relating to the NEA. Contact details of the adviser appointed to you will be provided when you inform us that you are using this specification.

When marking the task a level of response mark scheme should be used. A level of response mark scheme allows you to assess the performance of your students holistically.

Using a level of response mark scheme

Level of response mark schemes are broken down into levels, each of which has a descriptor. The descriptor for each level shows the average performance for the level. There are marks in each level.

Before you apply the mark scheme to a student’s answer, read through the answer and annotate it to show the qualities that are being looked for. You can then apply the mark scheme.

Step 1: Determine a level

Start at the lowest level of the mark scheme and use it as a ladder to see whether the answer meets the descriptor for that level. The descriptor for the level indicates the different qualities that might be seen in the student’s answer for that level. If it meets the lowest level then go to the next one and decide if it meets this level, and so on, until you have a match between the level descriptor and the answer. With practice and familiarity you will find that for better answers you will be able to quickly skip through the lower levels of the mark scheme.

When assigning a level you should look at the overall quality of the answer and not look to pick holes in small and specific parts of the answer where the student has not performed quite as well as the rest. If the answer covers different aspects of different levels of the mark scheme you should use a best fit approach for defining the level and then use the variability of the response to help decide the mark within the level, ie if the response is predominantly level 3 with a small amount of level 4 material, it would be placed in level 3 but awarded a mark near the top of the level because of the level 4 content.

Step 2: Determine a mark

Once you have assigned a level you need to decide on the mark. The descriptors on how to allocate marks can help with this. The exemplar materials used during standardisation will help. There will be an answer in the standardising materials which will correspond with each level of the mark scheme. This answer will have been awarded a mark by the lead examiner. You can compare the student’s answer with the example to determine if it is the same standard, better or worse than the example.

You may well need to read back through the answer as you apply the mark scheme to clarify points and to assure yourself that the level and the mark are appropriate.

Marking criteria: Task 1 Food investigation

The food investigation is assessed in three sections as shown below:

Food investigation assessment

Students will investigate the working characteristics and the functional and chemical properties of a particular ingredient through practical investigation. They will produce a report which will include research into 'how ingredients work and why'.

Outcome: Written or electronic report including photographic evidence.

The inclusion of photographic evidence is to mitigate against plagiarism and is for authentication purposes.

Assessment: Students produce a report of between 1,500–2,000 words (approx. 6–8 sides of A4 or A3 equivalent). Practical investigations are a compulsory element of this non-exam assessment.

Time: Not to exceed 10 hours.

Content: Students will individually record their practical investigation and draw conclusions. The report could include a range of communication methods including: charts, graphs and diagrams. Specialist terminology will be used to clearly communicate the research and investigation findings. The report must include photographic evidence authenticating the practical investigation.

Section A: Research (6 marks)

Students carry out research into the ingredients to be investigated. The research will demonstrate how ingredients work and why. The outcome of the research should clearly inform the nature of the practical investigation and be used to establish a hypothesis or prediction for the food investigation task.

Students should:

• analyse the task, explaining the background research
• carry out secondary research, using different sources, focusing on the working characteristics, functional and chemical properties of the ingredients
• analyse the research and use the findings to plan the practical investigation
• establish a hypothesis/predict an outcome as a result of the research findings. The hypothesis should be a statement which may be proved or disproved.

Section B: Investigation (15 marks)

Students carry out practical investigations, related to the hypothesis or prediction, which demonstrate understanding of how ingredients work and why. Students will record the results of the practical investigation.

• Investigate and evaluate how ingredients work and why through practical experimentation. Each investigation should be related to the research and have a clear aim which can then be concluded.
• The number of investigations will be determined by the complexity of the investigations.
• A range of appropriate testing methods should be identified and carried out to record the results eg annotated photographs, labelled diagrams, tables, charts, sensory testing methods, viscosity tests.

Section C: Analysis and evaluation (9 marks)

Students will analyse and evaluate the results of the investigation and reflect upon their findings. Explanations will demonstrate how the results can be applied in practical food preparation and cooking.

• analyse and interpret the results of the investigative work. The results will be linked to the research and data explaining the working characteristics, functional and chemical properties of the ingredient(s)
• evaluate the hypothesis/prediction with justification
• explain how the results/findings can be applied in practical food preparation and cooking.

Marking criteria: Task 2 Food preparation assessment

'The Food preparation assessment' is assessed in five sections as shown below:

Food preparation assessment

In this task, students will prepare, cook and present a final menu of three dishes to meet the needs of a specific context. Students must select appropriate technical skills and processes and create 3–4 dishes to showcase their skills. They will then produce their final menu within a single period of no more than 3 hours, planning in advance how this will be achieved.

Students must work independently eg making their own judgements about cooking methods and making changes to recipes to improve palatability.

Students must work safely and hygienically. It is compulsory that students will adhere to food safety principles at all times throughout this assessment.

Students apply their knowledge of food safety principles within the planning for the 3 hour assessment (Section C). The application of food safety principles will be credited and assessed when making the final dishes (Section D). If a teacher has to intervene to prevent unsafe or unhygienic practices, this should be reflected in the final mark awarded to the student as they will not be demonstrating technical skills or use of equipment competently.

Outcome: Written or electronic portfolio including photographic evidence authenticating the practical outcomes. Photographic evidence of the three final dishes must be included.

Assessment: Students will produce a concise portfolio. Students will prepare, cook and present a final menu of three dishes within a single period of no more than 3 hours, planning in advance how this will be achieved. On completion of the making of the final dishes, students will analyse and evaluate the outcomes through sensory testing, nutritional analysis, costing and identify improvements to their dishes. The portfolio is not to exceed 20 sides of A4 or A3 equivalent. A menu is a selection of three dishes that are produced to meet the demands of the chosen task.

Time: Not to exceed 20 hours (including up to 3 hour final assessment within a single block period).

Students create practical outcomes and demonstrate the technical skills listed in Food preparation skills . Students create, plan, prepare, cook and present a three dish menu to meet the needs of their chosen task and allow them to showcase their food preparation skills. Two assessment criteria give students the opportunity to gain marks for demonstrating their food preparation skills – 'demonstrating technical skills' and 'making the final dishes'.

Excellent performance is characterised by demonstrating a complex skill to an excellent standard. In many instances, what constitutes a 'complex' skill will be determined in part by the ingredients used, processes and techniques carried out, and the dish selected by the student. The complexity and challenge of the dishes is linked to the skills involved in producing the dishes. The more complex the skills, the higher the level of demand. To provide greater clarification, the table below provides dishes that could be considered complex, medium demand and basic skill level in the context of three of the skill groups in this specification

Section A: Researching the task (6 marks)

Students will research and analyse the: life stage/dietary group or culinary tradition related to the task.

• analyse the task by explaining the research requirements
• carry out relevant research and analysis related to the: life stage, dietary group or culinary tradition
• identify a range of dishes eg by mind-mapping, or using annotated images
• select and justify a range of technical skills to be used in the making of different dishes.

Section B: Demonstrating technical skills (18 marks)

Students will make 3–4 dishes to showcase their technical skills.

• demonstrate technical skills in the preparation and cooking of three to four dishes. Refer to the Food preparation skills section of the specification
• select and use equipment for different technical skills in the preparation and cooking of selected dishes. Food safety principles should be demonstrated when storing, preparing and cooking
• identify the technical skills within each dish. Photographic evidence will be needed to authenticate the technical skills.

Students will select three dishes to make which allow them to showcase their technical skills to make for their final menu. The final dishes will relate to the task and research and be dishes that have not been made previously.

For example, a student could make the following initial dishes to demonstrate technical skills:

1. Fish pie ( technical skills shown: filleting fish, making a sauce, vegetable preparation, piping potato ).

2. Beef lasagne ( technical skills shown: pasta making, sauce making, vegetable preparation).

3. Traditional quiche ( technical skills shown: shortcrust pastry, lining a flan ring).

4. Flavoured bread rolls ( technical skills shown: bread making: kneading, shaping).

For the final menu, they could choose to produce:

1. Fish cakes with parsley sauce.

2. Cannelloni with homemade pasta and tomato ragu sauce.

3. Roasted vegetable flan with reduced fat ingredients to improve the nutritional properties.

Students will be rewarded for the use of a range of technical skills and the quality of outcomes achieved. The complexity and challenge of the dishes produced is linked to the complexity of the skills involved in producing the dish. To achieve the top bands, students must attempt complex skills. Selecting unchallenging skills prevents candidates from reaching the top mark band. As a guide, please see the examples in Food preparation assessment .

Section C: Planning for the final menu (8 marks)

As a result of demonstrating technical skills, students will provide explanation for the final three dishes related to eg ingredients, processes, technical skills, nutrition, food provenance, cooking methods and portion size. A time plan will be produced for the final three dishes demonstrating dovetailing of different processes.

• justify the appropriateness of the final dishes in terms of eg technical skills, nutrition, ingredients, cooking methods, food provenance, sensory properties and portion size
• produce a detailed time plan for the production of the final three dishes including appropriate techniques. Within the plan, food safety principles will be demonstrated when storing, preparing, cooking and presenting the final dishes
• demonstrate appropriate use of the three hours to dovetail tasks to prepare, cook and present the final three dishes
• not repeat any dishes from the 'demonstrating technical skills' stage when making their final menu.

Section D: Making the final dishes (30 marks)

Students will prepare, cook and present a menu of three dishes within a single period of no more than three hours.

Students should prepare, cook and present the final dishes, demonstrating:

• selection and use of equipment for different technical skills in the preparation and cooking of the final three dishes
• knowledge and application of food safety principles (including temperature control) when storing, preparing, cooking and presenting the final three dishes
• selection, knowledge and use of ingredients when producing different dishes
• appropriate use of the three hours to demonstrate: technical skills, processes and the use of equipment
• execution of a range of technical skills with accuracy
• good judgement with regard to cooking times and methods and the sensory properties of each dish
• organisation and good planning using the time plan and linking tasks within the 3 hours
• a range of finishing techniques to produce a high standard of presentation of the final dishes.

Students must include photographic evidence of the final dishes.

Students will be rewarded for the use of a range of technical skills and the quality of outcomes achieved. The complexity and challenge of the dishes produced is linked to the complexity of the skills involved in producing the dish. To achieve the top bands students must attempt complex skills. Selecting unchallenging skills would prevent students reaching the top mark band. Please see section Food preparation assessment for more guidance.

Section E: Analyse and evaluate (8 marks)

Students will carry out sensory evaluation and record the results for all of their practical dishes. For the final dishes, students will carry out and record nutritional analysis, costing and identify improvements to their dishes.

• record and analyse the sensory properties (taste, texture, aroma and appearance) of the three final practical dishes
• carry out nutritional analysis of the three final dishes
• analyse the cost of the three final dishes.

Clear links should be evident from analysing the data and information when reviewing the completed work. This leads to qualified suggestions for improvements/further modifications to the final dishes. This could include: nutrition, skills, sensory characteristics, presentation of the dishes.

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The Food Technology Department is a busy, vibrant and popular department. The focus is to promote a love of cooking, whilst acquiring the knowledge and skills through practical work to become a competent cook and to gain success at GCSE. The aim is to embrace and celebrate success for all in a creative ‘can do’ environment, where positive attitudes are seen as the only option.

The department is situated on the ground floor of the building. It consists of two practical rooms with a food preparation area at the back of the larger room.

The department is well equipped for teaching full classes the practical aspects of the course, and it is hoped the area will be further developed to accommodate the teaching of the theoretical aspects of the course with the inclusion of easier access to ICT facilities.

Within the department there are two full-time and one part time members of staff and one technician.

Course Outline/Overview

Key Stage 3

Each year all students in Years 7 to 9 receive approximately 13 x 100 minute lessons, where the practical element of the course is taught. Thus they receive a good grounding in both the theoretical and practical aspects of the subject which equips them for lifelong learning.

The theoretical element covers the basics of human nutrition and the wise selection of foods and dietary adaptations to promote good health both at school and beyond. Food safety, food hygiene and food production are also studied. The practical element supports this, but also aims to develop real enjoyment and creativity in addition to organisational skills, analytical skills and confidence building. A wide range of techniques are taught and a variety of equipment and ingredients used. Introducing new foods to students and encouraging more adventurous tastes are an integral part of our teaching. Students follow the design process in all respects  and evaluate their work along the way.

Year 7 – The Skills Challenge :- Introduces and develops basic food preparation and skills in the subject. Students are encouraged and motivated and gain confidence in the practical situation

Recipes include:- Lemonade Fruit Salad Pizza Bread Fruit Crumble Mediterranean Tarts Scones Flapjack Spicy Sausage Risotto Pizza Whirls Muffins

Year 8 – The Enterprise Coffee Shop :- Further enhances the skills used in Year 7 and extends the complexity in the products through a design task situation using the Academy Specialism of Enterprise

Recipes include:- Croque Monsieur Muffins Anzac biscuits Upside down cake Bread Pizza Build a burger Potato Wedges Quiche Biscuit competition

Year 9 – The Outdoor Pursuits entre project :- Extends skills to prepare the students for GCSE or for life-long skills for later life and builds upon skills already taught.

Recipes include:- Tomato and lentil soup Lemon Cheesecake Spring Rolls Meatballs in Tomato Sauce Chicken curry and rice Bakewell tart Sausage rolls Swiss Roll Rubbed in Chocolate cake

Key Stage 4

At Key Stage 4 the following courses are offered as optional subjects:

AQA GCSE Food Technology

60% Controlled assessment in the form of a design project 40% final examination at the end of Year 11

This course is designed to provide opportunities for students to demonstrate their design and technology capabilities and to show how they can combine skills with their knowledge and understanding, in order to design and make quality products.

GCSE Food Technology can lead to exciting and well-paid career opportunities such as

• Catering • Food marketing • Product Development • Diet related Industries

WJEC – GCSE Catering

60% Controlled assessment in the form of  2 design projects 40% final examination at the end of Year 1

This offers a unique opportunity for candidates to develop their knowledge and extend their skills within catering in a vocational context. It is a suitable qualification for those who want a broad background in catering and for those who wish to progress to further education. It will offer valuable preparation for those entering the world of work.

This course will allow students to develop and extend their skills within Catering in a vocational context; this means that everything you do will be directly linked to working in the Catering and Hospitality Industry.

There is a strong emphasis on gaining the required knowledge via practical work thus it is ideal for someone who prefers to learn “by doing”

Careers Opportunities

Vast range of employment opportunities: Cook Chef Waiting Staff Bar Worker Catering Assistant Restaurant Manager

AQA Entry Level Food Technology

The students on this course are not required to complete a written examination. This course is aimed at those students who are unlikely to achieve at GCSE. It is a unit-based specification, where students are required to complete four of the units provided. Students are taught in small groups of approximately 10-12, which enables each student to get much more individual attention, which in turn helps them to develop their practical skills to a higher standard.

Entry Level Food Technology offers opportunities for developing;

• Life Skills • Team work • Organisational skills • Independence • ICT Skills

Key Stage 5

A Level Food Technology

Exam Board: AQA

The course is a natural progression for students who have already successfully completed a GCSE in Food Technology.

This is a two year course with the AS level completed at the end of Year 12 and A2 at the end of Year 13. Some students have shown an interest in only completing the AS Level, in either Year 12 or 13. This is quite acceptable.

At AS, students study nutrition and design and making food products. Knowledge of food science and the wide range of materials and components used in the making of food products are developed. Students are given the opportunity to develop and solve a problem relating to food design and making in the coursework, whilst the examination tests knowledge, understanding and design skills. They gain an understanding of industrial and commercial practices within the area of Food Technology:

At A2, students develop further the knowledge and practical skills gained at AS level. Students continue to develop design work, alongside an understanding of food science, processes and commercial food manufacture (the latter being focused upon in much more detail than at AS, where it is not a requirement of the coursework).

Foundation Course

In Year 11 students can complete a BTEC Home Cooking Course Level One which develops skills in readiness for living away from home and looking after themselves. This course can be studied to a Level 2 course to gain half a GCSE.

Extracurricular activites

Master classes run every Wednesday evening for Year 11 students to work on their Controlled Assessment task.

Further clubs also run throughout the year for all year groups.

Useful Revision Tools

Food Technology Revision and helpful web sites

• BBC Bitesize – Food Technology
• BBC Good Food – Recipes
• Jenny Ridgewell – The Nutrition Program
• GCSE Design & Technology Food Technology AQA Revision Guide ISBN-10: 1847623581

Apps for iPhone

• DT Food Technology GCSE
• Food Technology GCSE
• D&T – Topic on Food Technology

For more information on all topics covered in Food Technology, please click here .

Sixth Form Prospectus and Course Guide

Please read The King's Academy Prospectus and Courses Guide below for our full range of Sixth Form subjects and courses

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Food technology, GCSE NEA2 coursework template. AQA

Subject: Design, engineering and technology

Age range: 14-16

Resource type: Unit of work

Last updated

8 February 2019

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Currently used by students studying GCSE food technology at St. Andrews catholic school in Surrey. For the NEA2 coursework, a full template including all criteria from the AQA mark scheme. Easy to follow with simple instructions, including key points that shouldn’t be missed out as well as some useful tips for achieving higher grades.

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Overcrowded, slow service, good food... - Aist

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“Overcrowded, slow service, good food, but pricey...” Review of Aist

We had dinner with our friends at this restaurant. The place was overcrowded and management did not provide any clear information if they have a stand-by-list or not. It seemed the staff had been evaluating your wealthy and provided available tables for whom who could spend a lot of money on food and drinks. In fifteen minutes we grabbed an available table and had been waiting for 30 minutes to be served. Drinks arrived very quickly, but we should wait 90 minutes before our food arrived. The food was very good - no complaints about it. The atmosphere was mixed. There were a lot of people who wanted to bee seen. This place provides karaoke and you should listen singing of drunk people - there is no separate area for them. It was annoying. Anyway, I recommend this restaurant if you like good food and new atmosphere does not bother you. Choice is yours!

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41 - 45 of 375 reviews

I've been visiting this place occasionally since it opened. Its close to my home and used to be a cool place to visit. The food, while pricey, was of good quality. The fact that it's part of the Novikov chain I thought guaranteed that it would never fall beneath a certainly standard. Its clientele was mixed, with the trendy mixing with the business crowd and its roof terrace, in summer, was always the place to eat and be seen. Sadly, no longer. While it is still popular with those who like to be seen, the quality of its food and its service and have gone downhill badly. Its more crowded that it used to be, but instead of the mixture of clients it used to boast, now it has only those who want to be seen to be there - the business crowd has gone, to be replaced by oligarch wannabes who get slowly drunk while ogling the ageing female clientele. The last time I was there - and I mean it was the LAST time - it took the waiter 20 minutes to bring me a whisky, after having been reminded twice. They had no butter apparently in the whole restaurant. Apparently they'd run out of it! I was reminded of a time six months before when they didn't have any Coke or Pepsi, having similarly "run out" of it. The staff were surly and I really got the impression that they had become too successful with a certain type of client to really try to maintain a good standard of service. Its a missed opportunity certainly, and perhaps with new management they could regain the aura that they once had. Until such time though, food and service-led restaurants like Uilliams (just down the road from Aist) will continue to take their clients. People sometimes don't mind paying high prices for premium service and food. Sadly, that deal is no longer available at Aist, where only the prices have maintained a high level.

Taking into consideration that this place is highly frequented by Moscow's nouvelle riches, occupying with their bodyguards half of the terrace and usually setting the highest standards and complaining about all sort of things in the European restaurants, the quality of food is average, the wines are really in the lower quartile. The menu offerings are wide, the prices are high. We tried ceviche which did not have a taste of the classic ceviche as it has not been marinated in the lemon juice. The watery Hummus was served with grilled vegetables, the aubergines were too hard and thickly sliced, lucking crispiness.The potatoes they serve to shashlik were cooked and then fried German style (usually served to schnitzel in traditional German restaurants). The food arrived low warm on the terrace. The Sauvignon blanc from NZ was without flower taste as it usually is, so not sure which food discounter has delivered this one. There is no experimenting in the kitchen, lack of spices and no innovative creations justifying the high prices and the image of Novikov's restaurants ( see my review on Barashka, there is a cook in the kitchen). This evening there were a lot of people that came to see some of the riches, the had a drink and a water pipe, not eating anything.

Just had dinner at Aist in Moscow, really charming place, beautiful people, inspiring stories, women where super nicely dressed, we wondered if it was for the film festival or this is the myth about how groomed Russian women are. Food was good overall but what is not to miss are the cocktails and the khatchaburi! A kind of Russian heavy cheezy melty delicious pie! A real treat. The terasse on the roof is as charming, but you'd miss the action of the street around and the pople coming in and out, the golden Bentleys, the blue Rolls Royces, summer in the city of Moscow has never been more glamorous and trendy. Nice music, apparently they also host DJ's on certain nights. Service was great. Prices on the high side. But definetly a must. Apparently the owners of this restaurant own a whole bunch of these trendy restaurants. http://www.trendymoscow.com/tag/novikov-group/ I'll definetly check them all out. If life brings me back here. :) Danielle

We we were visiting Moscow and staying at the Marco Polo and came across this restaurant down the street, where we saw Mercedes, Bentleys, a Ferrari, and decide to have early dinner where the beautiful Russia that were driving these cars were dining. We started out with a Russian beer and Vodka and also order a La Mode a drink with crushed ice lemon, oranges, strawberries.Very Pricey! It was excellent, on a hot evening, but very pricey. We ended up having dinner and ordered the fish that excellent cook perfectly. Beautiful people came and went so did the cars. The seafood was excellent so were the drinks. If you want a night of pleasure go to this restaurant. We had a excellent table for people watching, expensive car watching, good food. Expensive wine. Worth going again the next night!

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