Cathedral Hill Russian staple Moscow on the Hill is celebrating a milestone anniversary with — what else? — vodka.

Marina and Naum Liberman have owned the restaurant for 30 years, and to celebrate, they’re treating every diner to a shot of house vodka with their entree purchase. (21+, of course.) The promo runs Sunday, Oct. 20, to Thursday, Oct. 24.

“Growing up in it, you meet all the people in the neighborhood and they become your family and your friends,” said Eugene Liberman, their son, who’s the restaurant’s general manager. “You see people grow up in front of your eyes, and they become a second family.”

The Libermans bought the Cathedral Hill restaurant, which at the time was called Quail on the Hill, in 1994, not long after emigrating from Moscow. Eugene Liberman was 11; their younger son was 7.

A French restaurateur had opened Quail on the Hill about five years previously, and the Libermans hung onto the French theme at first. But after a few years, the couple decided to switch gears, and in early 1997, they completely overhauled the small restaurant into Moscow on the Hill to pay homage to their homeland.

In Russia, Marina Liberman was a neurologist and Naum Liberman was an orthodontist. But here, they both would have needed to start their schooling over from scratch to obtain licenses to practice in the U.S., Eugene Liberman said — a financial nonstarter. And, as Marina Liberman told the Pioneer Press in 1997, they wanted to showcase real Russian culture beyond Cold War-era stereotypes.

“My mom always says restaurants are an immigrant business; blood, sweat and tears,” Eugene Liberman said. “We’re thankful to our neighborhood, our friends and family, wonderful employees over the years that we were able to get to this point.”

Over the past few decades, the restaurant has tripled in size; they’ve created a variety of infused vodkas, including a horseradish vodka they now partner with 45th Parallel Distillery to bottle and sell; and their menu draws from a variety of Eastern European food cultures. Marina Liberman’s grandparents are Ukrainian, and in recent years, the restaurant has shown public support for Ukraine, joining other local institutions like the Museum of Russian Art in condemning Russia’s aggression.

And every menu sports the restaurant’s mascot, an accordion-playing bear. The bear is a Russian cultural symbol, Eugene Liberman said — and not, he added, laughing, a caricature of an actual accordionist who has played at the restaurant for decades. Running a restaurant for 30 years means you have to do a little bit of everything, he said.

“To survive in Russia — to survive everywhere — you have to do so many different things,” he said. “And the bear: He can climb, he can swim, he runs, he hunts. A bear can adapt to any situation.”

Moscow on the Hill: 371 Selby Ave; 651-291-1236; moscowonthehill.com

Related Articles

Key West comes to Stillwater with opening of DJ’s Clam Shack

After pandemic closing, iconic Mickey’s Diner reopens in downtown St. Paul

Longtime Mendota supper club Axel’s closing after nearly 30 years

Hudson Bloody Mary Walk to support hot air balloon festival

Myriel’s Karyn Tomlinson named Food & Wine Best New Chef