Russia’s Rosinter Restaurant Group Goes Meatless on Mondays

Russia’s biggest restaurant group Rosinter has launched Meatless Mondays.

Established nearly 30 years ago, Rosinter is Russia’s leading casual dining chain operator; it has 257 restaurants in almost 30 cities across Russia. In six of those cities, the group is launching Meatless Mondays.

The new initiative aims to encourage diners to reduce their meat intake on a Monday. All vegetarian home deliveries from its most popular proprietary brands — including Planet Sushi and franchise TGI Fridays — will have 20 to 25 percent taken off the price.

If the initiative takes off, Rosinter may roll it out to all of its restaurants.

Meat-Free in Russia

Many Russians have long believed that meat consumption is necessary for good health. After the Second World War, Soviet leaders heavily promoted meat and its role in maintaining a healthy diet. This thinking remains prevalent across the country, only one percent of the population is vegetarian.

However, some believe the tide is starting to turn, albeit slowly. Moscow-based vegan blogger Victoria Logunova told The Nomadic Vegan last year, “Russian society is not responsive to new ideas and sometimes you feel like an alien. Most people in Russia think that veganism is something dangerous for your health.”

She added, “as a result, usually parents don’t support their children to go vegetarian or especially vegan. And this leads to conflicts and misunderstandings … sometimes it’s not easy. But hey, we are the first generations of vegans in Russia, and we can see the positive changes every day.”

Rosinter’s promotion of Meatless Mondays is one of those positive changes. According to Stacy Collavini — Rosinter’s brand director — the group decided to launch the initiative to be in tune with “growing trends in the field of environmental protection and conscious consumption.”

She told The Moscow Times, “half of consumers support and want brands to solve social problems … we share the pain of society about the deterioration of the environment.” She continued, “we say that in our restaurants not only meat-eaters can eat delicious food, but also those who prefer alternative menu options.”