In 1927, the Russian émigré Arcady Fixon settled in Paris after escaping the Bolshevik revolution. He opened a restaurant, Caviar Kaspia, to bring a slice of his home country to his new hometown. He served potatoes garnished with caviar, and, of course, Russian vodka, in the small space, which was located a few blocks from 17 Pl. de la Madeleine—it’s current-day address. After being passed down through family hands, Caviar Kaspia is now owned by the entrepreneur Ramon Mac Crohon, who made sure the place remained largely unchanged. Nicolas II’s seal sits alongside antique porcelain in display cases, and Nicolas Swetschkoff’s Troika still hangs on the wall of the dining room. On any given night, between rounds of vodka and caviar, you may run into Carine Roitfeld, Giambattista Valli, or Beyoncé. “What happens at Caviar Kaspia stays at Caviar Kaspia,” Mac Crohon once said. “Discretion is our number one asset.” —Elena Clavarino

Elena Clavarino is the Senior Editor at AIR MAIL