The open barbecue has no decorations. In the morning, ash remains in it from yesterday’s shift, and the birds always manage to check the kebab shop before humans. Antokha Kolpakov needs to collect 180 portions so that the meat does not have time to become a story about heroism. He has been working at Ro-Ro for more than ten years and prefers when people come for barbecue not in a crowd, but in groups of two or three.
NARVAL: Antokha, how many years have you been making barbecue at Ro-Ro?
Antokha Kolpakov: Probably since 2015, I’ve been cooking and preparing myself. And since 2014, I walked here, looked at what was being prepared and how, and helped as much as I could.
NARVAL: Where does the shift begin?
Antokha Kolpakov: You open the kebab shop and check what happened to it overnight. Most of the kitchen is open: birds, garbage, all that history. Therefore, in the evening we try to remove everything as much as possible, close it, press it down. In the morning you look at what’s wrong and start cleaning it.
Then - the grill. There is a lot of ash there after the previous shift, but the shift worker does not remove it: in the evening it is still hot. This is the job of the one who comes the next day.
NARVAL: Coffee or tea?
Antokha Kolpakov: Coffee. Black, two sugars. Always like that.
NARVAL: What do they take most often?
Antokha Kolpakov: Pork kebab and chicken. This probably dates back to post-Soviet times. They always ask for shish kebab with vinegar - “the way we’re used to.” It’s not so popular now, but everyone remembers the vibe well.
It cannot be said that there are any established trends now. We make our own signature marinade, people come to it, they like it, which means we’re doing it right.
The grill is enough for 50 servings per serving. The heat too.
NARVAL: The secret of the marinade?
Antokha Kolpakov: There is no secret, the ingredients can be named. But the main thing is to understand how much time you have. If you need to marinate meat quickly, the marinade is made more intense: concentrated, acidic. Then it works faster.
At home everything is simpler: onion, salt, pepper, then to taste. To make the meat soften faster, you need acid. In what form - choose for yourself: orange juice, tomatoes, anything with its own acid and without excess sugar. Sugar is not very good for meat: it spoils faster.
NARVAL: Open kitchen - people constantly come up, ask, look. Doesn't it bother you?
Antokha Kolpakov: Over the years I have learned to abstract myself. I set myself up for work in such a way that very little upsets me, unless it’s force majeure or an emergency. For a visitor, this is just life: he came up, asked, looked. And for me this is a normal working day.
NARVAL: The largest volume you had to do?
Antokha Kolpakov: One day, Evgen, also an excellent grill master, and I were preparing 180 servings of pork shish kebab for a large order. A large grill holds 50 servings. One approach - 20-25 minutes. It turns out three approaches and another twenty servings on top.
The two of us worked, taking turns running away from the fever. The whole grill is hot, you can’t stand there for long. Almost like a foundry. As a result, about an hour and a half for 180 servings.
The best pace of change is when people come for two or three kebabs, and not all at once.
NARVAL: What is the hardest thing about this job?
Antokha Kolpakov: Emergency. When everyone comes at the same time and everyone needs it right now. Multitasking increases, quality decreases: you need to quickly assemble different menu items, and this is difficult.
I like the regularity. When people go little by little: two shashliks, three shashliks, one shish kebab. Not in a crowd, not like paratroopers from the sky, but calmly. Then you can work normally.
NARVAL: What would you like to take from what you are preparing?
Antokha Kolpakov: Regular pork shish kebab. Even without a side dish. A little salad, pickled onions, greens. In a simple way. That's how I like it.