Russia - The sophisticated go back to the basic joy in life

Helen, 31

Lives alone with her mother, total income above average.

Cooking Experience

At school I was crazy about hand-written copies of recipes from whatever sources I could find. The favorite was of course the Big Cooking Book [scroll the link for pictures - this book was called "A Book anout Tasty and Healthy food"] every Soviet family had. [The internet wasn't used for recipes back then.] So I have a lot of experience of cooking. Now I don't even have to look it up online to understand how a dish is made.

I actually use internet only for email. I think people who spend all their time online are failures offline by default.

Inspiration from Restaurants

I spend most of my salary on restaurants. I love eating out. When I choose a place to eat I look at the design first. I am convinced that you can understand a lot about the food they serve by their approach to the interior design. That is why I like this fishery:

If I like the dish I will be able to copy it at home without a recipe. It's based on my experience plus on the fact that I am a 'sensoric' person. I like to touch, smell, see, taste, and so on.

If you have a passion for food - you feel it. You sense the combinations involved and you can always reproduce it.

For example in this restaurant (fishery) I like this Boston Soup. This is my favorite in this restaurant. And I have tried it at home once - successfully.

Sensoric People

I always compare food to sex. There are people who like sex and only some people really know how to do it. The same with food. Everybody loves eating but not everybody knows how to cook.

'Sensoric' people can do everything the like and know how to - dance, eat, make love, and basically express themselves creatively or artistically.

Good Food

We all grew up on the simple Soviet food which was "without the music accompaniment" so to say. It was plain and dumb.

Opportunity: Communicate the good food message with the involvement of all senses - with music in media, with tactile in-store comm's, etc.

Good Food is an Experience

You can't drink expensive wine on a bench so to say. The setting has to be proper. It is a lifestyle thing. It is also a system thing. You dress well, you drink well, you eat well - you follow one system in all your routes.

Smart vs. stupid people

Smart people differ from stupid people in terms of what they understand by pleasure. Smart people have reached the top of intellectual pleasures available on this Earth and realized that the simple pleasures is what matters.

They know that the real keif in life comes from exploring the simple pleasures. That is why my all-time favorite cartoon is Ratatouille.

Opportunity: It takes going all the way in your intellectual growth to understand that the simple pleasures of eating and drinking good are the ones to be cherished in life. (Similar to the insight behind the UK TVCs about Potato, Bread, etc.)