Kazantsevo sits in the heart of Siberia's Khakassia region, and its food tells that story honestly. The local table revolves around lamb and horse meat, both staples of the indigenous Khakas people whose culinary traditions run deep here. Mutton broth thickened with barley, known locally as a close cousin of the classic Siberian shurpa, warms you from the inside out, especially on the kind of bitter winter afternoons this village specializes in. Dairy is everywhere, too — fermented mare's milk and dense soured cream appear at almost every meal.

The central market, small but fiercely local, is where Kazantsevo really opens up to curious visitors. Stalls run by babushki sell hand-rolled dumplings called pelmeni packed with wild game, alongside jars of cloudberry preserves and dried mushrooms gathered from the surrounding taiga. If you arrive on a weekend morning, you'll find freshly smoked omul fish — technically from nearby rivers — wrapped in brown paper and sold for almost nothing. It's the kind of market that reminds you food can still be straightforward and generous.

For a sit-down experience, the village's handful of small canteen-style cafes serve hearty, no-fuss plates that lean heavily on root vegetables, pickled cabbage, and whatever meat came in fresh that week. Don't overlook the local bread — dense, slightly sour loaves baked in wood-fired ovens that have a crust you'll remember long after you've left. Wash it all down with chifir, the intensely strong tea favored across Siberia, or a glass of locally produced medovukha, a honey mead that tastes like the forest smells in August.