All newcomers offer casual dining, the most popular and dynamic format in Europe. Seeing as Kyiv is not oversaturated with stylish everyday restaurants, every new venue that opens is a big surprise for the city’s residents
The Italian mainstream cuisine dominates the menu in all new establishments. This comes as no surprise as the Michelin Guide acknowledges Italian cuisine to be the culinary leader in premium segment on the global market.
All restaurants on our list take a promising approach to wine, preferring to buy it in small batches in wine boutiques rather than supermarkets, as is the norm in the majority of successful restaurants in Kyiv. But then again, all upstart restaurants tend to remind young experts: erudite know-it-alls, ambitious and inexperienced
Under Wonder
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| The zest of the place is interior design: fashionable and elaborate |
21 Vel. Vasylkivska St.
234-2481
An excellent location in downtown Kyiv just to the right of the Kyiv movie theater. The zest of the place is interior design: fashionable and elaborate. The details of the design leave an indelible impression - the spaces between the marble slabs combined with smartly used stained-glass windows give the place an old-fashioned classic look. The chief designer of Under Wonder defined his style as “the quintessence of American steam punk, German brutalism and Italian romanticism”. However, the beauty of the image sometimes prevails over reason. These are the typical mistakes that young experts make. For example, some tables are placed too close to one another forcing the clientele to overhear conversations of the people sitting at the next table. Also, the bright lamps shining directly onto open wine shelves is far from beneficial for vintage wines and the empty glasses suspended over tables for smokers raises the concern about how other dishware is stored and how it smells. The menu is uneven both in terms of content and preparation. For example, why a variation on the theme of the Healthy salad with thick stalks of celery and apple slices covered in sour cream and orange sauce dressing arranged on obviously inappropriate tomato slices was named the specialty of an Italian restaurant is totally unclear.
The unheated plates on which pasta is served detracts from the condition and flavor of the dish specially the wait staff delivers on the second floor. On the positive note , the caramel creme contains a generous dose of Cointreau, Calvados is served as a digestive, the decency and attention of the wait staff is commendable and the clientele quite respectable.
Barsuk
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| This is a great place to go for lunch on weekends |
Kyiv, 3A Kutuzov Lane
A vigorous attempt to revive restaurant life in the vicinity of the Pechersk local market. There are plenty of public catering places in that part of the city but they are barely surviving, unlike their new kid on the block.
The founder of Barsuk came from advertising and marketing, which gave him the right skills to start up the venture with the impeccable market positioning. This first Ukrainian gastro-pub is reinforced with classy culinary school, an active website, a discount program and regular clients that are friends with the owner. Barsuk makes a very strong first impression with its wide windows, open doors, an open kitchen and appealing interior design.
This is a great place to go for lunch on weekends, though it is often overcrowded by friends of the owner who apparently enjoy the most favored status here. For example, an editor-in-chief of a popular weekly publication and a highly respected lady restaurateur were seen dropping into the place for a bite. The latter, however, was not very that lucky as the table she booked in advance turned out to be a seat at the bar and the bottle of wine she ordered, which was the last and most expensive, was not chilled and was served in different glasses.
Another oddity is that from the broad selection on the wine list, only homemade Sicilian wine is served by the glass. Actually, it was foisted off.
The menu is eclectic and imbalanced. While the pasta is not up to par, the Thai soup was commendable. Cold cuts and the goat cheese salad are delicious, while fenovani (cheese baked in dough) sometimes is served slightly burnt.
Al faro
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| The shape and sizes of the tables, chairs of different colors and the authentic Neapolitan open stone stove |
49A Chervonoarmiyska St.
503-5091
The interior of this new Italian restaurant is completely different from its predecessor the Potato House. A Mediterranean lighthouse (al faro in Italian) replaced the shark jaws in the center of the atrium. The shape and sizes of the tables, chairs of different colors and the authentic Neapolitan open stone stove in which thin-crust pizza is baked are the main attractions of this newest Italian pizzeria in Kyiv. Besides pizza and pasta salads with predominantly French dressings, 500 g portions of fish and meat with garnish and classic Italian deserts are well worth trying. A helping of grilled salmon with a side of potatoes and broccoli is delicious and perfect for a dinner for two.
A 150 g glass of Chianti Ruffino for just over 20 hryvnia goes perfectly with a delicious pasta dish. A propos, a glass of fine wine for a reasonable price in a perfectly located restaurant is quite the rarity in Kyiv.
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