Restaurants in Ukraine
by DU Community member Katya Shtamburg
 
"The discovery of a new dish does more for human happiness than the discovery of a new star."

Twenty years ago the few tourists who came to Ukraine had a poor choice of places to eat. You had to go either to a local canteen with very limited choice of food or to eat at the hotel restaurant. The service at all places was bad anyway.

Nowadays we can be proud of our developed chain of cafes, bars and restaurants. The quality of meals is very good, and the personnel is very polite – otherwise they would not survive in the competition with other restaurants. You can choose where to eat – at the expensive restaurant or self-service canteen (don’t confuse with fast-food). In the majority of Kyiv restaurants they have menu in English, while in most resort cities you need a dictionary to translate the names of dishes.

Ukrainian cuisine is exotic like everything in Ukraine. You can stumble over the cluster of consonants in “borshch”, but it’s worth trying. To say “beetroot soup with sour cream” means nothing – you need to try it to understand the unforgettable taste of Ukrainian friendly home. Borshch can be served cold in summer or hot in winter, and it can be a special festive dish for the Christmas Eve.

Another famous Ukrainian dish is called “vareniki”. Imagine filled dumplings stuffed with any kind of filling – cherries, apples, potatoes, mushrooms, meet or vegetables. Ukrainian women always cook them for their families, because this dish is very good for big companies. Sweet vareniki can be a dessert.

If you want some Ukrainian adventures during your trip try “salo”. It’s a kind of pork fat, sometimes salted and smoked. Some tourists consider eating salo a barbaric habit. But after trying it they always change their mind. It goes well with peppered vodka. By the way the choice of vodka in Ukraine is magnificent. But not try too much, because it can lead to sad consequences.

There are several things you should know about Ukrainian restaurant culture:

1. In restaurant tips are common. Usually tips can be 10 per cent of the bill. Not all restaurants receive credit cards, so be sure that you have enough cash with you.
2. When ordering the wine ask the waitress to open the bottle in front of you. Otherwise you can pay for the expensive wine and drink a cheap one.
3. Ukrainian cuisine is great, but not eat too much. If your stomach is not adjusted to it, you can have some problems. Traditional Ukrainian food has a lot of fat. So, be careful!

Enjoy Ukrainian cuisine with DU. Bon appetite!