Kyiv (Kiev)

[Schneier]

It's very Slavic here. And very Soviet. Capitalism has won, and there are stores and signs and life everywhere, but there are still many stern-looking buildings and imposing-feeling monuments. (Just look at these three pictures of Rodina Mat: 150 feet from her feet to the top of her sword -- and she's on a hill. The name means either "Mother Motherland," or "Defense of the Motherland," or some such, depending on what you read.)

I visited the very Byzantine-looking St. Sophia's Cathedral (named after the Hagia Sofia in Instanbul), every interior surface of which is covered in iconographic paintings. (This guy took some really great pictures.) I visited the very baroque St. Andrew's Church, where I stumbled on a baptism ceremony. I saw far too many matryoshkas.

Dinner was at Pervak (the site is in Russian, but you can see an English-language menu). It's a very kitchy restaurant, in that pre-industrial farm Ukraine sort of way. The waitresses wear farm costumes, and there are statues of cows and such. I tried to ignore it all.

I did manage to select myself a cabbage-free meal. First a Ukrainian borsch -- beet-less -- with beans, tomatoes, onions, meat, a whole lot of fresh parsley and dill, and a dollop of cream. (Kind of like this, but with beans instead of beets.) It came with some traditional garlic rolls called pampushkas.

Then I had "Veal a la Ancient Kiev," which is thinly sliced veal made into a roll and stuffed with cherries. The sauce tasted slightly of honey and mustard. When you order meat here, meat is what you get. Everything else is on the side. I ordered grilled autumn vegetables in garlic sauce.

All of this heavy food is starting to get to me. I looking at the salads, but they come with meat. There's a salad with smoked chicken, another with roast pork, and others with beef, salmon, shrimp, and crab. There was only one veggie salad on the menu, and it didn't look very good.

Tomorrow night I am going to get the fish.

I've also been entertaining myself trying to learn to read Cyrillic. There are enough cognates -- "cafe," "restaurant," and "bar" are three you see a lot -- and I have Cyrillic street signs and their Roman equivalent on my map. The hardest part is that the symbols mean different things. "P" in Cyrillic is pronounced "r," and "B" is pronounced "v." Their "H" is pronounced "n," and their backwards "N" is something like a long "e." But they have a "E" too, which is pronounced -- I think -- "e" too.

Tomorrow, St. Michael's Monastery, the old city gate, and other random wanderings around town. Monday: Kyiv- Pechersk Lavra.

Edited October 22, 2005 by Schneier (log)

[Schneier]

Dinner tonight was at a restaurant called O'Panas, in Shevchenko Park on Tereschenkivska Street. A bit hokey in atmosphere, but definitely frequented by locals.

I ordered three appetizers, and didn't finish any of them (not because they weren't good, but because I wasn't that hungry). I ordered the Ukranian borshch, because I want to keep trying it. This was a good one, with a mild beety flavor and a nice meaty flavor.

I ordered the stuffed cabbage, because I forgot that I was sick of cabbage. Actually, that's not true. I ordered it because my family recipe is from my mother's mother (Jewish Romanian), and I was curious how this one was different. There were two key differences, both improvements and both not kosher: the cabbage was stuffed with a mixture of beef and pork, and it was served with dollop of sour cream. It was also much less sweet a sauce, and there were mushrooms in the stuffing. A nice dish all around.

And I also ordered the deruny: potato pancakes with sour cream. A little greasy, but good.

Edited October 23, 2005 by Schneier (log)

[piazzola]

Glad that you dared to tour Kyiv and glad enjoyed the food too

In fact I just included a recipe for borscht with beets and beans in the egullet recipe compilation I also enjoy my pampushkies

as far as deruny some people make it greasy but if the oils is at the right temp and shallow fry then they should be dry, crispy on the outside and soft in the inside.

[Schneier]

Today: lunch at a restaurant called "Yaroslavana." It's on Yaroslaviv Val, across the street and down the block to the right from the Radisson Hotel. Brown awning, and then downstairs. Next to a cafe.

It didn't look like much, but it was convenient and the hotel desk clerk said that it was okay.

I had the Ukranian borshch. Best version of the whole trip, actually.

I also had "Prince's veal," described on the menu as "veal with vine sauce and prunes." I figured "vine" was either a typo or an honest mistake, and that it was a wine sauce. It was, although very sweet with plums.

Veal is very different in this country. My guess is that the calves are a little bit older, and that they're not completely milk fed. But mostly I think the meat just isn't all that good here. Don't know for sure.

Anyway, 40 hryvnia for the meal translates to $8.

I'm off to Tallinn next. I'll let you know what I find there.

[John Talbott]

This month's Travel & Leisure has an article by Brett Forrest suggesting eating at Decadence House + Khutorok.

[Joe McNeely]

I have been to Kyiv several times, and know what you are talking about. The food is very robust. At least you'll never leave a restaurant hungry!

There's also a place called Kozak Mamay, just off Kreschatik Street close to Independence Sqaure. It is similar to the places you mentioned. Waiters are in traditional costume and they have traditional music. I thought the food there was pretty good. They had a mild, surprisingly subtle borscht and a large, thick pork steak covered with mushrooms and salo (flavored rendered pork fat.)

There's more upscale food available in Kyiv, but you have to pay dearly for it. I've done so, but in many cases the quality doesn't justify the price. If you can handle the hearty national fare it's far easier on your wallet.