A Short Guide to Kyiv, Based on My Experiences . . .

[Admin]

Inspired by Kuna's persistent comments about helping guys with a "City Guide" concept, I thought I might write a little about the places and events I found most memorable in Kyiv, as suggestions for others. If this turns out to be a good idea, maybe we can start a Sub-Board for City Guides with an individual topic for each city, and then guys can contribute as they travel and have something to offer.

So here are a few of my suggestions - FWIW:

Restaurants:

* Mimino - it is Georgian food (Russian Georgia) and the style of the place is from an old Soviet-era movie (I am told). The food it FABULOUS, the setting unique, and the staff is both attractive and pleasant. Cost is reasonable. Mimino is owned by the same people as who own the Tekila House, which is next door.

* Hutorok - traditional Ukrainian food in a restaurant which was originally an old ship - now permanently docked on the Dnieper River. Not far from the famous Arizona BBQ restaurant.

* Tsarske Selo - the Tsar's Village - exceptional, extraordinary Ukrainian food - but at the highest prices in Kyiv. Still, the atmosphere and the food are unmatched, and IMO worth every penny.

* Concorde - sits atop a 5 or 6-story building near the end of Kreshatyk away from the Dnieper River. It is a French restaurant with prices to be expected from a top-level restaurant. I recall spending more than $100 for a bottle of wine - and that is not at all uncommon there. The food was good - but the setting was beautiful, and VERY few ladies will have experienced such nice digs. It was worth it just for the ambience and novelty.

Attractions:

* Perehova - an outdoor museum which has captured the architecture and traditions from different ages and regions across Ukraine. There is a section dedicated to the Crimean Tatars - and another for the Hutsuls in the West - and many, many others. It is possible to rent horses here for a ride - and considering the extensive tradition of horsemanship in Ukrainian history, it is wonderful to see them keeping it alive and thriving as one might see some displays in Perehova. It is away from Kyiv maybe 20 minutes or so by car - but well worth the excursion. Plan to spend the entire day.

* HydroPark - an interesting place with loads of young people everywhere. Amusement style rides and activities and a carnival atmosphere. Nice place for a short visit - for me, anyway.

* Pechersk Lavra - like Perehova, not to be missed. It is a landmark which has been undergoing renovation - but I believe the renovations are now complete. The tombs in the caverns below the monasteries house mummified monks, and a tour through the catacombs feels a bit surreal, but quite interesting nonetheless.

* Opera House - one of the photos of Olya was taken at the Kyiv Opera House with a beautiful chandelier in the background. Not that I noticed the chandelier when I was taking the photo, mind you, but it does bring back that memory of a wonderful opera we saw that evening. I have been there quite a number of times, and it is always a memorable experience for everyone.

* Kreschatyk - Sundays on Kreschatyk, as many of you know, is just REALLY pleasant. The street is closed to autos, and everyone is strolling and milling about. It is one of the very few times you will see families with young children, and especially with strollers, out on the streets. There are a few drunken hooligans as the day wears into the evening hours, but even then, they are manageable.

Holidays:

* Den Kyiv - this is Kyiv Day and is August 24th. This day is ALSO, for those of you who recall, the SAME day in 1992 in which Andrew blew down much of South Florida. On that day in 1992, many of my employees had homes completely destroyed and some narrowly escaped injury or even death. In 1999, I spent that day in Kyiv, in a wonderful apartment on Karla Marxa Avenue across from the Conservatory. The balcony offered the most incredible view of the crowds which gathered and the fireworks display which was truly spectacular. Of all the holidays I have spent in Ukraine, Kyiv Day is the one which stands out for me.

OK - that will conclude for now. As I think about other things, I may write about them as well. There is a TON of other stuff I could include, but limited it to just those things which somehow touched something.

FWIW

- Dan

[Wayne B]

Dan, you did not mention Mc Donalds a very nice and cozy place to be....and the locals have told me that the food is like eating shite   what is English translation of this word?

[Nat]

Dan, you did not mention Mc Donalds a very nice and cozy place to be....

You are joking, right?

May be it’d be also useful to say about places, where people can find internet in Kiev I know only one – an internet club in the building of the main post office. The Post office is on the corner of Khreschatik and the internet club itself faces Maidan (Independence square).

[viking]

Dan

Perfect timing. I leave in 72 hours!!!

Viking

[Mir]

In summer I would recommend a river cruise.

Also the restaurant: 'Hunter'

[Wayne B]

Administrator Dan, I stand corrected....People of FSU, tell me that Mc Donald's food taste like sheet  and I made a mistake about Sunnie's Kurd' and Shite's as being some of the tribal factions in Iraq....  Snipe is a water fowl found in Gulf coast states

[Turboguy]

The internet cafe in the post office is the one I like the least although it is the nicest.   It is just very expensive. 

If you walk up Krashatik in the direction as if you were heading to TGI Fridays when you get to the end where you would make a left to get to TGI Fridays there is an underground shopping mall (just follow the steps down.   On the lower level is a food court and one one side is a very large internet cafe with great prices.

My real favorite internet cafe is right near there.  walking up Krashatik in the same direction staying to your left, the last door before you would make the left for TGI is my favorite internet cafe.  It is upstairs.   I guess what I like about it besides the best price is that you can pay after for the time you use.   The other two you prepay and take an hour or whatever time you think you will need.   It always seems to me I am either not quite done or finish early and kill time because I have it paid for.   There is also a public toilet in that same building on the first floor if the need arises.

[jinx13]

 Turbo,

 I like that internet cafe near TGIF too, it's on the corner of Kreshatik and Baseyna if I remember correctly. I had a great view from upstairs looking out the open window, nice breeze too, net cafe's can get really stuffy sometimes. I remember the one in Yalta, it was about 100 degress inside with a bunch of sweaty teenage boys playing shooting games...that placed smelled ripe! 

 Anyone know the name of the restaurant near the center of Kreshatik with the fountain in front? It has an outdoor eating area, very nice place to spend some time, people watch and enjoy a tasty meal.

[Kuna]

Dan,

I hope this will help some people with ideas before their trip.

St Michaels Golden Domed Cathedral
My first "memory" is at St Micahels Cathedral.  It's such an obvious building at the top of Mykhaylivska Street that some might just walk past and take photos from a distance.  My girl is Orthodox (Practicing but not weekly) and when we entered the grounds and stood outside of the church I sensed some hesitation from her.  I asked if she'd like to go inside for a moment and her response was, "Really?  You'll come inside?"

If you go inside with your girl take off your hat (of course) and expect her to cover her head with a scarf.

We went inside and I waited and watched while she lit a few candles and said a quiet prayer. We had a slow walk around and she explained some of the features of the church to me and on our exit she looked at me very "tenderly" and gave me a kiss on the cheek.  No words.. just a kiss on the cheek.

Inside the Cathedral is spectacular and opulent.  I can't say everyone's visit will be like mine but it was a special moment my girl and I shared.

Belgium Beer Cafe
From my second photo of St Michaels Cathedral if you turn around and walk along Volodymyrska Street you'll find the Belgium Beer Cafe on the left hand side.  It's the same restaurant concept you'll find all over the world (no sure if it's in your part of the world)) but had interesting and tasty local food. The menu is HUGE and will offer everything like bar snacks of dried squid up to delicious local cuisine.  It's not cheap but it isn't overly expensive either.  Expect prices like you'd pay at home.  Most of all the atmosphere was very nice.

Kiev Opera
Dan has written a great description of the Kiev Opera and from memory it is also on Volodymyrska Street, just before you get to Prorizna Street (Which runs back down to Kreschatyk).  Here's a pic below.

Shato Micro-brewery and Restaurant
Back on Kreschatyk and still near the corner of Prorizna you should turn left towards Independence Square. A few doors up there is the brightly lit entrance of Shato (Notice the spelling on the sign in the photo below). Shato has a really nice "Brewery-type" restaurant upstairs with VERY delicious food.  It was quite reasonably priced at about $140 for two people (including wine) and has an extensive menu and wine list.  What I liked best was sitting near the window and looking out onto the people walking past on Kreschatyk (and the company I was in of course).

Independent Square and Internet Services
I've included a photo below of the building on Independence Square that houses the post office and the Internet Cafe that Turbo mentions above.  I didn't notice a particularly high cost at the Internet Cafe but I only used it once.  From the point where this photo is taken and around to the right just a little is where you'll find Phone and Internet Card Sellers.  They call the Internet Cards "Callback Cards" even though technically they are not a callback card. 

BE AWARE OF ONE THING: If you've got your own notebook and you're buying a Callback Card you need to make one small change when setting up your modem.  The phone in most apartments (both I was in) use PULSE dial tones not TONE so you should add the letter "p" to the front of the phone number in the modem setup window.  e.g. p5551234

Andriyivski Street
Well worth a look at down this historical street. It's close to St Michaels Church and a short walk that will deliver many nice thoughts and memories.

On the right hand side of the street you'll see a small statue of a young man on bended knee in front of an unattractive women.  My girl explained the story behind it (A historical fable I think) where the woman could not find a husband because she was unattractive. After this young man discovered her family had a large wealth he went about seducing her to get to the money. 

I can't remember exactly as it was described to me but I do remember at the time there being undertones of "being attractive is important so a woman knows a man is attracted to a girl for the 'right reasons', and unattractive women will not find a suitable partner.

From this statue you'll see St Andrews Church directly ahead and to the left you'll see many sellers of souvenirs.  Of course when buying souvenirs in tourist areas always have a good look around before buying anything because the prices will vary wildly but we bought Marituska Dolls here and some really beautiful needle work.  My girl wanted to choose the piece for my mother and was VERY particular about selecting something she felt was "good enough for your mother". (It was beautiful table cloth made by the family of women in the stall, and greatly appreciated when given to my Mother).

Finally, in my last photo of Andriyivski you'll see a small driveway on the right hand side of the street.  If you turn to the right you'll find an open air art market with some spectacular pieces. I wanted to buy a painting of a woman in a flowing white dress who was sanding in a field of wild flowers but my girl said the seller wasn't giving us "best price" so we'd go for a walk and come back later to get a better price.  We continued our walk but ended up too cold to go back.  :-(

Here's a tip for winter if you're on Andriyivski.  It's damn slippery and damn steep!   

Arena Entertainment
This is located in Besarabska Place on Kreschatyk.  You really can't see much from the outside but once you get inside it'll look like the photo below. Area has a number of venues including a Beerhouse downstairs and a Nightclub Upstairs.  On Thursday nights there is live music and the potential for a great night if you want to mix with locals and a few ex-pats.

It's not just a bar...  it has a nice menu that isn't as extensive as Shato but the Sushi was very good. Oh, I've got to warn you about something.  It was REALLY hard to get service there and both Ms D and I were becoming frustrated because wait staff would walk past and virtually ignore us even if we tried to get their attention.  Over and over again they would walk past and we just couldn't find a way to order a drink.  Eventually I got up and went over to the floor supervisor and she looked surprised that I would walk over to try to get some service but told me someone would be there soon.

They didn't arrive "soon" but we finally got some service.  When we were leaving we picked up the bags we had with us and noticed they were covering a call button installed on the table near the window.  We both cracked up in laughter because we realised we weren't getting service because we weren't "following the system" of pressing the button for service.

[Kuna]

One last place worthy of a mention...

Club 112
When you come out of the Arena Beerhouse you'll see the Porsche dealership at 12 o'clock and if you walk to the place that would be 1 o'clock on a watch you'll see a nondescript stairway leading down to basement level.  At the bottom of this stairway you'll see a large metal door on the left.  Bang on the door, a little window will open and if you pass "Face Control" you'll find a great little nightclub inside.

I went to Club 112 a few times and had a great time each time.  The music is cool.. there are couches where you can sit and talk...  and the women are certainly beautiful!  Be aware there are a few hookers that hang out there but nothing like other places I went to.  Drink prices are very reasonable but there's no food so don't expect to go there before 10pm.

There's a small covercharge (I think 50 grivna) but the drink prices are reasonable.

Here's a few pics - but I won't make any comment!   

[Mir]

On the right hand side of the street you'll see a small statue of a young man on bended knee in front of an unattractive women

There is a syaing in Russian that goes something like: If you chase two hares you end up with nothing'
Based on this is a famous Russian comedy movie made in 1961: 'Za Dvumya Zaytsami (chasing two hares)'
The story is something like this(from a review):
In an Ukrainian town of Kiev, at the beginning of the 20th Century a young loser named Svirid Golokhvasty owned a barbershop, which was in a lamentable state, because most of his time the owner spent drinking, gambling, and chasing girls with his equally no good friends. After losing a really big sum of money and becoming a bankrupt, Golokhvasty decided to solve his financial problems by marrying an ugly but rich Pronya who falls for his "educated" speeches and snazzy outfits and use her money to pay his debts and to attract a beautiful and virtuous Galya (the short for Galina ) who despises him and doesn't want to even look at him. Thus the chase for two hares begins, and as you may guess, it is more than difficult to chase two hares in the same time.

The statue is also called 'Za Dvumya Zaytsami' it is from the movie.

[Kuna]

Sounds very familiar and gives great background Mir... thanks!   

[wxman]

There is a really nice indoor ice skating rink at one of the newer malls quite a distance from the center of the city. I do not remember the name, but this rink is really well built and is also set up for hockey, but I don't believe any teams are using it yet. The cost is really low (around $6) to skate for about 90 minutes. The skates are included, and you can also pay for lessons too which cost around $7.

[Mir]

I was taken to a couple of real Ukrainian/Russian pub type discos.
Great atmosphere and by 11 all girls are dancing on the tables.
The establishments are well out of city centre and unfortunately I can't remember the name or the location

[Kuna]

I think it's pretty funny when you look at the number of views photos get...

Isn't it funny how photos of girls get LOTS of clicks and photos of cities get very few clicks.   

Hmmm... I wonder what the members of RWD are focused on???  hahaha 

[Admin]

Shato Micro-brewery and Restaurant
Back on Kreschatyk and still near the corner of Prorizna you should turn left towards Independence Square. A few doors up there is the brightly lit entrance of Shato (Notice the spelling on the sign in the photo below). Shato has a really nice "Brewery-type" restaurant upstairs with VERY delicious food.  It was quite reasonably priced at about $140 for two people (including wine) and has an extensive menu and wine list.  What I liked best was sitting near the window and looking out onto the people walking past on Kreschatyk (and the company I was in of course).

As a point of trivia, the current Cafe Shato (Chateau, in French), is the former site of Cafe Le Fleur. They changed the cuisine, and added the micro-brewery - but the REAL attraction has always been the location - on the 2nd floor overlooking Kreschatyk. Because it is centrally-located (very close to Tsum, the Soviet-era department store), it is an easy place to arrange a meeting - and a wonderful place to share a tea (or piva).

- Dan

[Jack]

And something else cool about Chateau, it's open 24 hours. I enjoy having breakfast here during the spring and sitting outside on Khershaytk.

Speaking of 24 hours I'm surprised no one has mentioned anything about Avalon. I think the restaurant upstairs would have to rate as one of the three best restaurants in ALL of Kiev. A wonderful place to take a special date.  And great menu.  Lobster, the best crab salad in all of Kiev, great steak and veal.  And the place to be or to be seen at 3-4-5am.  Often times after leaving whatever club Kiev's most beautiful women are at they will go to Avalon.

As reference has been made to the Opera house, Avalon is two blocks down the street (away from Khershatyk) and one block to the left.

Kuna, I guess things could have changed since you have been in Club 112 since I was there last in January. At that time (and the two years previous) they have had a nice little menu which offered some pretty good munchies.

[Kuna]

Kuna, I guess things could have changed since you have been in Club 112 since I was there last in January. At that time (and the two years previous) they have had a nice little menu which offered some pretty good munchies.

Jack... I didn't see a food menu but I'll let you know in about a month.   

[Wayne B]

Jack, great steak.....but, where would one travel to get the best steak in the 'world'????

[Bruno]

Jack... I didn't see a food menu but I'll let you know in about a month.   

Ahhhhhhhhh ... he was speaking of food !!! I was thinking to a other type of menu