Sharing a piece of cake over a nice conversation in an atmospheric cafe sounds like a perfect date for the upcoming St. Valentine’s Day. And Kyiv has plenty of dessert spots — cafes, bakeries and restaurants for that. The Kyiv Post has picked out some of the best of them, so make sure to book a table ahead of the holiday.
Paul
Looking dark with its black walls outside, this restaurant is actually a warm and welcoming place. Paul is part of the same name chain of French restaurants that was founded back in 1889. The eatery’s stylish classy design and dimmed lights create a perfect entourage for a fancy and intimate date.
Paul offers a range of desserts including classic medovik honey cake, layered Napoleon and Prague chocolate cake. For those willing to try something new, the restaurant makes nuts cake and the one with salty caramel and orange mousse. They also serve enticing classic and blueberry cheesecake, chocolate and praline roll-ups, blueberry and pear tarts, various kinds of croissants and éclairs.
To accompany the sweet courses, Paul offers coffee, all kinds of tea, mulled wine, various cocktails, champagne and wine.
After the date, couples and friends celebrating Valentine’s Day can proceed to have a walk around Kyiv’s historic center where Paul is located.
Prices: éclairs — Hr 39–68, classic, blueberry cheesecake — Hr 95
Paul. 26A Yaroslaviv Val St. Mon-Fri. 8 a. m. — 10 p. m. Sat. 9 a. m. — 10 p. m. Sun. 9 a. m. — 9 p. m. +38044 281 2493
Madame Josy
Small, yet cozy, with romantic atmosphere and great food — Madame Josy seems to be a perfect place to spend a date on Valentine`s Day. Located at the capital`s heart, near Maidan Nezalezhnosti metro station, the venue reminds of a traditional French cafe, with the smell of freshly-baked croissants and the sound of live accordion and piano music.
Despite traditional croissants with various fillings including the one with foie gras and figs, or with duck and camembert cheese, Madame Josy also has a special menu for Valentine`s Day that offers bruschettas with foie gras, two types of salad, and two main courses to choose from, as well as dessert and a glass of sparkling wine, all for Hr 980 for two people.
Apart from Valentine`s Day specialties, Madame Josy has a variety of desserts including mousse cakes, éclairs, and macarons, sweet meringue-based confections with different flavors. To accompany desserts, the venue offers various drinks such as green, black and herbal tea, coffee drinks including flat white, cappuccino and raf coffee with vanilla flavor, as well as different lemonades, juices, and homemade tea.
Prices: espresso — Hr 42, croissant with backed vegetables and feta cheese — Hr 130, pinat and caramel éclair – Hr 58
Madame Josy. 4 Borysa Hrinchenka St. Mon-Fri. 8 a. m. — 10 p. m., Sat-Sun. 9 a. m. — 10 p. m. +38068 133 8087
Bassano Dolceteka
This confectionery is a paradise for those with a sweet tooth as it serves all kinds of desserts for any taste. For chocolate fans, Bassano makes a chocolate biscuit with sour cream, for those into fruit, they offer raspberry and mango mousse and lemon mousse dessert.
In addition, Bassano serves chocolate, vanilla, coffee and sabayon éclairs, medovik honey cake, Napoleon, red velvet cake and almond-chocolate Esterhazy.
For St. Valentine’s Day, the confectionery offers visitors to pre-order heart-shaped or circle cookies, where they will write the name of the customer’s significant other and to present it during the date at Bassano.
As for drinks, Bassano restaurant, where the confectionery is located is famous for a wide range of wine: their wine cart has over 200 options with most of them coming from Italy. They also serve alcoholic and non-alcoholic cocktails, coffee, tea, lemonades and juice.
And the confectionery’s location right next to one of the best Kyiv’s sights, marvelous St. Nicholas Cathedral, is another reason to visit the place on Feb. 14, continuing the night with a walk in the picturesque place.
Prices: lemon mousse — Hr 70, Esterhazy — Hr 85.
Bassano Dolceteka. 100 Velyka Vasylkivska St. 9 a. m. — 10 p. m. +38044 237 7991
Honey
With the two venues located in Kyiv`s historic areas, one cafe at Podil, the other close to Zoloti Vorota metro station, Honey has become a must-visit palace for all who want to try delicious desserts and enjoy a great view of the capital.
Honey`s minimalistic design is accompanied with bright yellow colors and a huge showcase full of desserts to choose from. Honey`s desserts include éclairs with different flavors, like passion fruit éclair, coconut éclair and the one with mango flavor. Honey also offers 18 types of macarons with lime, lavender, strawberry and basil and a variety of mousse cakes with plum and whiskey, mango and caramel, white chocolate and passion fruit, as well as traditional cheesecakes and ice cream.
On the drinks menu, the cafe offers nine types of tea, including ginger-lemon tea, sea buckthorn tea with orange, and tea with linden and chamomile.
In addition, Honey has 14 types of traditional coffee drinks, such as espresso, black coffee, and capuorange — black coffee mixed with fresh orange juice.
Prices: Papa Ruzh cake — Hr 115, macaron — Hr 35, passion fruit eclair — Hr 70, coconut eclair — Hr 84, grapefruit-ginger tea — Hr 85
Honey. 19/21 Nyzhnii Val St., 20 Yaroslaviv Val St. Mon-Fri. 8 a. m. — 10 p. m., Sat-Sun. 9 a. m. — 10 p. m. +38067 127 1921
Kyiv-based cafe Honey offers a range of desserts including Alfonso, a mousse cake with white chocolate, mango and coconut. (Honey)
Panna Pasticceria
Panna Pasticceria is a great place for those willing to try something traditional Italian on Valentine`s Day. The venue offers a variety of Italian gelato ice cream, as well as several types of Cannoli, Italian pastries with sweet tube-shaped fried dough, filled with cream or chocolate, as well as well-known tiramisu and pannacotta desserts.
Despite traditional Italian ice cream and pastries, Panna Pasticceria has a variety of mousse cakes with various flavors and fillings, including white and dark chocolate, pear and caramel, mousse cakes with strawberries and other berries.
Moreover, the venue has a decent drinks menu, as it consists of a variety of lemonades, wines, strong alcoholic drinks, and cocktails, as well as 15 types of coffee drinks, including raf coffee with spices, espresso, and flat white.
Additionally, Panna Pasticceri has seven kinds of leaf tea and four types of its special tea, such as orange tea with currant, apple tea, tea with raspberries and ginger, to warm up after a cold February day.
Prices: Brut — Hr 149 per glass, Aperol spritz — Hr 169, espresso — Hr 39, tiramisu — Hr 189
Panna Pasticceria. 6/11 Velyka Zhytomyrska St. Mon-Fri — 8 a. m. — 10 p. m., Sat.-Sun — 8:30 a. m. — 10 p. m. +38093 757 7577
Reprisa
This dessert spot located on busy Velyka Vasylkivska Street is a perfect choice for a couple working in the city center and willing to escape the rush in a quiet place after a long working day on Tuesday, Feb. 14.
The confectionery serves a number of signature desserts including chocolate orange cake and Cuba cake made with mango, passion fruit and pineapple on a crusty foundation. In addition, they make classic tiramisu, cheesecake, tarts three ways, macaroons and eclairs. Apart from that, Reprisa has a great choice of ice-cream and ice-cream desserts.
For drinks, Reprisa offers coffee, tea, cocoa, hot chocolate, lemonade, juice and classic cocktails such as Mojito and Pina Colada.
Prices: Cuba cake — Hr 65, tart — Hr 69–75
Reprisa. 26 Velyka Vasylkivska St. Tue-Fri. 8 a. m. — 9 p. m. Sat-Mon. 9 a. m. — 8 p. m. +38067 505 3350
