Traditional Russian cuisine at the tavern-like riverside eatery Koleso
After a few cool days, fierce heat was back in full force on Kyiv’s streets, and the decision to have lunch at a restaurant by the river came naturally. There were still a few eateries awaiting a proper Post review, and besides – so as not to go mad with envy, I needed to hear water splashing and feel a slight breeze on my skin while my friend, having just returned from a vacation in Turkey, recounted her relaxing sojourn.
Restaurant Koleso (Wheel) is hard to miss, if you walk along the Dnipro quay from the riverboat station at Poshtova Ploshcha, toward the footbridge leading to Trukhaniv Island. It looks like a Russian tavern circa the early 20th century – a house built of dark brown logs, decorated with all kinds of colorful signboards and advertisements, and bearing inscriptions in archaic Russian: “The Ladies’ and Children’s Clothing Store,” “Horses and Carriages for Rent,” “Gypsies in Kyiv,” “Grand Store at Podil,” etc.
Inside, the eatery gets even more colorful with its vibrant, flowery carpets, curtains and chairs, stuffed bears in hats, and walls hung with guitars, suitcases, garments, samovars and many other curious items. On the whole, it all looked slightly overdone, but that was most likely exactly what the designer had in mind – to demonstrate the quintessential Russian love for abundance in everything, especially when it comes to eating.
When choosing a place to sit, we naturally preferred the open terrace, fashioned after a verandah, where a balcony runs the perimeter of the floating restaurant. While sitting at a table there you can peer inside the eatery through a window.
Comfortably seated on the side facing one of Trukhaniv Island’s sandy beaches, I noticed that although the inner hall of Koleso was fairly empty, the open-air terrace was packed. And as if confirming the eatery was indeed a Russian one, we could hear loud talking in a Moscow accent from a company of people right in front of us. One of them – a guy with long blond hair – was clearly some Russian singer, but not one of the most recognizable, so I couldn’t recall his name.
The menu of Koleso was comprised of a great many Russian dishes: fish, meat, and vegetable salads; sauerkraut and pickled tomatoes, cucumbers and mushrooms; six kinds of caviar; a lengthy selection of soups; pelmeni and varenicky; cutlets; and of course meat and fish dishes. There was definitely a lot to choose from, but when the time came to make our orders, there was no one around to take it. We kept looking expectantly at the servers running back and forth with stacks of plates in their hands, but no one paid us attention. We had already started eyeing the unknown Russian singer’s table hungrily, where an unfinished feast was being left behind. Luckily, a waitress finally approached us and was very polite throughout the meal. Still, it would have been better if she had arrived sooner.
Having decided to skip my usual order of Sandora juice, I decided to try birch tree juice(Hr 8), a more traditional drink that I used to love as a child, but which is rarely sold at modern supermarkets. My friend opted for cranberry mors (Hr 8). Either my tastes have changed a lot, or I used to drink the juice with more sugar in it, because it seemed to taste like plain water, while my friend’s mors was rather sour, but refreshing all the same.
We were almost done with our drinks when our salads arrived. I had one called “Russian” with mushrooms, chicken and “tasty” cheese (Hr 49). The cheese was indeed tasty and so was the rest of the dish – after all, the combination of mushrooms, chicken and cheese is among my favorites. However, the “Russian” salad seasoned with mayonnaise was heavy, and I already felt full before the second dish arrived. My friend felt the same about her veal salad with grilled mushrooms, eggplant and celery (Hr 48) – she found it both tasty and very filling.
For my main course I opted for the salmon baked with feta cheese (Hr 115). My favorite fish arrived looking thoroughly appetizing, lying on several asparagus shoots. It was equally delicious – perfectly cooked salmon combined masterfully with salty feta, asparagus and a creamy sauce. I ate everything to the last bite. My friend, in the meantime, was having draniki (Hr 42) – small potato pancakes stuffed with cabbage, meat and mushrooms, and served with three kinds of sauces, including white and red horseradish, and plain sour cream. They weren’t outstanding, but good enough as a simple home-style dish.
Feeling heavy from lunch, we opted not to “sweeten” our meal, as the waitress suggested, and sat for a while, feeling the floor rock every time a motor boat went by, and watching the river and the sandy beach filled with people, reluctant to return to the sweltering hot street.
Koleso (Naberezhno-Khreshchatytska, berth 14, 462-5596). Open Mon-Fri 8 a.m. till the last customer, Sat-Sun noon till the last customer
English menu: Yes
English-speaking staff: Yes
Average meal: Hr 150
