Known for its spiciness and extraordinary combinations of different ingredients and flavors, authentic Chinese cuisine can be found in great quantities in all major cities around the globe.
But not in Kyiv.
This multicultural city of nearly 3 million people doesn’t have so many options for Chinese food fans.
The recently opened Chinese restaurant Rysova Dolyna might, however, become a palace that Kyivans and foreigners have been looking for. It fits the bill for three out of four main criteria: good, authentic food; great service and reasonable prices.
But it lacks the fourth ingredient — a warm and comfortable atmosphere — stopping Rysova Dolyna from becoming a perfect place.
Hidden location
Although the restaurant is located at the heart of Kyiv, on Shota Rustaveli Street, close to Palats Sportu metro station, it is still not easy to find it, as the venue is hidden in the yard, and is not visible for passersby.
Therefore, the restaurant`s customers are not some random Kyivans, attracted by the venue`s sign with Chinese characters. People who seek out and find it have only one aim: to enjoy authentic Chinese food.
Rysova Dolyna`s visitors are greeted with two big green signs: one that says Chinese cuisine, and the other has a name of the restaurant Rysova Dolyna (stands for rice valley in English), written in Ukrainian and Chinese characters.
The restaurant itself is located in the basement of the building, and therefore has no windows to enjoy the view on the busy street.
At first glance at the interior design of the venue, one might realize that this place is exactly the opposite from what people expect to experience at Chinese restaurants.
Bright lighting combined with the bright turquoise wall color, fake plants, and empty photo frames hanging on the venue`s walls contribute to the lack of atmopshere, let alone Asian atmosphere.
However, when greeted by a friendly Chinese waitress, one forgets about the surroundings and gets ready to choose from a wide variety of tasty food.
Rysova Dolyna has two authentic Chinese chefs. It also has a Chinese waiter who does not speak English and barely speaks Russian, but somehow manages.
I visited the restaurant together with two friends of mine on a cold Monday night, when the place was not fully crowded, but visited by some Chinese people and foreigners — which definitely is a good sign.
As we sat in the middle of the hall, taking a huge table suitable for four people, we immediately decided to order.
Fast service, rich menu
The food menu at Rysova Dolyna is divided into various categories, including meat, salads, hot dishes, vegetables, seafood, fish, noodles and rice, and is written in Ukrainian and Chinese.
We asked the waitress about the fastest dishes that could be done in several minutes and she responded that all the dishes are cooked quickly.
Surprisingly, our Sichuan fried potatoes and Sichuan fried beans were brought to us really quickly. So in about five minutes we were enjoying our hot and spicy starters.
Sichuan fried potatoes were served on an iron plate with a candle underneath to keep the food warm. Sichuan fried potatoes are a rare find at Kyiv`s restaurants serving Chinese cuisine. In this regard, Rysova Dolyna tries to make its taste as authentic as possible — with Chile pepper, garlic and soya sauce.
We really enjoyed the taste and the texture of spicy fried beans — crispy and hot enough to feel the real taste of beans. All the portions were generous, served on huge plates, and big enough for two or even three people to share.
In addition to potatoes and beans, we also ordered chicken with pineapples, cellophane noodles, also known as glass noodles, as well as Sichuan fried shrimps, and traditional Chinese green tea. We did not have to wait long for our main courses, and were again surprised with such fast service.
Right spices
The generous portion of Sichuan fried shrimps was served with vegetables and a big amount of oil, also on a plate with a candle underneath, and appeared to be the hottest dish we tried at Rysova Dolyna.
Chicken with pineapples became my personal favorite meal there, with its great ratio of tasty sweet and sour sauce, juicy fried chicken meat and pieces of pineapple, all served on a big white plate, and enough for two to share.
On the side dishes menu, we ordered glass noodles that the restaurant serves with minced meat. We asked the waiter to prepare noodles without meat, that did not appear to be a problem for the venue`s chefs.
Even with no minced meat, our glass noodles tasted good. Being not hot and less spicy, comparing to other dishes, we enjoyed glass noodles, although the dish did not look good. The big portion of glass noodles was also seasoned with fried onions.
Apart from shrimps and poultry, Rysova Dolyna offers a variety of beef and pork dishes, such as Sichuan fried ribs, pork with pepper and onions, pork with pineapples, pork with fish flavor, as well as a selection of vegetarian dishes, including fried rice with vegetables or soya sauce, fried eggplant with potatoes and pepper, celery and cashew nuts salad.
No duck
However, the menu at Rysova Dolyna is missing something. The venue does not serve any kinds of desserts, and has no traditional Chinese Beijing roast duck, also called Peking duck (roasted duck with crunchy crust and sweet bean sauce). Being a huge fan of Beijing roast duck, I wish I could find one on the restaurant’s menu.
Additionally, the restaurant’s drinks selection is not a decent one. It does not have real wines, but offers some beer, sparkling wine and vodka, as well as four types of tea, such as green, black, herbal and fruit tea. It also offers some coffee, juices and sodas.
With a huge amount of such hot and spicy Chinese dishes, the green tea we ordered disappeared from the teapot very quickly. But we were lucky to get some hot water, without even asking for it, as the thoughtful waitress poured some boiling water to our teapot with green tea, right when we were running out.
So for the service and range of tasty Chinese dishes, Rysova Dolyna is a place to visit frequently.
Prices: Pork with pineapples — Hr 148, fried shrimps — Hr 288, fried rice with beef — Hr 78, tofu with hot sauce — Hr 128, green tea — Hr 68.
Rysova Dolyna. 15B Shota Rustaveli St. Mon-Sun — 11 a. m. — 10 p. m.
