There are great cafes in most of Ukraine’s big cities, as evidenced by the Zerno awards presented for the first time this year.
The Ukrainian independent City Coffee Guide has presented the awards to cafes in five cities on Nov. 8 with the help of 75 experts on the jury. City Coffee Guide is an annual guide to Ukraine’s best cafes that was first published in 2015.
“Our goal is to select the best in order for everyone to become the best,” Vladimir Zadiraka, the publisher of City Coffee Guide and co-founder of Kyiv’s One Love Coffee expresso bar chain, said in the video presentation of the Zerno winners.
The coffee industry in the Ukrainian capital has been growing rapidly over the past decade, promoting alternative coffee drinks and high-quality beans. According to a report by international Allegra World Coffee Portal, the Ukrainian capital’s coffee market was the third fastest-growing in Europe in 2019. Over the last several years, coffee fever has been spreading outside of Kyiv, too.
Tishina (Silence) Espresso Bar, located in the southern Black Sea port city of Odesa, has been recognized as the 2020 cafe of the year. Located inside the City Food Market, Tishina is considered a must-visit place for tourists staying in Odesa.
Bila Strila (White Arrow), located in Dnipro in central-eastern Ukraine, received the best mini-cafe prize, given to the best cafe smaller than 40 square meters. Bila Strila’s space is just 14 square meters and has several seats, but mostly serves coffee to go.
Two Kyiv cafes also received the award. One of the cafes of the Takava Coffee-Buffet chain has been recognized as the best coffee concept of the year. Located on Kyiv’s busy central Bessarabska Square at 1-3 Velyka Vasylkivska St., Takava serves specialty coffee made of house-roasted beans, breakfast all day, cocktails and a variety of desserts.
One of the cafes of the Yellow Place chain located at 9 Mechnykova St. in the capital has the best coffee marketing, according to the City Coffee Guide experts. Yellow Place is known for its recognizable visual identity, creative posts on social media and collaborations with other businesses.
Read also: As coffee fever spreads in Kyiv, baristas innovate café culture
Svit Kavy Roastery and Cafe, located at 59 Kulparkivska St. in the western city of Lviv, received the award for the best roasted coffee brand.
A special prize for the best ecological approach to running a cafe went to the Black Honey cafe, located at 45 Proskurivska St. in Khmelnytskyi, another city in western Ukraine. This category was supervised by the Ozero ecological brand, which has its own cafe and a shop of eco-friendly products.
