Restaurant Dragee is too cool for its own good: It doesn’t have a dress code.
Unlike most other Kyiv food joints where you must think about what’s appropriate to wear as much as what’s on the menu, this restaurant in the park on Lvivska Square has a relaxed, bohemian vibe that will accommodate almost anyone.
It’s very easy to find. Only a short walk away from the Golden Gate, Dragee attracts its unpretentious clientele with a simple European-style menu attached to a key ring and a drawing of a big woman eating spaghetti on the yellow-painted kitchen wall.
You can sit either at the outside patio or inside the capsule-shaped restaurant. If you manage to catch a few more sunny days this autumn, grab a wicker chair and go for a tangy gazpacho with gorgonzola cheese (Hr 45) and tuna tar-tar with sun-drenched tomatoes (Hr 70).
The main course, escolar (Hr 65), also known as a snake mackerel, is good whatever the weather.
Grilled ever so slightly on a bed of green beans, it leaves a fresh lemon aftertaste despite its fame of being an oily fish. The serving is large enough to skip the garnish but you may as well try couscous with grilled zucchinis, tomatoes and egg-plant (Hr 39).
I wouldn’t mark the restaurant with a Michelin star for the food, but it’s been consistently pleasant each time I visited. Pasta, sandwiches, meatballs and fish – this food joint is versatile enough to make a Ukrainian happy.
After hundreds of unremarkable meals in Kyiv, I learned to lower my standards and was back at Dragee the next morning.
For breakfasts, one can choose between a large omelet with a variety of fillings and Ukrainian traditional syrniki, Ukrainian cottage cheese cakes. I once gladly parted with fried eggs, abandoning the portion half way.
The yolks were dry and crisp as the weather that day but the cappuccino with a snow-white thick froth was perfect enough to forget about the eggs.
After hundreds of unremarkable meals in Kyiv, I learned to lower my standards and was back at Dragee the next morning for delicious syrniki with jam and sour cream (Hr 35).
Service is a variable in Dragee’s formula of success. There is one waitress who can serve 10 tables at the same time with a winning smile and positive attitude, and another one whose sole mission is to stand still and watch her busy colleague do all the work.
But despite these shortcomings, which are viral in Kyiv restaurants anyways, I love Dragee.
Located in the park, just off the road along Artema Street, the restaurant serves as a perfect watch station. There are two dogs living underneath the tree in the center of this little green patch. I once made a mistake of attracting their attention with leftovers of my food.
Capsule-shaped Dragee has a cool bar that changes colors when the lights fall. (Courtesy)
They got overly excited and I got a little scared. Next time, I will just leave food for them in the bushes nearby.
If not dogs, then a couple of homeless people will pick it up. They also like the red-painted benches next to the restaurant and sometimes sit or sleep there listening to Dragee’s lovely music selection, which is pretty amazing.
One morning, I was greeted by cheerful Mozart and Beethoven sonatas. And another evening, it was inspiring French tunes from Zaz.
What worries people the most about Dragee whenever I recommend it is its proximity to the road. It was never a problem in summer when the tree tops and bushes worked as an insulator.
It’s not an obstacle now when you most likely will opt for a table inside the glass-walled restaurant.
All in all, Dragee is like that sweet candy it is called after – you want to snack on it again and again.
Dragee Restaurant
Lvivska Square
Tel. 093-603-2445
www.dragee.com.ua
Kyiv Post lifestyle editor Yuliya Popova can be reached at [email protected]
