Not long ago, in a European capital really quite close…
Yes, one can now make a hyperspace-jump into the Star Wars universe from Kyiv, where the country’s first Star Wars-themed bar opened last winter.
The 40-year-old movie franchise has been especially popular in
Ukraine in recent years, with the Internet Party of Ukraine nominating
candidates named Darth Vader, Chewbacca and Yoda in several elections.
None of them have yet won seats in the Imperial Senate, er… the
Verkhovna Rada.
However, a Lenin statue in Odesa has
undergone a makeover into Darth Vader, and a candidate named Emperor
Palpatine made it to the city’s council in 2015.
And Star Wars fans
in the capital can now visit the Star Bars theme bar to toast their
fictional heroes and commune with their light or dark sides – or maybe
both.
That’s because Star Bars, as the name suggests, is two
bars in one – the first one on the lower lever dedicated to the Light
Side of the Force, and the second, upper level, themed on the Dark Side.
The
first thing you see on entering the bar at 69 Volodymyrska St. is Jabba
Desilijik Tiure, aka Jabba the Hutt, the most powerful crime boss on
Tatooine (and, indeed, one of the most powerful in the Outer Rim
systems) and the arch enemy of Han Solo. Don’t be put off – it’s only a
small-scale plastic inflatable version of the galactic mobster, and it
sets off the light-hearted tone of the place as soon as you land there.
The
lower bar is loosely themed on the Cantina Bar on Tatooine from the
first Star Wars film, where Luke Skywalker first encounters Han Solo and
his hairy sidekick Chewbacca. But rather than being a wretched hive of
scum and villainy, this space is fit for younglings, offering
non-alcoholic drinks and healthy vegetable smoothies suitable for a wide
range of lifeforms. Drinks and dishes are named after the principle
characters in the films, including Padme Amidala, Chewbacca, Han Solo,
R2-D2 and many others.
The food choices includes sandwiches and tapas, small Spanish savory dishes, typically served with drinks at the bar (Hr 25-75).
The
lower bar is decorated with pictures of starships, and characters from
the movies, and there are three small rooms with a variety of games to
entertain visitors. You won’t find a Dejarik holo-chess board, but there
is table soccer, a Play Station Four video games console, and a wide
choice of board games. There is also a cinema room where you can settle
down to enjoy a Star Wars movie.
For those who feel like
crossing over to the Dark Side, there is a steep hidden stairway to the
second floor. There, one will find the Empire Bar, which is decked out
in a style reminiscent of the Death Star – the empire’s planet-killing
space station.
Light sabers on the walls, black leather
chairs and glass-topped tables enhance the dark, futuristic feel of the
place, and if you’re in the mood you can borrow a Stormtrooper or Darth
Vader helmet to take a Star Wars selfie.
With its dark color
scheme, posters of villains from Star Wars, eerily colored cocktails and
Darth Vader fresco bearing the legend “Sith Happens,” this is a place
where a Jedi must be cautious.
But one can let one’s hood
down and exercise Jedi powers at the bar, which offers quizzes and
challenges, with drinks as prizes. For example, one can be blindfolded
(or put one’s blast visor down, for those wearing their starship pilot’s
helmets), and try to guess the ingredients of a drink by taste. A right
guess wins a free cocktail. For Hr 200, one can order a special
cocktail that comes with trivia questions about the Star Wars universe.
The prize is a second cocktail.
There’s no point in trying a Jedi
mind trick to get out of paying your bill – the bar staff appear to have
been trained to resist them by Toydarians, and remember: Republic
credits are no good here – they need something more real. Luckily,
prices in hryvnias are quite reasonable, and the bar accepts all of
Earth’s major credit cards.
The average price of a long drink is Hr
95, while a shot costs Hr 60. The bar has a range of cocktails in all
the colors of light sabers for Hr 170.
Star Bars
69 Volodymyrska St.
Monday-Friday 1 p.m. – 1 a.m.; Saturday –Sunday 12 a.m. – 4 a.m. Bar Empire (second floor) 6 p.m. – 4 a.m
