Best coffee houses of Ukraine guide: 2018-2019 SALT award winners
Coffee houses in Kyiv
One Love coffee. The 2018 winner of the National restaurant awards SALT
This is the third-wave coffee shop, where a cup of classic or alternative coffee is followed by the enchanting view over the St. Nicholas Cathedral. The highlight of the menu, besides inventive desserts, is a variety of coffee drinks. A pour-over or a classic cappuccino will go perfectly with a cheesecake. If you are starving, try an open sandwich with mozzarella or a bacon quiche.
We recommend trying espresso (45 uah), cappuccino (60 uah), flat white (70 uah), filter coffee (55 uah), chemex (70 uah).
Address: Velyka Vasylkivska St, 100
Phone: +38 044 364 98 96
Open: Mon-Fri 09:00-23:00, Sat-Sun 10:00-23:00
Gemini Roastery
Gemini Roastery is a collaborative project of a Ukrainian coffee producer Gemini and a restaurant holding Bulldozer Group. The coffee menu is represented by classic coffee drinks: espresso (20 uah), cappuccino (30 uah), and latte (35 uah). In addition, alternative brewing methods are offered: AeroPress (45 uah), V60 (40-50 uah), cold brew (45 uah).
The place also has a full-fledged menu. Among main courses, you can find grand veal or chicken shawarma (90-110 uah), veal medallions (170 uah), and salmon steak (190 uah).
Address: Antonovycha St, 172
Phone: +38 067 007 38 88
Open: Mon-Fri 08:30-23:00, Sat-Sun 12:00-23:00
Takava Coffee-Buffet
Have a look at a cozy two-story New York-style café with Ukrainian hospitality and Brazilian aroma. This coffee shop, one of the few in the city, opens at 8 am on weekdays and at 9 am on weekends. Vinyl sound and fragrant coffee foster the best mood.
We offer to try espresso (38 uah), cappuccino (48 uah), V60 (70 uah), AeroPress (65 uah).
Address: Velyka Vasylkivska St, 43/16
Open: Mon-Fri 08:00-23:00, Sat-Sun 09:00-23:00
Yellow Place
Yell Place in GoodWine on Mechnykova St, 9 offers a decent variety of coffee from various countries; drinks prepared properly using classic or alternative methods, coffee tableware, and accessories.
Here they use the immediate freezing method, which ‘seals’ the taste. Some sort of lethargy, which according to experience allows attaining freshness and richness of the taste even on the 30th day after grinding. The coffee shop is determined to compile a map of exciting coffee varieties and roasting methods from all over the world.
Address: Mechnykova St, 9
Phone: +38 044 390 79 62
Open: 08:30-20:00
Blur Coffee
Blur Coffee is a coffee shop with a subtle emphasis on interior design. Here they focus on peerlessness of coffee drinks. During the day the team makes breakfasts. The items on the menu change with the season and local food. You can order toasts, smoothie-bowls, oatmeal, and desserts. We recommend treating yourself with one of the season toasts.
Address: Mechnykova St, 5
Phone: +38 068 270 75 75
Open: Mon-Thurs 08:00-21:00, Fri 08:00-22:00, Sat 10:00-22:00, Sun 10:00-21:00
Black Cafe
The Black Café found its place in the Black Coffee Center on the territory of Art-Zavod Platforma. This coffee shop is specialized on preparing and selling freshly roasted beans coffee. We recommend trying cappuccino, inventive latte with salted caramel and lavender, couscous with avocado and Black pasta.
The center includes a coffee school and a 25-tonne roaster. Guests can witness the beans roasting process, take a tour around the room with the roaster, sample and have fresh roasted coffee to go. The Black Coffee School will teach making coffee properly.
Address: Bilomorska St, 1a
Phone: +38 050 39 79 090
Open: Mon-Fri 09:00-19:00, Sat-Sun 10:00-19:00
LONDON coffee house
LONDON coffee house immediately brings you to the capital of Great Britain. The main product here is coffee made with both classic and alternative methods. The menu includes desserts for every taste: chocolate, fruit, berry, with nuts or caramel.
The legendary Big Ben tower and English Bulldog statuettes adorn the interior along with a red phone booth-like front door.
Address: Verkhnii Val St, 18
Phone: +38 068 773 73 15
Open: Mon-Fri 10:00-22:00, Sat-Sun 11:00-22:00
COFFEE IN ACTION/DOMINO
The founder of Coffee in Action Vadim Granovskyi is a Great Britain champion of preparing coffee in a cezve. Coffee in Action is on the territory of ‘Domino’ business center in the Podilskiy district of Kyiv on Nyzhnii Val St. Guests can try natural fresh roasted and freshly ground coffee made in a cezve.
The coffee menu offers sand coffee, flat white, classic or made with copper lever coffee machine Victoria Arduino espresso. Rare species of coffee are prepared in a handcrafted silver Soy cezve. Guests can also order coffee to an inventive recipe adding pomegranate or ginger juice.
Address: Nyzhnii Val St, 51
Phone: +38 044 594 76 36
Open: 08:00-20:00
A coffee house in Dnipro
‘Tri bobra’
The name of the coffee shop (literally translated as ‘three beavers’) came from a joking way of pronouncing ‘True Brew Bro’, which is a Dripro project of exclusive coffee beans roasting. There is no pre-made option. Coffee is always roasted to order and in small amounts.
The coffee reality here knows no impurity. Just pure taste and aroma. The menu offers chemex, V-62, AeroPress, siphon coffee, raf coffee or the original ‘Barista Choice’.
Address: Dmytra Yavornytskoho Avenue, 42
Open: 08:00-20:00
Coffee houses in Odessa
Atelier. Design & Coffee
The coffee shop is in the Prymorski district on Preobrazhenska St. The concept menu includes popular dishes of European and Japanese cuisines, served ‘finger food’. Guests can order a bowl of chicken, salmon or shrimps, a smoothie bowl, fish and chicken polenta, granola, avocado toasts, burgers, sandwiches, and desserts.
Address: Preobrazhenska St, 9
Phone: +38 094 922 22 38
Open: 09:00-22:00
Foundation Coffee Roasters
The Foundation coffee shop is on Zhukovs’koho St in the Prymorsky district of Odessa. This place’s feature is its drinks prepared with own freshly roasted coffee beans Foundation Coffee Roasters. The menu is focused on sweet pastry and desserts – cheesecakes, cakes, and cookies.
Original interior is designed in the loft style: soft couches along masonry walls, natural wood and metal furniture, a bar, and living greenery.
Address: Zhukovs’koho St, 19
Phone: +38 093 600 09 91
Open: Mon-Fri 08:00-22:00
‘Minimalist’
The intellectual city café ‘Minimalist’ was created in the spirit of Scandinavian and Japanese aesthetics. With its guests, the place shares the philosophy of tranquility while having the best coffee or a glass of wine during a healthy breakfast.
The coffee menu offers espresso (37 uah), cappuccino (46 uah), filter coffee (39 uah), orange raf coffee (55 uah) or V60 (65 uah).
Address: Pushkinska St, 31
Phone: +38 099 739 79 59
Open: 08:00-21:00
‘Tishina. Espresso Bar’
‘Tishina’ (literally translated as ‘quietness’) is on Hrets’ka St. It’s not easy to notice the place as the entrance is hidden behind the glass façade of the apartment building.
Blackberry or salted caramel lattes are worth trying here. In the evening music is played and cocktails are served. In case you’d like to withdraw into quietness, you can literally do it here. The espresso bar meets you with calmness and can be your get-away place.
Address: Hrets’ka St, 1
Phone: +38 048 737 68 68
Open: 09:00-23:00
Coffee houses in Lviv
‘Svit kavy’
‘Svit kavy’ (literally translated as ‘coffee world’) is on Katedralna Sq. It’s a historical place with an Austrian style interior. The menu offers a variety of desserts to homemade and inventive recipes of Ukrainian and French cuisines, also waffles and sandwiches. Coffee drinks are made using classic or alternative methods on the basis of freshly roasted coffee beans.
The coffee shop has three floors, two of which exhibit paintings updated every two months. In summer you can enjoy a cozy terrace with a marvelous view over a cathedral and the Boim Chapel.
Address: Katedralna Sq, 6
Phone: +380 322 97 56 75
Open: Mon-Sat 07:45-23:00, Sun 08:45-23:00
Black Honey
This modern coffee shop offers a broad variety of special roast alternative coffee, which allows attaining the maximum sweetness of this or that species. The highlight of the shop is Cold Brew coffee, which takes 6-12 hours to prepare to an inventive recipe. Besides, in Black Honey, you can try the true coffee cherry tea. Pastry, breakfasts, sandwiches, and salads are offered to coffee and drinks.
The coffee menu of Black Honey offers classic coffee as well: espresso (26 uah), cappuccino (35 uah), flat white (42 uah). Additionally, they offer chemex (38 uah), V60 (38 uah), and gina (44 uah).
Address: Kostyushko St, 2
Phone: +38 067 577 17 56
Open: Mon-Fri 08:00-22:00, Sat-Sun 09:00-22:00
‘Svit kavy’
The ‘Svit kavy’ coffee shop is in the center of Lviv on Market Square. Both classic and alternative coffee drinks are prepared here. The coffee shop’s baristas are constant participants of all-Ukraine coffee championships and some of them are certified judges.
The café offers a breakfast menu. You are welcome to try a mozzarella sandwich and toasts with goat cheese and egg. As for drinks orange cappuccino, AeroPress and double espresso are worth ordering.
Address: Rynok Sq, 30
Phone: +38 032 235 57 78
Open: 08:00-23:00
A coffee house in Kharkiv
Some Like It Hot
The highlight of this place is green and black Belgian waffles. It is a must for the menu to be updated regularly depending on the season and local food. The pride of the shop is Sanremo Opera coffee machine – the only model in Ukraine.
Some Like It Hot is an obvious allusion to the famous film with Marilyn Monroe. Here we recommend trying orange coffee (49 uah), filter coffee (29 uah), flat white (60 uah), and raf coffee (59 uah).
Address: Sumska St, 71
Phone: +38 098 717 16 16
Open: Mon-Thurs 09:00-23:00, Fri-Sat 09:00-01:00, Sun 10:00-23:00