The Tastes of Ukraine
If you enjoy food and dining like the Loundas family and you want a huge bang for your buck, you might want to consider experiencing Ukrainian cuisine. We have not skimped at any meal, nor have we denied ourselves any delicacies. We have stayed on budget which is a plan of $30 per day for two. It's hard to believe but dinner for two with beverages, salad, entres, side dishes, dessert and coffee is typically under $15.
Only the larger restaurants or hotel resturants have English menus. However, many times that still keeps you guessing. We have enjoyed many laughs trying to decipher what we are really ordering. We've tried boiled tonuge with mustard sauce & crap, chicken with caucasian sauce, meat filling and homely sour cream, rich clear soup with chicken plucks and crisp breads, cuddle fish wish squid and of course, the famous dessert world tower. It has been quite the culinary adventure.
The best part of the evening was when his parents and I tried to explain to him that Craig and I had met a beautiful and wonderful Ukrainian woman who was just perfect for him. A few days back, Craig and I met Yana in the bank and we quickly jumped into match making mode. Sasha agreed that he would like to meet her and Larisa immediately dialed her number. Long story short, the two of them plan to meet for a walk or a coffee when she returns from her summer vacation in Bulgaria.
Last night was the Trump's final evening in Severodonetsk. Tatiana selected the Golden Palace for dinner which was a wonderful resturant. Below is Sergey our in-region facilitator outside of the gates.
Above is a picture from our second evening in town at a restuarant called Edem (Garden of Eden). Prior to Craig's departure, we achieved official "regular" status with the staff at Edem. Our first dinner there was a bit strange. The outside temperature was over 90 degrees. We were inside a small room off of the main dining room that did not have AC. Our little room had a door that remained closed because there was a loud party in the main room. Needless to say, the conditions were quite unpleasant. Ever since that evening we have opted to dine al fresco and now have our favorite waitress Tatiana who speaks English and loves to share information about Severodonetsk. 
There is seafood galore in Ukraine which of course has me very happy. The salad above was out of this world. Sauteed mussels and mushrooms on a bed of lettuce with croutons. LOVED IT! Underneath is a side of more mussels with onions. Dinner that night was 78 hryvnia (pronounced "grievna") which is less than ten dollars.
Above was the table of treats the teachers prepared for the joint birthday celebrations for Larisa and me. We had cherries, cheese, cookies and apples. Below is a lunch table at the orphanage before the kids left for camp. I think most every meal includes a soup. We have grown to love akroshka which is a cold mayonaise based soup with minced chive, potato, hardboiled egg and ham. I am not sure what the soup is pictured below but it is a staple, that's for sure.
Of course we have enjoyed several birthday cakes. Look closely at the one above for Sergei's birthday. When we went to the market, someone had already purchased a cut of the cake so one end was missing. In the stores, one buys a slice and then pays by the weight. It did not bother Sergei one bit that his cake was missing a chunk. In fact, on his birthday we sat outside of the camp gates and watched him finger scoop off all of the top layers of icing before we cut the cake. Below you can see there are no decorative swirls of icing remaining in the center of the cake. That did not slow Gena down from enjoying a big healthy piece.
Breakfast has become a favorite meal. It is included in our room rate which is $45 per night. Breakfast is more like dinner but we have quickly become accustomed to a broad array of foods first thing in the day. There are four choices called complexes: #1 is an omelette, #2 dumplings, #3 fish and #4 chicken with bulgar wheat. Craig, the traditionalist, stuck with the omlette for the duration of his stay. I tried every one and found #3 fish to be my favorite breakfast meal. Each variety comes with a bowl of shredded cabbage, cheese, butter, bread and a sweet of some sort. We loved our morning meals with Cheryl and Rusty. Most days we would eat outside until the cat became too much of a nuisance. One morning (above), I used my best Russian to order cappucino and brought them up to the room. No such thing as room service here.
Below is our reunion dinner with Sergei on our first night in Severodonetsk. We joined the Trumps, Sergey and Yana the lawyer from the orphanage. She was the responsible party for Sergei and Tatiana . This restaurant is called Salvadore Dali. I think it is the first time that either of them had dined in a restarant in Ukraine. Morozhenoye (mah-roh-zhih-nuh-eh) or ice cream is a very common dessert and most people end their meals with a bowl topped with sauces, fruit, nuts or coconut. 
This picture below brings us to the beginning part of our journey in Kyiv. We were browsing through an outdoor market outside of the SDA where our very first appointment occured. Craig and I decided to have a bite at a small cafe in the middle of the market. He ordered a Ukrainian sandwich (below) and I ordered something called the Mother-in-laws tongue (last picture). We have had many laughs over the translation from Ukrainian or Russian to English on the menus. The descriptions still leave you guessing.
Above is our first dinner in Kyiv with the Bridget and Kyle Lawlor from Georgia and Rita, Robert & Dustin Dunmire form Pittsburgh. Below Craig was missing his Philadelphia street vendors and stop for a coffee at Indpendence Square.
This is the mother-in-law's tongue which was delicious fried eggplant, tomatoes and a mayonaise dressing. Very delicious.
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