Gastronomic Tourism Is Trending: What the “Wine and Taste Roads of the Kyiv Region” Project Offers

This is a network of organised oeno-gastronomic tourist routes in Kyiv Oblast. Its main points of interest are gastronomic locations: restaurants, local producers, places open to visitors, gastro-tourism complexes and so on. The network of routes is being developed on the initiative of the Kyiv Regional State Administration under the umbrella brand “Wine and Taste Roads of Ukraine” in line with EU standards. The Tourism Department of the Kyiv Regional State Administration is responsible for implementing the project.

“Wine and Taste Roads of Ukraine”: Innovation in Tourism

“Wine and Taste Roads of Ukraine” is a tourism product that is innovative for Ukraine and promotes the development of rural areas. It supports producers of traditional products and has a positive effect on preserving and strengthening the biodiversity and cultural heritage of local communities. All this is achieved through the integrated development of agricultural production and tourism, which ensures a variety of production activities in rural areas and attracts additional financial income from tourists and investors.

The system created by the project solves the most important question facing the host side: how to combine the best offers and landmark sites of the region so as to preserve and develop the historical, cultural and gastronomic heritage and interest guests in visiting the region and spending money there, receiving quality services and good impressions. This is exactly the experience of developing oeno-gastronomic tourism that the “Wine and Taste Roads of Ukraine” expert group is putting into practice in Ukraine.

To manage the project, its participants united in a public association of the same name, “Wine and Taste Roads of the Kyiv Region”. The development of the “Wine and Taste Roads of the Kyiv Region” is ongoing, and the number of association members keeps growing.

The “Road” is being developed using a methodology worked out by EU experts within the EU project Geographical Indications in Ukraine, based on the pilot project “Wine and Taste Road of Ukrainian Bessarabia”, which became one of the landmark projects in Ukraine.

Directions of the “Wine and Taste Roads of the Kyiv Region” Network

Each direction of the “Road” and the routes on it have their own flavour, historical and cultural character and include more than 50 diverse sites to visit. The routes are radial and start from the “Zero Kilometre” sign on Independence Square (Maidan Nezalezhnosti).

The project was launched in 2021 and has already developed 5 directions: Rzhyshchiv, Yahotyn, Yasnohorodka, Chornobyl and Yabluniv. The development of the “Road” continues: locations are being added, the existing directions are being expanded and new ones are taking shape.

The routes of the “Wine and Taste Roads of Ukraine” will appeal to everyone who enjoys combining travel with gastronomic delights, and will be an ideal option for families with children. Most of the locations will captivate little ones through direct contact with nature and traditions.

What Awaits Tourists on the Routes

The trips are designed mostly for 1 day, departing from Kyiv (no more than 300 kilometres per day). The routes are easy, and the means of transport is a car.

Along the route, guests will meet goat and snail farms, wineries, tasting rooms, cheese dairies, producers of alcoholic and other drinks, farms growing mushrooms, organic vegetables and fruit, fish and nuts, fishing spots, glamping sites, eco-homesteads and much more. Moreover, besides the culture of consuming organic products and drinks, tourists will learn about the crafts, culture and customs of the region.

All the project’s journeys begin at venues in Kyiv. These are the following gastronomic locations in the capital.

Regional Cuisine Restaurant “Hlek”

This restaurant serves cuisine made only from selected local products grown within a 100-kilometre radius. Thanks to the use of seasonal vegetables and fruit, the menu changes by 50% every two months.

The venue is located at the corner of two of the capital’s oldest streets: Volodymyrska and Velyka Zhytomyrska. It is also housed in a historic building dating from 1882 – an architectural landmark that has always been home to eateries.

Restaurant “Kanapa”

The venue combines authentic recipes made from local products with modern molecular cuisine techniques. The building itself also deserves special attention – it is a preserved 19th-century wooden house with a fireplace hall.

Tasting Area Biologist Terrace

At this area, located near the sixth pavilion of VDNH, you can taste craft wines of the Biologist brand.

You can find more locations and representatives of the “Wine and Taste Road of the Kyiv Region” on their Facebook page and plan a trip along all 5 directions starting tomorrow.