Ukrainian East Village Restaurant
Ukrainian restaurant · East Village ·
Hearty Ukrainian comfort food served in a cozy, old-school diner setting
Hearty Ukrainian comfort food served in a cozy, old-school diner setting
"Next door to Veselka is a no-frills Ukrainian East Village Restaurant; on Saturday I saw a line stretched well past the neon-lit entrance, something this restaurant rarely sees." - Ryan Sutton
"I've learned that a veteran restaurateur with a soft spot for diners is considering reviving the shuttered Ukrainian diner Odessa in the East Village: Louis Skibar of Toloache Restaurant Group said Odessa is “next on the list” after his resurrection of Upper West Side diner Old John’s, other local restaurateurs have expressed interest, and a potential deal may already be in the works; the diner closed amid confusion in July 2020, has sat dormant for nearly a year, and was listed on Craigslist last month with an asking price of $400,000." - Erika Adams
"Kiev was more consistently open later, and was more popular among musicians. One could see members of Sonic Youth there, or saxophonists Henry Threadgill and John Zorn, along with rafts of students carrying leatherette portfolios from Parsons, SVA, and Cooper Union, the art schools that seemed to suck up a large proportion of Alphabet City’s cheap housing." - Robert Sietsema
"This Ukrainian restaurant is cheaper, more rustic, and less artsy than the other two, with a menu containing fewer modern notions. It's hidden behind the Sly Fox Bar in the same building as the Ukrainian Credit Union. It offers a full liquor license and a menu with options like kielbasa, goulash, stuffed cabbage, chicken Kiev, or potato-and-cheese pierogi. Portions are massive and prices are reasonable for a full-service, sit down restaurant." - Robert Sietsema
"A longtime East Village late-night Ukrainian diner that served as a neighborhood staple; its legacy was respected during a lease transition (the former owners remain connected as landlords) and its departure marked one of many small, emotive neighborhood changes." - Chris Crowley, Dolly Faibyshev
