Every day this week, our foreign correspondents will accept the challenge of finding the best meal possible in their city for the equivalent of €120. Today, Daniel McLaughlin brings us to an eccentric restaurant in Odesa, Ukraine.
Odesa’s hospitality has long been celebrated in Ukrainian films and songs, and is reflected in the nickname given to this port city by the Black Sea: Odesa Mama.
It conjures up the image of a kindly but formidable matriarch, always fussing over loved ones, feeding them fantastic food and ignoring their indiscretions – and Odesa has always valued pleasure over propriety – before sending them on their way with a fierce bearhug that makes them, albeit briefly, consider the error of their ways and regret eating quite so lavishly.
Now let’s imagine that this Odesa Mama, some time in the late 19th century, was befriended by artistic and slightly eccentric aristocrats and asked to cook for them at their beautiful country home. The result would have been something like Dacha.
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For two decades, this restaurant on Frantsuzky Bulvar (French Boulevard) has offered an escape from the quotidian and the clamour of modern life. It is more precious than ever now, after nearly four years of all-out war and frequent Russian missile and drone strikes on the city.
Dacha sits in a large garden that is allowed to run a little wild. In the warmer months, flowers grow where they will and cats snooze under hammocks strung up between the tall trees that provide shade for the tables dotted around the grounds.
A pale stone path meanders through the bushes and past a tinkling fountain to the main building, a small manor house whose diningrooms manage to be both elegant and homely, airy in summer and cosy in winter, when snow sometimes fills the garden.
The menu is as welcoming as the setting, combining fine renditions of Ukrainian classics with dishes that reflect the strong influence of the Jewish community on Odesa and its cuisine. It is satisfying food to be enjoyed at leisure, in any season.
The plate of Odesa appetisers includes bowls of forshmak, a traditional herring pate; a rich aubergine and red pepper spread that Ukrainians call “eggplant caviar”; an exquisitely light and melting gefilte fish; a fan of tiny silver sprats, and challah bread. It is a perfect introduction to the city’s food, for less than €25.
The aroma of wood smoke can be hard to resist, especially on a warm day in the garden, so how about something from the barbecue to follow, perhaps grilled trout, tender veal chops or juicy pieces of pork or chicken roasted on the skewer, shashlik style? They all go well with a bowl of tiny buttered new potatoes in summer or, in the chillier months, creamy porcini mushrooms on a bed of mashed potato.
Favourite Ukrainian desserts on the menu include nalysnyky – sweet pancake rolls stuffed with curd cheese and baked in a pot – and plump varenyky dumplings with cherries.
Dacha is a celebration of this city and of Ukraine, of their food and hospitality and resilience during wartime. So why not toast them with a bottle of sparkling Kolonist Bisser Brut (€45), made from chardonnay grapes grown near the coast in Odesa region. Savva-libkin.com/en/restaurant/odessa/dacha
