Ukrainian restaurant to open in London’s Shoreditch

Tatar Bunar, a Ukrainian restaurant from Alex Cooper and Anna Andriienko, is due to open in March this year in east London.

The restaurant is named after Tatarbunary in southern Ukraine, where Cooper is from.

Cooper remains in Ukraine, where he is supporting his community and the army, while Andriienko has relocated to London to oversee the launch of the restaurant.  

It will showcase dishes from head chef Kate Tkachuk, who has leaned into old family traditions.

The menu is set to include the likes of borscht (a traditional beetroot soup) and chicken Kyiv, as well as recipes from Cooper’s grandmother.

In terms of interior design, the Tatar Bunar project has been led by I am Design and features reclaimed wood from the Carpathian region as well as Bulgarian stone from Bessarabia.

The 90-cover restaurant will also champion Ukrainian artists and craftsmen, including Svetlana Sholomitska, who has supplied the tiles, plates, cups and vases at Tatar Bunar, which were made during the blackouts in Kyiv.

In the summer months, the restaurant will seat an additional 20 guests in its outdoor terrace.