Taste of Ukraine: the perfect hot dog, concept restaurants and business during war

LIGA.Life talked to Yevhen Klopotenko, a chef, creative entrepreneur and public activist, and asked him how to "discover" the taste of modern Ukraine in the format of street food, under what conditions Ukrainian cuisine has the potential to be popularized in the world, about the peculiarities of the restaurant business during the war, as well as about the development of the "100 YEARS" and "100SHOP" brands.

LIGA.Life: What is your favorite dish from childhood and have you tried to "reboot" it in your own style?

Yevhen Klopotenko: This is always a difficult question for me, because for the most part I grew up with Soviet cuisine, the dishes of which did not excite me. However, I remember that I liked porridge with milk made from sorghum grains, which were little known at that time. This is a cereal crop whose grains look like starch balls. And what's interesting, when I first tried authentic cob porridge, it seemed to bring me back to my childhood. But this is more about rethinking than "reboot".

Frankly, it's hard for me to remember anything, because for most of my life I've been busy trying to erase post-Soviet culinary memories from my memory. I don't want to have anything to do with that poverty and grayness. Therefore, I did not "reboot" any dishes from my childhood. Rather, I began to search for and fall in love with new truly Ukrainian flavors.

"U Inny" and the new era of Ukrainian street food

How do you assess the success of the "U Inny" concept in the modern fast food trend? Does this format meet the expectations of your audience, who are looking for a quick, but high-quality and authentic product, including dumplings, porridge, etc.?

At the moment, street food is a completely new market for me. Both in terms of processes, and in terms of business approaches, and in terms of the audience. "Inna's" can be considered a kind of startup. We experiment with the menu, observe the reaction of guests, take into account comments, adapt to changes. For example, they recently added darunas to the menu, and they became an instant hit. This means that our audience is open to new flavors and combinations. 

In general, I think I managed to create what I wanted, and at the same time satisfy people's need for quality, interesting, and most importantly, Ukrainian street food. It is too early to talk about success. When we have 20-30 points across the country and a few abroad, then I can confidently say that this is a really successful concept.

— How do you see the further development of this direction?

— In fact, "U Inna" is a continuation of the "Poltava" project, just in a different segment. I have always worked in the direction of comfort food. That is, it is important to me that people not only eat quickly, but also receive additional value and pleasure. So I'm currently thinking how to combine these two concepts and whether it's necessary at all.

Speaking of expansion, my team and I want to create the perfect hot dog. Tasty, healthy and with Ukrainian notes. Also, soon we will announce a new format – Ukrainian pies. Perhaps in the future they will be part of the street food menu. Or – a new business in the delivery niche. Ideally, I aim to create businesses that will successfully compete in various market segments.

Ukrainian cuisine on the world stage: chibereks, cheese cakes and other trends

— What other Ukrainian dishes, in your opinion, could become the basis for the street food trend — not only in Ukraine, but also abroad?