Summer on the Right Bank: 7 Old Town Terraces

Local Summer

Summer calls for clean, balanced meals, local ingredients, and natural flavors — and Uno does it best. The restaurant’s concept revolves around farm-fresh produce, and here, it’s not just marketing — it’s the guiding principle. Their own farm in the Akmola region grows vegetables, berries, and herbs, raises poultry and Holstein cows, and produces mozzarella, halloumi, truffle caciotta, and five other cheeses in their dairy. Their bakery churns out tartines and baguettes nightly. Grab a seat on Uno’s open terrace and dive into summer’s best: burrata with juicy tomatoes and pumpkin-seed pesto, duck leg with wild berry sauce, river trout with young spinach, and strawberry tiramisu with ice cream. The bar serves homemade kvass, detox mixes, and seasonal cocktails.

Dinner by the Tower

The 1950s water tower on Kenesary Street is a state-protected architectural landmark — and part of Line Brew. Behind its massive walls lie stained glass, wrought-iron chandeliers, dark wood, a stone grill, and the atmosphere of a medieval castle, while the courtyard hides a charming terrace. The menu is all about hearty meat classics: dry-aged beef carpaccio, rich solyanka, entrecôte, ribeye, tomahawk, and ribs slow-cooked to tenderness. A perfect stage for a gastronomic jousting match in the heart of the city.

Pasta in the Winter Garden

Lugano whisks you away to Southern Europe, and its glass-enclosed veranda masquerades as a cozy green patio year-round. But it’s at its best in summer, when the balance of scorching sun and cool AC is just right. The menu features everything we love about Italian cuisine: handmade pasta, thin-crust pizza, seafood risotto, salads generously topped with Parmesan, and their signature tiramisu.

Countryside Vibes

The bright terrace at Zina overlooks a green courtyard with a small playground — an ideal spot for leisurely family lunches. Chef Artem Marchenko’s menu is all about home cooking: sometimes that home is in Asia (grilled broccoli with unagi, cauliflower with miso), sometimes in Italy (birchwood-fired pizza), but most often, it’s a nostalgic nod to Soviet comfort food. Breakfast here means fried eggs with sausage and tomatoes; lunch is okroshka; after work, it’s beef stew and stuffed peppers — like escaping the city for a visit grandma’s.

Wine, Movies, More Wine

A beautiful spot for wine evenings, The Wine Cafe’s terrace glows with string lights by dusk, and as the sun sets, open-air movie screenings begin — daily, around 20:00, with heartwarming European films on screen. Even if you know the plot by heart, you’ll want to linger and sip against the backdrop. The wine racks hold over 600 labels, and the menu is light hedonism: Brie, duck magret, bruschetta with roasted peppers and horse meat, Burgundy snails, and crab-stuffed cabbage with Champagne sauce.

Plov and Kebabs Under a Canopy

Just steps from the embankment, Ali Baba’s summer terrace is styled like an Eastern tent: woven shades provide shelter, fairy lights add coziness, and the kitchen sends out waves of spice and grilled meat. The vibe is a bustling, colorful bazaar. The menu is a Central Asian tour: Uzbek plov, rich lagman, hearty kuirdak, kespe, samsa, chebureki, and, of course, kebabs. What’s a terrace without kebabs? A wasted summer.

Tented Oasis in the Park

Nestled in the greenery of Central Park, near the National Tennis Center, Uchquduq’s spacious terrace is built for family outings. Tents and private pavilions, large tables and daybeds, an open playground with a trampoline, slides, and cartoon screenings — it’s all here. The menu is generous spread of Eastern classics: fragrant Fergana plov, lagman (fried, in broth, or homestyle), manti with meat and pumpkin, juicy kebabs, samsa, shurpa, and chuchvara.

Photos: restaurant websites and social media; Yandex Maps