Uhochanskyi Smak Lekvar Tasting Hall, Botar

In the village of Botar in the Berehove area, close to the Hungarian border, the Uhochanskyi Smak tasting hall is the place to try genuine Transcarpathian lekvar — thick, sugar-free plum butter — along with smoked Mangalica pork and natural juices from a local farm. The hall was opened in 2012 by the Tyzesh farming family, known for organic products sold under the Pan Eko and Uhochanskyi Smak brands. It occupies an old, stylishly restored former tobacco-drying barn at the edge of the village.

What to taste

The main reason to come is a lekvar tasting in Transcarpathia right where it is made. On a wooden board you are served several kinds: classic plum, and versions made from sloe, blueberry, blackberry, rowan, redcurrant and other fruit. To go with it there are sausages, smoked and roasted meat from Hungarian Mangalica pigs raised on the farm nearby, natural juices and pálinka. Small groups can book the hall, and then Hungarian and Transcarpathian dishes are added to the tasting.

• several kinds of lekvar (plum and berry);
• Mangalica sausages and smoked meats;
• juices, syrups, pálinka;
• products to take away — Pan Eko plum butter, jams, syrups and juices.

The lekvar tradition

Lekvar is one of the most recognisable dishes of Hungarian and Transcarpathian cooking. In autumn, ripe plums are simmered for hours in large copper cauldrons and stirred non-stop with a wooden paddle until the mass thickens and darkens. Made without sugar or preservatives, it keeps for years, and in the villages of Ugocsa — the historic land around Vynohradiv — whole families still make it together. In the Botar hall you can see more than twenty kinds of Transcarpathian lekvar and a collection of jams from countries around the world, and at the entrance guests are greeted by sculptures of a Mangalica pig and a "lekvar monument" by local sculptor Mykhailo Kolodko.

Practical information

The hall opens by advance arrangement only: call ahead to agree the time and tasting format. Prices depend on the menu and group size — confirm them when booking. Sources give the address as 2 Petőfi St or 4a Holovna St; the coordinates are the easiest guide — the building stands at the edge of the village.

• Phones: +38 097 381 40 52, +38 068 996 75 90, +38 095 914 78 56.
• Season: all year; autumn, during the plum harvest, is especially interesting.

How to get there

Botar lies about 23 km from Vynohradiv, in the southern part of historic Ugocsa. A car is the most convenient option; village roads are uneven in places, so allow extra time. Public transport is irregular, so without a car book a transfer or taxi from Berehove or Vynohradiv.

Tip before you go

Call at least a day or two ahead: the hall has no fixed hours, and the hosts need time to prepare the tasting. If you come in autumn, ask whether lekvar is being cooked — sometimes you can watch the plums simmering in the cauldron. It is wise to carry some cash.

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Photos: Alkom-lviv, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons; Dmytro Petishkin, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons.