insideKENT Magazine Issue 29 - August 2014 | Page 59

FOOD+DRINK

insideKENT exclusive interview with Jenka Levytska-Swinyard of

Samovar Foods
The brainchild of native Russian-turned-Kent-resident Jenka Levytska-Swinyard, Samovar
Foods produces traditional Russian cuisine with a twist; this being its recipes use only the
finest in Kentish produce. Crafting a mouth-watering selection of sweet and savoury dishes,
salads and more, entrepreneur Jenka had little idea of the ripples her business would create
when she started cooking from her humble Kent-based country kitchen five years ago.

Fast forward and Samovar has become quite
the institution. Not only does it frequent a long
list of farmers' markets and events in Kent, it is
in high demand from wholesalers, and in March
of this year, won a well-deserved Taste of Kent
Award for its exceptional Kentish Honey Cake.
insideKENT's Gemma Dunn caught up with
Jenka to talk success and Samovar's future
plans.
How did Samovar come about?
In August 2009, I invited a group of 20+ friends
over for my birthday. Catering for a mixed group
of nationalities, I cooked a range of different
Russian dishes, and as the party went on guests
were complimenting the food and suggesting I
do it for a living. Just two weeks later, I sold my
food for the first time at the Canterbury High
Street Market.
Tell us a bit about Samovar's products. What
does the range include?
Samovar produces a delicious range of sweet
and savoury, plus hot and cold dishes. All of our
products are made using the best Kentish
ingredients available, and of course some
speciality Russian products that I source both
here in the UK and Russia. The range includes
our award-winning Kentish Honey Cake and our
extremely popular gluten-free Mascarpone Cake.
The next big work-in-progress is to produce a
gluten-free version of our Honey Cake.
We also have a savoury range, which
includes Shuba (herring salad); Mimosa (a delicate

salmon dish); and our best selling savoury dish,
Pechyonka tort (a delicate blend of chicken liver
pancakes with caramelised onions, caramelised
carrots, and fresh herbs). The latter was
introduced at the 2013 Kent Show and originates
from a traditional rural recipe.
Where can our readers find Samovar's
products?
We can be found at different Kent farmers'
markets, such as Tonbridge, Tunbridge Wells,
Rochester, Elm Court, Cliftonville and Faversham,
to name but a few. We also attend events such
as the Kent County Show, where you can find
us in the Produced in Kent area, Broadstairs
Food Festival, Canterbury Food and Drink Festival,
plus Rochester's Sweeps and Dickens Festivals.
A full list of events can be found at
www.samovarfoods.com.

What would you say are the most challenging
and rewarding aspects of your job?
It is our mission to banish the stereotypical
perception of Russian food being bland, and
instead introduce a delicate, delicious taste
experience to everyone we have the pleasure of
meeting. Watching a customer break into a big
smile after tasting one of my cakes is the most
rewarding aspect.
Who inspires your work?
.
My biggest inspiration has to be my grandmother
She nurtured my love of cooking from an early
age, and while she was my biggest critic, she
was also my biggest fan. When I started
developing my Honey Cake recipe at the age of
12, she called all of her friends for a tea party to
come and try it. The rest is history.

You've had a fantastic response to your
recipes. What has been your most popular
dish to date?
Most definitely the Honey Cake.

What's next for Samovar?
In addition to the shows and markets, the aim is
to develop the wholesale side of the business
and build a relationship with larger stockists in
order to introduce Honey Cake and other dishes
to a wider consumer audience.

What do you think makes