A coffee shop in Kyiv called "Trump" is rebranding to "Nolan" as Ukrainians grow increasingly frustrated with U.S. President Donald Trump's stance on Ukraine.
Located in the capital's central Pechersk district, the establishment was opened in 2019 and in January of this year celebrated Trump's inauguration with a special "Trump sour" cocktail.
It was an apt name in hindsight as since then things have only soured further — the now infamous Oval Office showdown, the subsequent halting of U.S. military aid and intelligence, and the White House's wooing of Russia have left many Ukrainians disillusioned with Trump's efforts to end Moscow's full-scale invasion.
"I pass by this place every morning, and the name always triggers me," 22-year-old local Daryna Zdzeba told the Kyiv Independent outside the cafe.
Roman Kravtsov, creative director of Nolan, admired Trump as a businessman and had hoped his policies after taking office for the second time would favor Ukraine.
But in light of recent events, it was decided the name had to go. "I don't want to dwell on the past," he told the Kyiv Independent.
Kravtsov also insists the name was at least partly inspired by holding a "trump card" in a game like poker, but pictures on the cafe's Facebook page show it has regularly leaned heavily into the Trump angle — coffee cups and packaging have featured a stamp of Trump wearing a vyshyvanka, a traditional Ukrainian embroidered shirt.
Kravtsov is also involved with another establishment — a pizzeria that is also changing its name to "Nolan," and has removed a pizza from the menu that was called the "Trumpino."
"I hope there's an impeachment. That's how I feel about Trump."
Kravtsov compares this rebranding to a shift after Ukraine's 2013-2014 EuroMaidan Revolution, a pro-Western, pro-democracy uprising also known as the Revolution of Dignity. "Back then, a well-known beer chain changed its name from a Russian word to something more international," he said.
"We're doing the same now. And it's not just about the name — it's about real changes."
In protest of Trump's actions, Ukrainians began jokingly avoiding Americanized names, calling an Americano "Ukrainiano" or "Europiano" instead.
A similar phenomenon has occurred in some Canadian cafes which started serving "Canadiano" in Toronto and British Columbia following Trump's comments about making Canada the 51st state of the U.S.
At Nolan however, the Americano will be staying on the menu.
"Renaming the Americano doesn't make sense," Kravtsov says. "It's a historic name that comes from Italy."
For 22-year-old Maria, who asked not to mention her last name, an English teacher who works near the coffee shop, the cafe’s name never mattered much.
"I come here because I like the coffee and cheesecakes," she says.
But sipping their coffees, Maria and Zdzeba say Trump's Ukraine policy is "just dreadful."
They describe his Oval Office meeting with Zelensky as feeling like "a school bullies' gathering."
"I hope there's an impeachment. That's how I feel about Trump," Maria adds.
Yuliia Taradiuk
