Walking up the hidden staircases from Saryan Street, visitors might be surprised to find a living anachronism. People living in thousand-year-old buildings, constructed in the ancient Armenian vernacular style. This area, known as *Kond* to the locals, gets its name from the narrow hilltop on which it is built.
One of these ancient structures holds many secrets. Some as old as the building itself, others, more recent. The Kond House brands itself as an "existential bar". From the outside, it's just an old dilapidated house like all the others. Inside, however...well...it's also basically just an old house. The old kitchen now has a bar going through it, the living room has lounge chairs, and the former bedroom has found a new life as the bar's non-smoking lounge. It serves unique cocktails, attracts some of Yerevan's underground culture's weirdest and most interesting people, and promises a memorable evening to all guests.
The barman tells guests that the house the bar is currently located in once belonged to a notorious oligarch who was gunned down in the early '90s. It was a different time.
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It truly is a Soviet masterpiece considering its unique design and build: it is part metro station, part cavern and, once upon a time, part cafe.
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"Homeland Handycrafts" in Yerevan is a social enterprise designed to revive traditional Armenian crafts while employing the most vulnerable population...
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The "Open Air Cinema" in Yerevan in Moscow Cinema has a rich history, and Soviet ruin-porn enthusiasts can access the building all-year round, too!
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"Hanrapetutyan Street" in Yerevan is one of the most central in the city, yet there is so much to see here. The buildings are really beautiful and old...
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"Ardēan": a center for art, architecture and design that has its gallery shop on Abovyan street in Yerevan. I like how they combine technology & tradition.
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The "Mermaids of the Underground" in Yerevan is a sculpture from 1981. The mermaids wear nothing but their hair, which was quite unusual for its time...
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The "Komitas Museum" in Yerevan is one of my favorite ones in the city. It gets me thinking about what Armenian music really is about...
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"Shengavit" is an impressive 6000-year-old settlement which is preserved even better than Yerevan's old town! It was an accidental discovery in the 1930s.
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"Melancholia" is a statue in Yerevan that truly expresses the feeling that has been increasingly affecting humankind in the last century...
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The "Cross-stone Makers" in Yerevan follow a tradition that goes back to 879 AD. The masters' metal tools on the stone create a meditative sound for me...
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"Calumet Ethnic Lounge Bar": THE place for good music in Yerevan. I don't come as often as I'd like to because of the smoke, but it's a must at least once.
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142 Insider Tips from our local Spotters
Authentic Stories by Real People
Escape the crowd & travel slow 🐌
✓ 142 Insider Tips from our local Spotters