Checked this store today and really liked it. I've recently moved from New York, and me and my husband are accustomed to good and rather inexpensive Russian food. Kalinka is actually the fourth Russian grocery store I'm checking in Silicon Valley, and yet the best one. The choice is rather good and prices are much better than in other Russian grocery stores in the area. This is the only store where I found "Tri Korochki" croutons and fresh baked bread (instead of packaged one all other stores sell), and also the least expensive sunflower seeds in the Valley. Very nice owners. The guy helped me with the bags to the car. The only disadvantage - the choice of brands could be richer (not much of Ukrainian brands I'm used to). All in all very good store. Wish I lived closer, but from time to time 20 minute drive may be worth it. Addition on 12/11/2011: I'm disappointed to change my review from 5* to 3*, but all good thing for which I liked this place at first (cheap sunflower seeds and "Tri Korochki" croutons) are non-existent any more... They raised the prices on the seeds, now it's cheaper to order them online from NY, and don't have "Tri Korochki" any more... Very disappointing... Addition on 2/1/2012: Thanks for taking into consideration my review - lowering prices on the seeds and stocking up with "Tri korochki" :) read more

Just as I though I found a decent Russian store, employees showed their true nature. We came on a Friday evening, at 7pm only to find the store in a disastrous condition with isles moved into the walkways and a bucket full of dirty water on the way (right by uncovered pastries FYI). Such an appearance is not only unpleasant, but a violation of a fire code as well. After I squeezed between the bucked of water and an isle wall to get to the items I wanted to purchase, I hear a cashier running towards me and saying :" oh no-no! It's not dry yet!". Not an "excuse me", not a "pardon us, it's freshly washed", but a yelp of disappointment. I was taken off guard by her words and asked what is wet... because everything was clearly dry, and they didn't have any signs indicating otherwise. She then proceeded to explain that they don't have a proper sign, so they just barricaded the isle lol ... very poor customer service, and violation of fire codes is what you get for shopping at Kalinka. I won't be back. read more

Great store with super nice staff. Great selection of Eastern European products including Polish beer.

It is a very good European store; it has a wide range of products, either fresh or canned.

Unexpected euro grocery in a small location in south san jose. Very good selections of Polish, Russian sausages and deli. Best selections and choices for Europeans I have found so far. The deli is very good. read more

I used to absolutely love to come to this Russian store however lately the customer service went downhill. The new guys working are not as friendly and attentive to the customers. I was checking out while a women next to me was asking questions in regards to a product and the guy behind the register was giving her one word answers and finally he just rolled his eyes. Extremely unprofessional and makes me not want to come in as often. I do hope that the customer service will improve and I will be more than happy to update my review, until than... read more

Reminds me of mom and pop store in Brooklyn with fresh rye read sausages desserts and more

Be careful and watch expiration dates on products! I bought raspberry preserve and condensed milk far out of dates. I know it's also my fault but they keep these products and try to sell them to get extra money instead of just throw away :( didn't return products cause live far from the area. read more

An amazing market. The best variety of snacks as well as fresh meats and beers! They carried Marianne's ice cream, of Santa Cruz, as well. Very friendly staff and nicely priced items. read more

Few weeks ago I got a cake and had to return because it was not fresh and had blue mold on it. The owner returned the money for the cake. Yesterday I bought the bread baked at Cinderella bakery and the bread has blue molds. I guess it's my fault that I have not inspect the bread for freshness and expiration day... Yesterday was January 10 and expiration on bread is dated January 6. Looks like owners are not taking seriously the product handling and just lost a customer.i hope things get better read more

Kalinka - Bread with mold from kalinka store - International Grocery Near Me - San Jose, California

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Very nice selection compared to other Eastern European and Russian grocery stores in the area. Unbeatable service. Everyone is always helpful and the owners are very nice people. The only suggestion or warning I have is - don't come in to this store while hungry. Eat first! Otherwise you are at risk of buying everything within your reach :) read more

This is probably my favorite Russian store in the Bay Area. Always full and you can find almost everything you need including souvenirs and vegetables. I love their opinion to cut cheese or sausages. They have a fresh good tasting bread, and even if they don't have it at a moment, they will suggest you to buy frozen one for baking (sometimes can be more convenient, its half ready, so you have to bake it only for 20 min). Prices are very fair and I know a couple of items that are cheaper than in a regular grocery store :) Stuff is very welcoming and polite. Sometimes there could be a line, but it moves pretty fast. Despite of busy parking around it's pretty easy to park a car (they have reserved spots). read more

This Russian grocery is great! Tons of products unique to Eastern Europe, and other places as well. Fruit always looks fresh and is cheap. We just picked up a loaf of their fresh baked seeded rye bread and it's amazing! Always friendly people working here. Need pickled goods or other unique European sauces/dressings? Go no further. Baked goods look great too! Glad they are in walking distance! read more

Short Story: Cute looking store, with a super rude owner. Long Story: My friend and I were going to eat lunch near by (at La Vic's) when we decided to check out the "cute russian grocery store" next door. We are both designers and are always looking for inspiring things. They had some interesting packaging and when my friend took a photo of something on her cellphone, the old Russian man behind the counter immediately got in my friend's face and began hassling her. He told her how it was so rude and what our problem was. He then asked how would we like it if he took our photo, and then accused us of taking the picture to "sell to someone online," then demanded the picture deleted. He then turned to me (I was holding a bottle to show my friend) and asked what I was doing with the bottle. Needless to say we both left w/o seeing the rest of the store. I don't mind being told "sorry no photos," but this was ridiculous treatment. I'm not surprised they were empty on a Sunday afternoon! read more

I used to be a frequent buyer in this strore for 10+ yrs since moving to Almaden area. Unfortunately, they are deteriorating. This was never a high end place :-) but now you must really watch out what you are buying. First, check expiration date on every packed or canned item. Second, do NOT buy anything from "deli" department. It looks like they are too greedy to throw away anything - they will try to sell it to you instead. Third, you may be charged twice - check the receipt carefully. So, I warned you, but why as many as 3 stars, not less? That's because they sell something unique that you can't get in ordinary stores, food for Russian parties, etc. Go there twice per year - March 8 and Dec 31 - when you have too, and don't take more risks. read more

Nice selection of Eastern European and Russian grocery items. Today is Fat Tuesday 2016, and they had Paczki available for purchase! As a transplant from the Midwest, this annual treat had eluded me here in the Bay Area. Until today. Thanks to the shopkeepers for making them available. read more

The best Russian store in Silicon Valley. Delicious freshly baked bread. Nice stuff.

Love coming here. Always fresh food, friendly service and affordable prices. Even medicine and herbs, honey and cheeses and much much more. Decerts are yamy and make come back every time. Thanks read more

yeee heee, shabling!! this place is one legit compact Russian quickie pad. i struck gold and followed my nose to this gem by being a curious cat, Ah, thank goodness for my curiosity. For once it did not kill, but I digress.. Ova heeyah they have a heap of Russian/euro treats including: sausages desserts beers spices I purchase these items just as a sampler set, and to tickle my tastebuds of what they have to offer: Saags Nuernberger brats: nice flavor and snap gourmet Hungarian smoked sausage: salty, smokey, kinda like pepperoni Dadu vanilla and strawberry chocolate covered frozen cheese treats: like sweet frozen cream cheese covered with choco. Stawski premium lager: nice and refreshering. The lady that rang me up is super kind and super sweet and friendly. She recommend me to try out the fresh rye bread next time around. I need to go back now! lol. Kalinka is kaching kaching, in other words, it's the bizz. read more

Incredibly good bread; great variety of real European bread; delicious deserts - cakes, strudel, etc.. fish and sausage smoked and cured the European way. I also like their teas read more

After tonight experience it should be zero stars but unfortunately there is no such option!! I have been a customer for this business for 10 years and I am very disappointed to see it going in the wrong direction... They changed staff over time, I do not see the same faces as a few years ago. They have a new staff, extremely arrogant, to the point of talking back to customers with attitude; I did a purchase for over $250 today and I requested them to slice some meat but to use a new, fresh piece as the one on display was looking bad; they brought a new piece of meat from the back but they started to cut from the old one, trying to mask it, so I do not see..., I saw it and told them again I specifically requested a new piece because the one on display was bad and should have not even being there. The manager backed up his staff, with the same attitude even when I mentioned that he might lose a customer - they both said "It's fine!" They explained to me "it is bad for the business to sell from the new piece before the old one is sold..." Oh, but it is good for the customer to buy bad meat? It is very concerning if they do not care for their customers, therefore I will spread the word to everybody I know they might be shopping in this store, about their practices and bad customer service! There are other stores in the area with the same merchandise that will be happy to have the business. Have at it! read more

Good choices at ok prices. Great variety of items from Eastern Europe, mostly Russia.

About a year ago or a little longer the ownership changed. And since then everything is much better! The couple owning this store are very nice and helpful, the food is incredible and the prices are right. I love the bread they sell, if you come around noon it's still warm! read more

I've been going to this store for years, and month after month it was getting worse and worse until the current owners finally brought this place to the high standards. The selection of meats, dairy, fish, pickles, juices, deli and bakery is endless. And now when they added fruits and veggies this makes my shopping so much easier. The produce is always fresh, so applies to all items. And bread!!!! Oh my God, fresh baked bread, it's a killer :))) Call them 20 min before coming and the hot loaf is waiting for you to be picked up. If you go there once, you are hooked for life. Thanks Irina and Baruh for your hard work, for friendly and courteous service. You faithful customer. read more

Kalinka has very fresh produce. I love to get the warm multi grain bread (which they make themselves), ice cream, tea and sweets. But they also have a wide range of deli meats amd other things. They have a very nice and unique selection compared to other stores. Service is nice and can count on a worker to help you. And they do catering. Overall selection, produce, catering, staff, and catering is 5 stars. read more

Amazing store since the new owners bought it. Highly recommend !!!

The product they sell is not fresh. Owners don't pull out old product from shelf's or refrigerator, but on the question if it's fresh they always say - Yes. Don't offer to change or reimburse for old, not good for use product. New owners really need to rethink how to run a business and be honest. I also don't recommend to buy food they prepare, they think they can cook, but they still need to do lots of learning. I am very disappointed and do not recommend this store.. read more

Me and my wife go here often to get some eastern European groceries and other peculiar stuff, we like the selection and the prices. Very friendly store read more

small, clean russian deli and grocery store. the store is split into about 3 sections: refrigerated fish, cheese, beer. Several rows of dry goods and movies. the third section was fresh deli items, such as meat and bread cut to order, as well as pieroshkis and cakes. most of the packaged items on the shelves seemed to be desserts. the dry pasta that i saw was printed with a german label. the prepared deli food looked good, but i had some trouble understanding which names applied to which foods. the price list was taped to the glass case, but there was no explanation of which item was which. they have a number of russian handicrafts for sale, including painted dolls and various small leather accessories. there is a section of wines, i liked the armenian wine that was in a glass bottle in the shape of a spike-heeled female shoe. my bf was in best buy. i figured since i was in here, i would buy him a russian beer. i reached into the case, but the male owner immediately stopped me. he said that a neighboring liquor store owner had complained that he was competing unfairly, so he was only allowed to sell beer in 6 packs. the beers did have price tags that said 2.29, but there was also a sign that said that 6 bottles gave a discount of 1.99 per bottle. the owner said that the bottles were separate so that one could buy the 6 packs by mixing and matching. he seemed very apologetic about the situation. i decided against buying the beer. instead i bought a rolled poppy seed danish. it was moist and delicious, cost 2.99. they also sell loaves of that danish in a small tin, that costs 6.49. the woman who helped me was polite and efficient, not talkative at all. read more

My son and I recently discovered Kalinka and had a lot of fun browsing each aisle. We picked up some dumplings and sausages. The staff was so friendly, warm and helpful. We had a lot of questions about preparation and they were so patient with answering them. It was a warm day so they even offered to put ice in our package so the dumplings wouldn't melt. I've been back a couple of times. I would highly recommend this grocery store if you are interested in Russian and Polish delicacies. read more

My cousin, who is from the area, took us this store and what a treat. Wow! This place has, not everything, but a little of everything. Prices were reasonable. We found things we haven't seen in along time. We'll be back. read more

Excellent home made bread, lots of fresh cut cured meats and very friendly owner. They have a large variety of georgian wines which are awesome wines if you like semi-sweet taste. There is also a variety of european beers. Try russian ice-cream! It's very creamy and taste nothing like ice-creams around here. read more

I love this shop because of its awesome fresh baked bread. Whenever I have brunch at Scramblz, I make sure to stop by Kalinka to buy a loaf of bread and pate. The customer service is friendly. I went in to buy the triangular loaf of whole grain bread. The store was out, but one of the employees recommended another whole grain bread that wasn't as dense as the triangular loaf. It had all the same nuts and seeds as the other bread, but it had a much softer consistency. A little mustard and some liver pate or soft cheese, and it's delicious. read more

My favorite Russian food store. They have the largest variety in South Bay plus their pirogki are amazing!!! The stuff is super friendly and if you don't see something that you like just ask them and they will try to order it for you read more

So glad I found this place so close to home. Great selection of all things Eastern European. Got my Hungarian wine here, some Slovak and Polish beer, great homemade pierogis as well, both cherry and the cheese and onion kind. Nice cheese selection, as well. Also, many grocery items you can't find on the west coast easily, real Hungarian paprika, boxed mixes from EU. Nice selection of sausages and salamis, as well. They also have a fantastic dessert counter. Every time we go in there, the owner always gives me a small freebie because I am Hungarian! read more

I just would like to note that the most kind and attentive people work there. You feel like you come to visit your close friends. They sincerely glad to see you there and always eager to help, either with your choice of products, or with bringing the heavy shopping basket to your car. The store has the greatest variety of Russian and Eastern European goods. Everything is always very fresh. They also bake bread, and it's delicious! I highly recommend this store to everybody who's looking for great quality Eastern European food and true Slavic hospitality. Thank you very much for your business! read more

Nice little place. Lots of selections from Russia and Europe. Loved their cakes especially the sour cream cake. The kielbasa is also pretty good. read more

I like Kalinka. They've got a good selection of Eastern European groceries including some very good beers and wines. I've read some reviews questioning the character of the employees/proprietors and, I gotta say, my experiences there have always been pleasant. These are nice folks, running a nice business, offering loads of cool stuff that most folks go their entire lives without trying. Stop by, say hello, and see what they have to offer. Anytime you see a foreign grocery store or restaurant you should check it out. If not, you're missing out on all sorts of cool stuff. Why settle for a Hershey bar when you can try some chocolate from a foreign country? Why have a Bud or Coors when you can have a Zywiec? Seriously, don't limit yourself, live life, try something different... read more

yey, I so wanted Polish sousage(krakowska) and got the last link tonight. ended up w some German bread and pate :) and for desert, Halva!!!! awesome. read more

My favorite destination for some East European foods and spirits. I wish the place was bigger so more folks could move around without blocking each other, but this is just a minor con compare to the pros they offer. Very friendly owners. You may even order something special and they will do their best to get it for you. Highly recommended! read more