Cute little market with a ton to offer. Customer service is helpful. You kind of need to know what you're looking for and just ask. There are a lot of deli items in various locations. A lot is made in house but you kind of need to look. Stand out item is the fresh honey cake! They will cut you whatever slice you want. They got a huge pelmeni selection as well! Some of the best black bread I've found in the area as well. read more

Great European foods store, can find very delicious fresh cool things here that you can't find in other grocery stores.

Great place. Super selection, and our products were fresh and wonderful. Good prices on caviar, and the best customer service.

This store is great when I need a taste of home. They have a huge selection from all over in Eastern Europe, Russia, Ukraine, Poland etc. Thank you for being here for us all missing home:) read more

It's been years since I've been to Russia, but after the time I've spent there I've been craving very specific Russian items. This store had about all of it. Specifically I had been craving cherry juice. It was like nothing I'd ever been able to find in the states, as soon as I walked in it was the exact brand I knew. Lady was nice and was happy to assist us. Will absolutely be going back read more

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They had everything I hoped for: cherry blinchiki, kvac, Kiev cake, tvorog and wild strawberry varennya. Well stocked.

I love to go to this store because can find some of my favourite things on the shelves, chat with the staff who is always nice and friendly. food is good, a killing price but if you go the German gourmet you would live twice as much as you spend in the Russian store. read more

It feels like you are in a real Russian store (sarcasm)...no proper customer service, a very rude and aggressive lady is in charge of the counter desk. I do not recommend buying Sirniki because the product is way overpriced ($3.5 per two pieces) and does not taste good. Additionally, there is no information about the manufacturer, shelf life, or composition. However, the prepacked halva was very delicious and fresh. It tastes exactly like the original Ukrainian halva. I recommend it 100%! I believe that Russian Gourmet should rethink its policy of selling self-cooked products, otherwise, it could be a subject of inspection by the FDA. read more

After reading other reviews about the service being rude or whatever I have to say I had a totally different experience. The staff were nice, helpful recommending things I was looking for. The place was nice and clean. The only thing they no longer have is the Beer that you can see in some of the pics. Sure it may be a little pricey for some items but hell, the stuff was shipped here so you should expect to pay a little more. I'd definitely make another stop by when I'm up this way or dropping off a friend at National. read more

I am always for supporting a local business especially when it is an immigrant family owned and operated, BUT I leave my bias at the door of the service or product is subpar in any shape or form. With that wing said I'd like to inform everyone that is resting this review about substandard operations that this particular business is conducting. I came here in several occasions to get my fix of mother land goodies like pelimeni (meet dumplings) or semichki (roasted sunflower seeds), everything there is PRICEY compared to the similar stores around DMV area, but because it is the closest one I usually din't pay much attention to inflated prices. But all comes to the end when blatant change of price right at the register in front of your face. We went there about two days ago to grab some stuff and I was browsing refrigerator area and saw a salmon lox, $11.04 price tag - bit much but I had some fresh local shop purchased bagels at home and I was like to the heck with it, I'll get this. Husband was looking at the pastries, mostly cakes that are sold by weight in pretty much any alike store. Since he's learning my culture though old most of the time I decided to get him some honey walnut cake (medovik). We also grabbed some skinny smoked sausages to have as a snack on a way home. So instead of two asked sausages I was sold three, ok fine could've been an honest mistake. Then when we were checking out, one of the ladies when on the back and came back with a different price tag that she stuck on a smoked salmon package right in front of us and it was $15.99! Like are you serious? That's some dishonest and shady stuff that I will NOT tolerate whatsoever and you all need to get your act straight before you piss somebody off that is not going to be as nice about it as I am. That's just such a blatant disrespect, come on people, you make rest of the stores that have no association with you look bad. That's not it still... the cake... the cake was probably made back in the Soviet Union because it was stale, mushy and harsh palatable. We had a bite, had a dry heave moment and threw the cake away. Also if you happen to want to return something back, like you should, because it's USA - don't waste your time it doesn't work that way there, so don't even bother. I really wanted to give this store a chance, but I just can't, so go to another Eastern European place and save yourself some money and time. Plus they don't have a liquor license, which is strange, but ok. read more

I love the food assortment and prices. The people working there are from all over the former Soviet Union. They sell Ukrainian, Russian and Eastern European food - by shopping there you are not supporting any side! You are simply supporting a local buisness that provides great food! read more

Loved this store and all the options! Went for caviar and was not disappointed. The lady that works there was very helpful. Will definitely be going back for future caviar and other Russian goods! read more

The old woman that is being there for the longer than other cashiers is very rude. I have been coming there for few years and she gets worse every year. She never greets customers. She thinks she is in her Selpo somewhere in middle of Ukraine or Russia. Very disappointing. Hope the owner finds replacement for her or teaches basic customer service. read more

If you grew up in Russia (like I did) or have lived significantly in Russia, this place is a goldmine. If you have no Russia connections, there's no point going. However, if you're craving Russian food, this place has it all. It's a small store by Buzz Bakery in Alexandria, VA. It has everything from Russian juice (Mors), carrot salad (amazing!), pelmini, Russian sour cream, Russian sweetened condensed milk, etc. They even have a Russian library and a Russian candy section. If you are Russian, you MUST go here! The only downside is it's a bit pricey, but it makes sense since it's all imported from Russia. read more

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Great stuff can't wait to get back to this place Thanks . Da. I love their bread and meats especially Russian sausage's.

It's one of few places where you can find pelmeni and kasha, if you are into that kind of food - and practice your skills in foreign language. read more

OMG, today's 8/16/19 sales woman (kind of tall and skinny with short blond hair) was awfully mean to me. Why is she sales person if she can't be nice with a customer. She made me feel like I was a uninvited guest to her house. She couldn't speak much in English but somehow she managed to make me feel so offensive. I did let her know that her attitude is no where close to kind but she couldn't care less. I've been a customer to this store for more than 10 years now but today I wished I should've went to other store in chainbridge va. read more

They have a nice selection of caviar. Apparently this is a good place for salmon caviar. It's stored behind the counter in a glass case. I admit I am not a caviar snob, but my friend says it's delicious. So to those of you looking for caviar you may want to come here. Like others have said you come here for speciality items, so prices are not going to be rock bottom. However, I didn't find the prices to be excessive. Since I have limited my meat intake I have been looking for vegetarian options and the Georgia stye eggplant spread is amazing. Seriously, I had no idea eggplant could taste this amazing. I also tried the one of the chocolate bars, but I was not a fan. I am a chocolate snob, so I will stick to German chocolate but will return for the eggplant spread. read more

They always have a wide variety of treats and grocery. Sometimes there can be a language barrier, but they are always polite and try to accommodate. read more

My wife and I go to this place every two or three weeks. It does not have the largest selection but what they carry is sufficient for us. Besides, this is the closest Russian store to Capitol Hill. The two ladies who typically operate the store are very nice and friendly, and I generally trust their recommendations. Things to try: - Veal Bologna, Evreyskaya kielbasa, Moscow Salami - Sunflower seeds (the large ones) - Different spices in little paper bags - Pelmeni, vareniki and blini (crepes) stuffed with meat (you have to ask for them, do not buy those in the fridge out front) - Morkovcha (homemade Korean carrot salad) - Pickled mushrooms read more

I love coming here to get zephr every once and awhile. Also they have the pickles I love!!! Super friendly, and a great place to practice my Russian. Meats are pretty pricey but it is also very good. Caviar is also rather expensive, I think I paid about $15 for half a pound of red. The potato salad I had was also delish. Down the street from me, I love the convenience of that! read more

Today on March 30 we were at your store which is very much loved. When we entered there was a young girl who, with her leg, trimmed her toenails. Even when she saw us, she did not stop her occupation. She sat behind the fish and caviar showcase and was engaged in cutting her nails .... And without washing her hands, she went to the cashier to make our purchase calculation.(It was a new seller, not Nina!) Maybe for Ukraine or Belarus it's normal ??? !!!! Buy this is America!!! That's just terrible!!! read more

Ok - the ladies here were really nice and I appreciated that. There was a variety of Russian food but I do have to say that I was disappointed. Their selection of deli items is not up to par - where are the fresh pickled ingredients (kapysta?? pickles?? garlic??)? And the huge selection of deli meats? Or the smoked fishes? Looking back on it I'm not sure what they even have as all the key items were not at the store. We left disappointed with a desire for more. I know that the Russian stores are usually small, because it's difficult to move a lot of product, but if you're going to open one up why not have all the goodies rather than products you can buy at other grocery stores? And we're so close to NYC there should be no excuse for lack of fresh ingredients. I would come back if they increased their inventory. read more

Not a bad selection the prices are as little high Abs the bread is rarely fresh. Can't ask for much compared to ny Russian stores.

Amazing gem!! One of the ladies was extremely nice and very helpful. She allowed me to taste to ensure I was buying exactly what I wanted. The caviar is amazing!!! read more

It's Russian/Slavic food. It's awesome. It reminds me of when I lived in Ukraine and it makes me happy. I wish they had drinkable yogurt, though. read more

My wife is from Ukraine so I come here often to get her some special items that she likes and you can't get them anywhere else. The owner and staff her are extremely pleasant and helpful. They have a large variety of food, candy and cakes. This place is Great! Everyone should try it out. You will find many things you will enjoy. read more

As a retired Russophile, I often pine for Russian comfort food that I came to enjoy when I lived in Moscow and Irkutsk. The Russian Gourmet store is my "go to" store for pel'meni, Borodinsky bread, cherry juice, sour cream, poppy seed cake and especially the homemade beet salad! I took the beet salad to a monthly meeting and it got such rave reviews that I fear a mad dash on the store may occur! I am sorry that RG no longer serves liquor, as I used to buy Baltika beer. Nonetheless, I am very happy the store exists and provides wonderful Russian staples. ! read more

If you are nostalgic for Russia (or other former Soviet country), this is the place for you! Russian and Ukrainian chocolates, big jars of pickled tomatoes and eggplant paste, cans of sprats, bottles of kvas and tkemali, and disinterested / disgruntled Russian sales ladies who will insult you passive aggressively in both English and Russian and sell you expired salads and cheeses after placing a thumb on the scales ( but you won't know until you get home and peel off the weight / price stickers that they'll place over the dates and actual weights ). Ahhhhhhh, just like Moscow 1987. read more

Got my roommate a gift card for Christmas. They were so kind and explained everything to me because it wasn't a traditional card. Even taught me how to say thank you in Russian! read more

This is the smallest one out of all the other ones in the area yet the friendliest. I love coming here because I can ask questions and they really care to answer. Typically, they have good choices and variety of goodies. I love their fish in oil, bread, ice creams, and Napoleon cake (although it's so expensive). read more

My roommate introduced me to the Russian Gourmet store. The russian products they sell are a little bit pricey in my opinion. They accept cash or debit. My roommate had a birthday party. She bought some crepes, poppy seed cake, and cookies. She also bought a square cake with vanilla filling and frosting. It was delicious. I bought the other day the crepe mixture, gingerbread with sugary frosting with raspberry filling, and some tea. The gingerbread cookies have different fillings - orange, cherry, raspberry, apricot, and strawberries. read more

I get nostalgic every once in a while and have to get pelmeni, Riga sour cream, herring in oil, and the like. I eat this stuff every time I go visit my Grandma in Riga. She serves it for breakfast :). Russian Gourmet has a bunch of locations. Its a cute little place. Inasmuch, I don't recommend you get anything outside of frozen and pickled canned things, because the rest of it is likely spoiled. Be careful with the meats and cheeses in the deli section. Also, the food is absurdly overpriced. I know that it is specialty and all that, but it needn't be that expensive, particularly when you end up throwing half of it away because it is spoiled. You should have smelt that herring, no words could describe it. It was the kind in the plastic container by Zip International. "Always Fresh, Always Natural" it says right on top. Yeah right! I had to toss the 9 dollar container right in the trash. I wish I had known, I would have tossed the 9 bucks before I bought it, so then I wouldn't have to smell it. Ouch. In all, I spent over 60 dollars on only a few things: 2 small packages of pelmeni, 1 sour cream, two deli meats (1 lb each), 1 thing of herring in oil, and pumpernickel bread. The sour cream was over three weeks expired. You would think that for $4.59 a pop, you'd get the best, freshest sour cream on earth. I am glad I noticed the date before I bought it. The bread is on the verge, I slice it very very thin and still could use an extra set of teeth to help me chew it. Pelmeni were good. Can't complain about the good old pelmeni; except, I don't think that such a tiny package warrants such a steep markup. The stuff goes for 7.99 and up per package. Anyway, my nostalgic craving has been sated for a good while. Chances that I will be going back to Russian Gourmet any time in the future are zero. Too bad. read more

If you have something very specific in mind and don't know that it is actually stocked, this is probably not the store for you, at least, not without a phone call to see if they have what you are after. But if you are like me, and enjoy wandering new shops without hunting for anything in particular, then this is a great stop to make. The store is small but easy to navigate and is incredibly clean - overly strong smells are a huge turn off for me, so I was pleased to find that the shop smelt fresh with a hint of bread and soup. The left side of the shop holds all of the dried and canned goods - which consists of a vast array of canned fish, dried peas and lentils, as well as breads and candies. The very back of the shop contains frozen and refrigerated goods such as butters and perogies. The right side of the shop holds a selection of smoked meats, head-cheese, cold cuts, sausages, cheese, and various salads. Unlike most "Gourmet" and ethnic food shops, the prices here were very low compared to what I am used to seeing and spending. For $27, I purchased a two pound loaf of bread, sweet butter, mushroom salad, borscht, and a pack of perogies - all of which disappeared quickly. Everything except for the perogies (which were frozen), were very fresh and rich, and complimented each other. I am not usually a huge fan of mushrooms, but this salad could easily cause me to re-evaluate my thoughts on the matter. The women running the shop were very friendly and helpful. They saw what I had already picked up to purchase and suggested that my final addition be a large container of borscht, which I was very happy to have picked up once I tasted everything. I always love finding an ethnic shop, and greatly appreciate it when I walk away feeling as though the shop was authentic. I was happy to find that when I first entered the shop the ladies were speaking in Russian with another customer. The majority of the items were labeled in Russian, and some unidentifiable items will have me coming back for future investigation and exploration. Overall, a great new find for fairly cheap prices with friendly workers. read more

This is a physically small store that's chock full of Russian and Eastern European goods. I'm not sure I really know what Russian and Eastern European foods are, though, because I expected more exotic things but everything looked [and also tasted, for the few things I tried] straightforward. The store includes a full bakery; there didn't appear to be anything in the bakery case this time (although perhaps some of the wrapped bread on the regular shelves was made there), but I might return sometime to see what fresh Russian baked goods are like. The prices are outstanding. The staff member I met was polite, but she seemed skeptical of / confused by my presence . . . which I guess makes sense because the rest of the customers all appeared to be regulars and were conversing with her in fluent Russian. read more

Since it's Alexandria and not Brooklyn I have no moral right to complain about this place. But still you need to know the following:This store is rather small if not tiny. You have major Russian food selection but choice is somewhat limited. Food is good but for given price you can get smth really nice in Whole Foods. Long story short, unless you're a Russian food fan go to some other place and save your money. read more

My Russian fiancee and I come here every other weekend to load up on her favorites that we can only find here (zefir, tvorok cheese, grechka). I'm partial myself to kvas and sirok. Great store with a nice selection of Russian goods. Would give it 5 stars if it weren't so expensive. read more

Not only Russian food, but Eastern European also. Great location, nice staff, food is always fresh. I love their Honey Cake! It's home-made and is always available. read more

Okay, I understand this place receiving good reviews if you're not familiar with Slavic markets, because I would not give this place ANY stars simply for the costumer service and items close to or expired. I lived in Kiev Ukraine for years, my wife is a beautiful Russian woman, I understand the difference in costumer service there compared to here in the US. There is simply no expectation of smiles and friendliness in Slavic countries, which is not a bad thing nor good. However, once one decides to open a business here in the US one should adapt to the traditions here. My wife and I live in Old Town and walk to this shop a few times a month. There has not been one time that we have not been treated like a nuisance at this shop. Part of me feels it is because my wife is Russian therefore the attendants feel there is no need to give good service for a fellow Slav. I don't know, I do know I stay away from this place but my wife misses items from home and this helps her, so unfortunately I will continue to give them my money only because I have no other option. read more

it is OK if you miss Soviet-style poor service, average food, $10 juices from concentrate, canned pickles and jams, and horribly expensive cheese and sausages... food is mostly made in US by polish and Jewish businesses in the US and marketed as "authentic Russian or Soviet" food read more