dhammer53

Russ and Daughters will open a new location in 2015 at...

http://ny.eater.com/2014/9/9/6158885...-jewish-museum

dh

themicah

Yep. And it's supposed to be kosher.

Blumie

This will be a second R&D cafe. And while I enjoy the cafe (I've been twice to the Orchard St. location), I still think that any proper tour of the Lower East Side includes a stop at the original store on Houston St. (I suspect you agree. I just want to clarify for non-locals.)

themicah

Fully agreed. It's a completely different (although also very good) experience. I also think the best options at the cafe are the ones that differ the most from the offerings at the store.

At the store you want to order a bunch of fish and cream cheese and the small bagels (which are much tastier than the big bagels) and take it home for a feast. Or (if you don't want your hotel room to smell like smoked fish) order nova on a bagel or a Super Heebster to eat on the bench outside and a filet of herring to eat in the store while they assemble your sandwich.

At the cafe the fish is marked up too much for my tastes, while most of the egg dishes and soups, and some of the noshes and sweets are totally worthwhile. The bagels also aren't as good as the rye.

Bonus family-oriented trivia: the cafe has stroller parking. Just ask when you arrive and they'll lend you a chain and lock to secure your stroller outside on the street.

Critic

Well, the new location is inside the Jewish Museum, so...yeah.

Chandler Bing

We did a walking tour of the LES a couple of weeks ago and indeed visited the Houston St location, the queues on a Sunday were unbelievable but the place was fabulous.

OT The walking tour was incredibly fascinating, and we got to taste things like Bialys and Knishes (cal me ignorant but both of which were completely new things for a girl that lives in the Nort West of England), the visit to The Pickle Guys was pure torture for my OH however, as he's hypersensitive to anything that contains vinegar

themicah

Then it's a good thing you didn't give him the lemon beet shrub from Russ & Daughters. But you can always make it yourself.

RooseveltL

Maybe ignorant question but for the gentile - is this place worth the visit for bagels, lox, sandwich,etc. As anyone can attest - many non-kosher seekers do visit LES for taste of Delancy area before re-gentrification.

Chandler Bing

Wow, that sounds interesting!

themicah

My guess is that when the new outpost in the Jewish Museum opens, it'll be a very good place to get a bagel and lox (most folks actually prefer a bagel with nova, not lox, although nova is often casually referred to as lox). But I don't think there is any better place in the world to get a bagel with cream cheese and nova than the R&D store on Houston Street. There are certainly other places that come close, and there might even be some that are as good. But as a complete experience, I have yet to find a better place.

(As an aside, the R&D store on Houston actually isn't kosher. Many of the products they sell are kosher, but some aren't, and the store certainly isn't under kosher supervision so those who hold strictly by the Orthodox laws of kashrut won't eat there.)

Spaghetti

I like Russ & Daughters' original store, but was very disappointed in the café. My "toasted" bialy looked like it had been toasted hours ago, it was cold and mushy. And barely enough nova to cover half of it! It's a shame they couldn't get such a simple thing right. I'd rather feast at home on toasted Fairway's mini everything bagels, and Zabar's nova.