Ruski Way Deli - Brisbane

Growing up in the former USSR, I was surrounded by all manner of relatives and playhood chums speaking, eating and generally being Russian.

My boyfriend is a bit of a Russophile, so I am frequently being dragged into Ruski Way Deli to stock up on Russian treats. Ruski Way is a relatively small

It is another one of these elusive finds that we have here, that is hiding itself somewhere in the central area of the city and being in one of the strangest places to put a business in. This time around, the place finds itself right near the Buranda hospital and right across from the adjacent shopping center. Hiding the hot food inside the gourmet grocery store, Ruski Way Deli should be getting a bit more attention since it is hard to find this sort of stuff in town, especially at the prices and the wholesome level of quality that is apparent here. It is a small shop, pretty cosy and while you can easily see one end of the shop from the other in clear view this still isn't the most cramped retail store that I have been in. For seating, there are a few red chairs and tables out on the pavement along with a stand-up blackboard, but aside from that they keep it simple and on the low-down. While the service was not in any ways bad, it more or less did just what it needed to do and the young man was a bit coy. He might have been new, so I will give him that benefit of the doubt, and was doing a decent enough job. So what we have here is some Eastern European fare, with most of the focus being on mother Russia. Most of the produce is wholesale stuff, ranging from all kinds of condiments, small goods such as smoked meats and caviar, many sorts of candy, preserves, cereals, and imported Eastern European beverages among many others. The other part of the menu is the fare that is prepared in house. You have several of the specialties from Russia with several kinds of pirozhkis as the main ones, along with other kinds of street food, salads, and a couple of other hot dishes. Being a huge fan of them, my dining buddy tried out two of the pirozshkis - a beef and a potato. These were ... okay. Just merely okay. They were a decent and filling enough serving size - at least as far as having a snack goes - and the filling inside tasted good, though there could have been a bit more put in there. What really made it not as good was it could have been was the preparation method in cooking it. After selecting the items, they are put straight into a microwave which never allows it to be cafe quality food. These could well be good, slightly buttery in texture and piping hot - but alas, this is what you get here. When it came to my turn, the order was one of their pelmeni - which is best described as a combination of mini-dumplings and tortellini, filled with a combination of pork and beef mince, and a sweet pirozhki with a sour cherry filling. With the pelmenii, the order that I got was served onto a plate and had a garlic butter-sour cream sauce on the side. These might well have been the highlight of this endeavour, mainly due to how freshly prepared they were. The meat inside was tender and juicy, the pastry around the meat mixture was the right consistency having a soft texture and a decent bite to it, plus the sauce was simple and effective. Without any doubts, whether it is here or somewhere else in St. Elsewhere I would recommend trying out pelmeni when given the chance. As for the sweet pirozshki, it was okay but also had the same sort of issue with the savoury ones where the way it was cooked and prepared affected the aroma, texture and all-round quality of the snack. It could well have been very good, been a little crispy or crusty with the finish on the outside complimenting the middle, but ultimately it had dried out a little and gone somewhat soggy. The cherry filling inside was good, slightly tart and slightly sour. This would have been really good with a bit of icing sugar to fully compliment it - and the perfect snack to have with coffee. The ultimate reality about here was that at some point it was needed to be gotten off the list, if merely for the sheer reason that it is a definite break from the norm - and when it is a delicatessen or specialised place it is even more so. With that being said, the major aspect to take away from it all is that Ruski Deli is a strangely run little place that might not be fully there with what is possible in serving this kind of fare. And by that what is meant is taking some advantage with what it can offer in ways of a dining experience, especially so because they have the trump card of a more unique cuisine in the greater area of Brisbane. Some complicated aspects make it a bit hard to fully take advantage of the potential offerings, such as offering the drinks right then and there in the store - hence, maybe a liquor license - as well as not having a coffee machine there in spite of several kinds of cakes and sweets on offer. Also, the fact that the foods are put in the microwave might not indicate the best preparation methods either, since it affected just how good some of the Russian delicacies can be either. By no means will this be too major, but it will attract a fair few more clientele and have more hearsay about a rare find among some other touches. At first I might have said it was somewhat of a disappointment, but in taking a step back the main sentiment of it all is that the organisation of the place is really ... odd. It is still here and will get clients flocking out of interest, but a few balls have been dropped in being able to get that potential grasp for a bit more trade. This falls itself somewhere between being a specialty store and hidden takeaway. To be fair to it, the array of what they have outside of the hot food to go is pretty generous and you could possibly stay here for a couple of hours simply perusing what is on offer. By all means, it is worth giving it a try once or twice - either as a place to get a hot snack, or to buy up some small goods which are hard to find anywhere else. The food wasn't awful, and if it were in a different sort of situation it might be a bit more optimistic as a review. Go here for a snack and even perhaps to buy a whole range of different small goods and such for a different sort of taste, but just don't rely on it to supply you with a full meal.

It is another one of these elusive finds that we have here, that is hiding itself somewhere in the central area of the city and being in one of the strangest places to put a business in. This time around, the place finds itself right near the Buranda hospital and right across from the adjacent shopping center. Hiding the hot food inside the gourmet grocery store, Ruski Way Deli should be getting a bit more attention since it is hard to find this sort of stuff in town, especially at the prices and the wholesome level of quality that is apparent here. It is a small shop, pretty cosy and while you can easily see one end of the shop from the other in clear view this still isn't the most cramped retail store that I have been in. For seating, there are a few red chairs and tables out on the pavement along with a stand-up blackboard, but aside from that they keep it simple and on the low-down. While the service was not in any ways bad, it more or less did just what it... read more

Mini Meatball and I stopped in to Ruski Way Deli to pick up some Piroshki and a Reuben for Lady Meatball. It was only after we were there that I realised that Reubens, despite the Russian dressing, aren't Russian. Grabbed a couple Piroshki and tried a frozen caramel cheesecake covered in chocolate. Lots of interesting Russian and a Polish delicacies to sample. We'll be back.