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| - I've been going here for quite a while, maybe eight years or so. I'm not Russian whatsoever, mind you, though I speak enough Russian to get through an average (short) interaction.
First off, yes, there are times when it can take a long time for a cashier to ring you out. If you are on a time crunch, it might not be best to stop in. Also, the cashiers don't seem to respond well to being greeted, and generally only speak when spoken to (most of them speak flawless English and Russian.) They might also avoid eye contact. A friend from Minsk (Belarus) told me this was a culture thing, a friend born in Moscow said it was really weird, so i'm not sure who to believe.
Their selection is almost overwhelming to someone who's never seen...Russian stuff before. I'll break down the sections of the store; it's easier that way.
- As you walk in, you see the candy bins, where you can get a bag of mini candies of all different sorts and pay by the pound (or kilogram?)
- Beyond that is produce. Standard bins of various fruits and veggies, nothing super spectacular. Around the rim of this area by the windows are selections of various nuts and seeds, as well as some canned meat and fish. (My ex, who was of Ukranian descent, adored the Riga sprats...somehow.) There are also some coolers with various dairy things, lots of kefir and "drinkable yoghurt," as well as standard milk, and imported butter and condiments. I recommend the Polish butter.)
- This area also has the seafood counter, with every standard Russian seafood staple ready to rock. Tons of vobla, various other dried fish, and a selection of "real" caviar with prices in the hundreds. That is probably the one thing from Yeleseyevsky i'll never get to try.
- Walking back the way you came in, there's a section of freezers with lots of pierogies and other frozen things.
- The deli counter. This is sort of the centerpiece of the store. One side has ready-made potato salad and other Russian-themed lunch items, the side facing the front has gorgeous pastries (I love me some Napoleon from here,) and the far side has lots of lunch meat type stuff. (This store also does catering, I guess.)
The rest of the store is divided into standard aisles. There is a huge wine section (with some beer, too, but no Russian vodka, sorry,) and a smaller cooler with some soda (mostly Turkish) and kvass (a fruit/malt soda/brew that is extremely refreshing.) There's a little island of shelves with various Russian t-shirts and metal signs, plus a locked case of keepsakes such as flasks bearing Soviet insignia and real Russian nesting dolls.
The main food section is fairly vast for an import/ethnic store. There's a square island of spices, and another one of diabetic specialty foods (I recommend Meteorit chocolates as long as your diabetic friend has some chompers, they're pretty chewy.) The aisles range from baking supplies, tea, fruit juice, condiments, two aisles of Russian-language books, Nutella and it's Russian counterparts, chocolates, wafer sheets, and other assorted goods.
At times, they'll have a specialty shelf full of things from a particular country. (I think the most recent was Lithuania.)
The front counter area has all sorts of chocolates, as well as a bunch of medicine with zero English on it. (Side note, most of the products have a sticker explaining them in English.) There are also some soaps, hair products and things like toothpaste.
My one complaint about Yeleseyevsky is that, if you see something interesting on a shelf, buy it, because with a few exceptions, once their stock of something is gone, they never carry it again.
Overall, it's a full-on experience to go here, and i'd highly recommend it.
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