Russian Vodka Room

Service was very friendly but they forgot about us at the end...I think they were short that day and it was pretty busy. Very relaxed chill atmosphere. We were not rushed at all which is nice. Food was good. Mashed potatoes tho could use some flavor ...were blah. But we didn't come there for that so not too important. Chicken Kiev not too heavy and beef stroganoff very tasty as was kasha on side. Pickled veggies were good as was salmon with potato pancake and dumplings. Vodka super smooth. Will go back as I liked the laid back vibe..

I heard this place from my East-European born Israeli-reside PI, who strongly recommends the borscht and the food here. My love for Borscht was really a consequence of being in a lab with over 50% people being East-European heritage. I was, let’s say, quite marinated by now. And I found the East-European cuisine is quite suitable for winter and thus brought my mom with me. App Olivie Potato Salad Ordered this because they don’t have shuba that day(what a shame!) but to my surprise the salad wasn’t as greasy as I expected. There is nice ratio of mayo to potato, carrots, ham, egg, and with quite decent amount of pickled veg and dills. The overall taste is creamy but still kinda refreshing. I pleasantly enjoyed with the bread they offered. Hot Borscht Absolutely worthy of my visit. Very warm, hearty, vibrant soup with a deep red color from beets. A bowl of earthy, sweet, and tangy flavors, with tender chunks of beets, cabbage, potatoes, and meaty bite. The broth is rich and slightly sour, and I indulged it validly with few dollops of sour cream that added freshness and creaminess. It was made extra comforting and satisfying with the slices of crusty bread. Entree Beef Stroganoff Beef, mushroom, and cream should be BFF FOREVER. The rich, creamy dish with tender beef strips sautéed with onions and mushrooms, all coated in a savory sour cream-based sauce is bursting with deep and comforting umami flavors. The buckwheat are nutty, earthy grain-like seed that makes me to believe these are savory bobas with a little chew dancing and bouncing on my tongue. A classic that wasn’t done wrong (and hard to do it wrong). I thoroughly enjoyed the food and would love to come again for the food. Strongly appreciate the amount of pickled veggies they sneak in onto the plate to balance all the possible grease. The portion is ample. The decor is very disco like, with blue and red lighting all over the place. The service… suboptimal. The waitress was nice and sweet but it was so obvious they don’t have enough people to care for all customers. Generally a very pleasant dinner, if you don’t mind the slow service and being overlooked for a bit due to short-staffed. (Maybe food to-go isn’t a bad idea at all).

Simply wonderful! Everything was delicious, far exceeding our expectations. Very authentic, we were the only non-russian speakers in the restaurant for most of the evening. Highly recommend the chicken Kiev, beef stroganoff, and the vodka infusions. Live music was also very pleasant. Such a great place, and a short walk from broadway. Will definitely be back next time we’re in town.

This place is a great Russian restaurant! 🇷🇺 Russian Vodka Room offers a wonderful selection of delicious 🤤 dishes! 🍽️ Definitely get the Lamb 🐑 Dumplings 🥟, Chicken 🐔 Kiev with Mashed Potatoes 🥔, Schnitzel with Backed Potatoes, and the Olivie Salad! 🥗 They have a variety of flavor-infused vodka shots 🥃 like strawberry 🍓, apple 🍎, pineapple 🍍, and even garlic 🧄 and dill! Service is quick ⏲️, staff 👨‍🍳 is friendly and professional, the place is beautifully decorated 🛋️, and the ambience 🎶 is great! They also have live music! 🎵 I wish I came here sooner and more often!

Absolutely love this place! Four years ago, we stumbled in here thinking it was a dive bar, and have come back ever since. I highly recommend their infused vodkas. I tried the garlic and it was unique, but great. Food was tasty and a good portion. My favorite was the gravalox and potato pancakes, which were crispy and flavorful. My husband had hot borscht, which he said was light and tasty. Great service and atmosphere!

Highly recommend this restaurant. Great location to go to before and after shows. The food was really good especially Russian Dumplings. Really good deal on drinks during Happy Hour, we were able to try multiple vodka infusions, most of them were smooth and tasty. It gets cold in the back room, but the atmosphere is very intimate with low lit lighting.

I had a fantastic experience at this place. The staff, especially Lika, were very friendly and welcoming. Thank you for creating such a wonderful atmosphere!

Quintessential midtown bar, been around for decades and hope to see it for decades more. Try the horseradish flavored vodka if you’re feeling adventurous!

This is a very nice little restaurant for good food and drink. Food - The pelmeni and the borsch were both incredible, tasted just like home. The piruzhki wasn't quite what I was expecting. It was okay, but not great. Pelmeni and borsch are musts though, as they are both delicious. Service - Very nice! They also have a piano in there, and if you ask nicely, they will let you play a few songs if you're good. The ambiance is very Russian. Parking - Don't have their own parking lot, just walk here from the many large destinations nearby. Overall, this place is great. Would highly recommend.

Everything was a new food for me and it was great. Service was little bit slow, but acceptable. Great live music and i would go again for sure.

Came here to meet a friend who is a regular here. I didn't have much expectations coming here and would've never thought to come if not for her. The vibe of the place is really nice and relaxing. They played live jazz which helped set the mood. This is a great place to bring a date or chill with some friends. It's not too loud and has a good atmosphere. I ordered some shots for my friend who loves the strawberry and peach vodka. I ordered the pirozhki at my friend's suggestion. It was my first time having it and wasn't sure what to expect. I thought it tasted alright. One of them had sauerkraut in it which I didn't really enjoy. I'm normally fine with it but in this case it didn't work for me. Between two shots and the food I spend around $40 which I didn't think was too bad. The only person who served us was the bar tender who did her job well. All in all I really enjoyed this place and could see myself coming back. A great place to stop by after a Broadway show!

I was pleasantly surprised by this bar. It was super convenient being that we were going to watch Cabaret. The drinks were nice and strong. The bartenders were super nice! Loved the ladies behind the bar. The food was also surprisingly good! The ambience is charming. With its year round Christmas decor and piano for live music. Definitely cool spot to go to before show or after show.

What a pleasant surprise! We finished the MJ show and wanted to hangout. It was just convenient for us but it turns out to be a great place with live music and the pianist definitely made the whole place full of great vibes! We danced and had a great time.

Love the idea of this place. It was decorative cute for the holidays so that was nice. The drinks were meh . The Lindsay Lohan was not drinkable. The cranberry vodka infusion was good. The bartender was super nice.

This is a terrific little restaurant with superb drinks and fine Russian food. In addition, Angelica does a wonderful job serving you and making you feel at home.

Came to the Russian Vodka Room on Sunday night. The singer behind the piano choose the performance set of songs that found deeply offensive. The lyrics were inappropriate. Very negative experience! I don't recommend.

This spot was fun! The ambiance was great and they had live performers as well which was a ton of fun. i also liked that it was not super packed even on a Saturday evening. The service was great. They were welcoming and answered any preference/allergy questions we had! Drinks were good! i ordered a grapefruit cocktail which was tasty. We didn't try any food so I can't comment on that.

Excellent food and drinks and ambiance! Highly recommended for a casual evening. The chicken Kiev was some of the best I have ever had.

My friend had a birthday celebration here and we had the back area to ourselves, which was nice. The place was festively decorated and had a lively atmosphere. We shared several dumplings, including Beef, Lamb, as well as Cherry. The dumplings were perfectly cooked yummy little morsels. My favorite was the Beef, which was well seasoned and tasted even better with the sour cream. The Cherry ones were good as well, and a nice mix of sweet and sour. I wanted to try the Sea Bass, but it was no longer on the menu, so I narrowed it down to Lamb Shank or Short Rib. I went with the Lamb Shank braised in red wine, served with mashed potatoes, carrots and zucchini. I was not impressed. It was a large portion of lamb, but I found it to be quite bland, not as tender as I would like, and on top of that, had a weird after taste. The mashed potatoes were just okay, and veggies were decent. Dessert of Honey Cake was simply delicious! There were delightfully sticky layers, as well as true taste of satisfyingly sweet honey. Service was pretty good. The waitress was on top of it and everything came out in a timely manner. The restaurant even let us play music and dance after we ate. However, I was not happy with my meal so would not return.

Omg I love this place!! Very Good Happy hours!! Every vodka you can imagine. Martinis are great!!!! I always do a reservation, just in case because the place is not very big. Bathrooms are clean. If you like vodka, you can't go wrong with this place.

A very quintessentially Russian resto tucked away in the heart of midtown! You casually get live music with dinner and the pianist and singers are so amazing. The horseradish shot was strangely sweet because they add cranberry juice to it. Portions are very generous so be careful of over ordering!

We walked in to the low lighting and qere asked if we wanted to sit up front or the back room. We chose the back room and were seated in a well lit corner. We ordered the 1.5 oz flights. The libations were smooth. The cuisine of potato gravalax and lamb dumplings closed with apple blitzes. We shall return. Great engagement wirh four ladies seated next to us.

We were looking for a late night snack and drinks and this place hit the spot. We actually made a quick reservation on open table but it turned out not to be necessary. There were still seats available at the bar. There was wonderful live piano music. We got the Russian dumplings which were delicious and very comforting. My favorite cocktail was the chocolate martini. It was a wonderful experience and would definitely come back

Simply my favorite no frills bar in NYC! Have been here so many times over the years- the Apple martini keeps me coming back-- sour, tangy, sweet & stronggg. It's almost always crowded after 6 pm, but don't miss their happy hour which runs until 7 and includes discounted martinis and flavored vodka shots. They infuse their own vodka here- with unique flavors like horseradish and pineapple. The place appears to be family owned and has an authentic Russian ambience. They've also had live music most times I've been

Came for after dinner drinks. Pretty affordable in Theater District. Quiet and interesting of all the Russian vodka shots.

Love this place. Found it by accident on the way to our show. They were just opening up, however welcomed us with open arms. HAd a great conversation with the staff, and got to try many new vodkas. At the end of the day, we kept coming back 3 times: once before our show, after our show and yet again after we had dinner. Fun time was had by all!

After my husband and I caught a Matinee showing of the play funny girl we decided to eat at this establishment. The environment is very cozy in small restaurant. My husband and I sat on couch like seats with dim lights is was romantic and sweet. The Service was excellent and our seats were away from people. Well I was very happy with the food at The restaurant. I enjoy some large size mussels with garlic sauce extremely yummy create with true perfection. The herring dish was delish very fresh complemented with some potatoes and beets seasoned with fresh dill The dessert was smashing farmer cheese blintzes with a dash chocolate syrup and strawberry to enhance the dish that added a delightful sweetness.

Do you enjoy overdoing it and having a wild and rambunctious time ? This is the place to get that party started. HH from 4-7 or so, with creative, infused vodka and Martini's. It's a dark, Christmas lights in April kind of place. Small, intimate. Friendly and attentive staff. Firmly planted in the most convenient theater district location on 52nd street off of 8th Ave. The little dumplings, "pelmeni" and plump and filling. Dense in their bite but delicate. Another treat is the Pickled Vegetable Platter. If you've not been to the RVR, I recommend that you pop in while in the area.

Servic and staff are excellent. Friendly. They'll educate you if you ask about the food. Have the lamb dumplings. You'll be dreaming of them. The potato salad is awesome too. Oh and the vodka..... I'll be back.

Great place for some home made infusions and delightful atmosphere. I felt like went back into the past a little bit. Tried mussels dish and was very tasty. No mayo or cheese on it so you can actually taste the mussels. There was live music too which was a pleasant surprise. Service was top notch. Waitress tried hard to attend to every guest despite the place being filled to the rim. Will go back there again next time I visit the city.

The Russian Vodka Room is one of my GO TO pregame spots. The dark and cozy interior coupled with plenty of red lighting makes you feel like you've been transported back into an 80s Soviet spy movie. It's not simply just a place to grab some drinks, the Russian Vodka Room provides an escape from reality - where you and your friends can pretend to be in an era or a place that's far removed from Midtown's congested streets.

Great Authentic Russian food. Unobtrusive welcoming service. Relaxed intimate ambiance.

Excellent food and drinks, friendly service. Sorry mom but your shuba is not as good as Russian Vodka's ( I ordered two servings)!!! My Ukrainian taste buds were completely satisfied !

Super fun place! I came here after my friend and I went to skyscape and they actually have live music playing in this sort of bar like seating. They have some tables on the sides of the room but they're maybe only five or six of them. you mostly would sit at the bar. We ordered six shots of vodka and the waitress was kind enough to give us recommendations but they really do have some interesting flavors and we wanted to try a bunch of them. I loved the ginger and pineapple but couldn't really stomach the garlic haha. They come with a few accoutrements for flavor and palate cleansing. In order to help soak up the alcohol we had some dumplings as well we tried the beef dumplings as well as the potato dumplings and I highly recommend the beef ones. Very well prepared and extremely delicious. The bartender is fun approachable and friendly and definitely does a lot to liven up the mood and the place. For dessert we tried the cheese blintzes and I would always get these. They are The best combination of cheese sweet and salt and they come together really well in the crepe.

Russian Vodka Room lives up to its name: it's Russian, they have vodka, and the bar is in a large dimly-lit room. I get the sense that this is a family-run establishment, or at least that the employees interact like they're family. It's a friendly place. Vodka is, understandably, a focal point of the beverage selection. You can order cocktails and mixed drinks, or try their specialty infused vodka, available in a variety of flavors. The bar offerings also include all the typical drinks you would expect. The food menu is surprisingly lengthy, with a variety of Russian and Eastern European delicacies. I've only tried a couple items which tasted good and, I was assured, are authentic. Very curious to try more food here in the future.

I LOVE THIS PLACE,CLASSIC VIBE ! Unbelievable infuse vodka. Try Lychee! Plus the food is amazing. The great price for cheese platter and the Amazing Dumplings are not to be missed! Oh and live Piano !!

Food was great, service was ok, I wish waitress could not make mistake on the first place, she brought us food we never ordered and we have to wait neither 25 min until we got what we wanted. I really liked life music, and I even sing some Russian nostalgic songs.

After a Broadway show (M.J. The Musical. SEE IT!) we wandered across the street to this establishment. I'd had a wonderful experience at a vodka room in Moscow, so I was looking forward to checking out The Russian Vodka Room. Nah... I thought we were walking into a haunted house at 4:45 in the afternoon in midtown. It was remarkable dark, & not in a romantic way. More like in a dungeon way. It looked like the kind of place you'd bring someone who you don't want to be seen with. Even though the place was practically empty, with only 2 dreary men seated in silence on wooden stools from 1976, the bartender never acknowledged us. Since I was apparently invisible I took advantage of my new superpower and walked all around the establishment, finding the slightly less depressing back room. I think there may have been a swinging lightbulb illuminating some fake flowers back there. Huge upgrade! Back out front the well-worn wooden tables that looked like they'd been hewn from a merchant marine vessel were extremely close to the bar seating, so you sorta had to slide by them. I can't tell you about the food and drink. You'll be surprised to learn that we left immediately. So if you're doing a dungeon-themed get together this is perfect. I did see a baby grand piano squeezed along the wall. Maybe that changes the mood of the place. As long as they don't play dirges.

January 2nd, 2023 It's disorganized to have one person running the bar, the bussing, and the food distribution. In the three hours my boyfriend and I sat there we waited 30 minutes for a martini and a beer (served in a bottle). Then we waited another hour to order more drinks. We got the ginger shot and garlic pepper and dill shot. While the shots were interesting, I wouldn't wait 45 minutes for them again. We waited and watched as the bartender/waitress chatted with other patrons for 20 minutes. The kicker wasn't even the wait on the drinks. The true kicker was that my boyfriend ordered the beef dumplings when we ordered the shots and after an hour and a half we still had no dumplings. We ended up getting the check (without the dumplings) but we were left with the feeling that they took our order and never delivered the order to the kitchen. This was a bummer because we came to this establishment for the dumplings he craved and we left without having had them. I won't be spending more money here if I can help it. January 12th, 2023 So my boyfriend begged me to give this please a second chance. He speaks Russian and wanted to practice his Russian so I gave it a go. One more time because second chances are a thing. It was awful. Terrible experience. Like we both left agreeing to never come here again. We say that as neighbors. We live a block away. It's hard to feel so negative about a place so close by. The reason: it took forever for them to open two beers and at the end of the night they attempted to charge us for two things we didn't order. Being the strong New York woman I am, I told them of mistakes and they fixed it but in my eyes mistakes like that shouldn't be made on well-seasoned New Yorkers. Especially neighbors of theirs. They will not be getting business for us or our friends and family.

After a Rachmaninov concert at Lincoln center, why not stop for a vodka and some dumplings at this cozy spot?! Friendly service, great vibe, a lady singing Russian ballads and super delicious dumplings! Reasonable prices and perfect cozy spot for this rainy Sunday night!

Most people in the know are probably more familiar with the Russian Tea Room than the Russian Vodka Room, but the latter is definitely worth a visit. This place is located on the West side of Midtown, just North of numerous Broadway theatres. The bar is situated in a space much smaller than I thought it would be, but the lighting, ambience and cozy atmosphere exuded warmth. The pomegranate cosmopolitan served by the bartender was exquisite, light and refreshing. I would recommend this bar to anyone interested in Russian culture, cuisine and vodka. Also enjoyed the music of the piano-playing singer.

I came here once with a friend a long time ago - 2003, I believe. (I believe Siberia nearby still existed.) We were excited to have some top-notch vodka. We walked down the steps, came into the place and the whole bar, full of Russians turned to glare at us. We stopped in our tracks and out of the corner of my mouth, I was like, "Do you still want to go here?" It's funny because my friend was born in Russia, and came here at a young age and even she did not feel comfortable. It was a very strange and unwelcoming first impression. My recollection is that we ended up having a pretty good time, and the bartender got friendlier as the night went on and we engaged her in conversation. My friend might have even spoken Russian to the bartender (maybe that's why she got nicer). Also, maybe she realized that we weren't tourists, not that it's okay to be rude to tourists...though they can be SUPER-loud, annoying, unsophisticated and boring. Sorry-not-sorry.) It's been 20 years - I'm going to suggest to my friend that we go back - HA!

This was such a fun accidental find! It was near our hotel, so we stopped in. There was a singer/pianist who played covers of popular songs. The vodka selection was massive and the drinks were delicious. This is a fun, welcoming, old school place.

Stopped by after dinner this past weekend for drinks. We came on a Saturday around 6pm and there were a few tables available. The Russian Vodka Room is pretty dark but it's lit up by fairy lights at the bar. We got the Lindsay Lohan and the Fickle Blueberry cocktails. The Lindsay Lohan had sparkling wine, blackberry purée, St. Germain, and mint. It was sweet, which is exactly the type of drink I like! The Fickle Blueberry tasted a lot stronger and it'd be a good choice if you liked blueberries. Seemed like a lot of people ordered food too. We weren't hungry, but would like to check out the food here next time.

Before heading to see a Broadway show, my girlfriend and I stopped at this place to have a drink. We sat at the bar and ordered some cocktails. We went with a Soviet Standard and a Bloody Dasha. Both of these drinks were really good. They have some good tasting vodka here. We didn't have much time before our performance show time, so we only stayed here for about 30 minutes; however during this time the drinks we did have were delicious and the staff was nice and friendly. I would come back to try their food out, as their food menu looked good. I would also like to try some more of their flavored vodkas. Maybe the vodka flight next time.

As a local, and having come here several times I am just so upset with what has happened lately here. Our bartender was beyond clueless. Ordered just a vodka soda which not sure how you can mess that up (she did) and husbands ordered Old Fashioned's. My husband asked about what kind of bourbon and she came over with Whistle Pig rye. We should have known then. On top of that debacle, my friend ordered a flavored shot (was happy hour) and board outside says $5. People, look at your receipts. We got charged $6 for shot, $25 per Old Fashioned and $20 for a vodka soda. Sorry to say, we really loved this place and bringing out of town friends, but no more. MASSIVE disappointment.

I have been going to The Russian Vodka Room for decades; since it first opened. Walk through its portals, and you are instantly transported to Odessa, Russia, circa 1990, without risking your life on Aeroflot Airlines. Dark, sultry, and furtive, the Russian Vodka Room envelops you in a world of "Natasha's," live singers, attractive bartenders, and black leather. The men are polite, but keep smiling and don't stare at their hot girlfriends or their elaborate tattoos. The alcohol flows, everyone is alive, and pretension is not necessary. This is Russia, not America, and flaws are accepted as a viable aspect of life. The Russian Vodka Room is non judgmental. If you have money, spend it. If not, drown your sorrows. Dostoyevsky wasn't cheery. Stagger out of the Russian Vodka Room, blink a couple of times, and exclaim, "Huh, where am I?" Back in New York is where you are, with two choices: Turn around, go back in, and forget about life for a while. Or, keep walking and face the trials and tribulations unabashedly. I love The Russian Vodka Room.

Decent spot if you're not vegetarian and love vodka. There's live music and a variety of dishes from traditional Russian cuisine. The Russian dumplings and chicken Kiev was pretty good!

I've only been to a few Russian places so I get excited when I find one. I came here for a late dinner of Borscht and a drink. The Borscht was excellent and the atmosphere and piano player were super cool. It's kind of a little divey but that's part of the character. I hope to bring my husband back here the next time we're in New York.

It all comfort food to me. Brings me back to my childhood. If your Russian Polish or Eastern European. Of course the vodka helps a lot too.

Fabulous infused vodkas. Share the 3 oz flight with a friend! Three color eggplant salad fabulous. Delicious dumplings! Real Russian bread delicious and served warm ! All you want! Ooooh apple blintzes with ice cream. Two fabulous blitzes with whipped cream , lce cream and strawberries. And live mysic I

The Russian Vodka Room is like stepping into old NYC! When you walk in -it is dark and lightly lit w small lights. There's a piano and someone is usually playing and singing sweet melodies. Met up with a few friends for some vodka and yummy Russian apps. We all had a round of ginger vodka which is my favorite. I also had the Persian mule which was strong and refreshing. We had some apps the Russian dumplings are delish and great for sharing while taking shots of vodka. We also had the beef stroganoff and the crab cakes both good and and filling. Always a good time at Russian Vodka Room and last night was no different!

Vodka. Lotsa vodka. They make their own infused vodkas which sneak up on you and taste smooth as hell. The piano player and singer are a little bit of a drag bc everything starts to sound the same, but entertaining nonetheless. We had little appetizers, typical of Russian shnacks...smoked fish, salmon, crackers & pate. It's cool for a night. Staff is so friendly and accommodating. Worth a visit or two. Da!

Stopped here on a whim on the way to the. Broadway Comedy Club. It did NOT disappoint! We had two cocktails (not going to lie, my daughter had gin in a vodka joint) and an infused garlic and dill shot. Yummy! We also had the tomato and burrata salad and the cucumber with feta and tomatoes, both superb and seasoned perfectly! We shared the shrimp skewer, happy patrons!

Amazing! Loved the food, loved the atmosphere and awesome infused vodka shots. Absolutely a must for a cute and casual bar in NYC with Russian flair!

The prices went up from $5 to $7 per drink on happy hour. Neighbors next to me made similar commentary. However their cornish hen looked so delicious so I may try a main course next time. They said it was falling off the bone which always sounds so fabulous! Pricing is still reasonable, just have to get over the huge increase. So I ordered my mussels. Bartender asked if I wanted a couple of pieces of bread even though I said I didn't want bread. That was nice of her to ask again. I asked for toasted bread though and for some reason she told other bartender. I guess it was an issue. Next bartender gave me bread and informed me it was warm. She said toasted is to come and it never did come. If they don't have a toaster or had an issue, shouldn't they just tell me? Don't make me wait on toasted bread that isn't coming! But I tipped well as always. In general though this place is a staple for this area and nice for preshow drink and food. They have music later on so I do recommend for something different.

Russian Vodka Room brings together Vodka, food amd friends in such a way that we all leave as comrades.