Russian Tea House

The Russian Tea House is in a big old single-family home, just east of the
intersection with Fairview.

This restaurant--in a huge white house at 1758 University Avenue--has been around for decades. I stopped in for a take-out piroshki (a Russian meat pie) nearly 30 years ago and somehow didn't get back until last week. Maybe it had something to do with the restaurant's limited hours: Tuesday to Friday 11 am to 3 pm. But Christian and I made a point of clearing our Friday afternoon schedules so we could pay a visit.

Food to-go or to-stay is ordered at a counter near the entrance, and the eat-in location is a pleasant upstairs room. In fact, one of the things we liked best about the Russian Tea House is its unusual vantage point overlooking University Avenue. There are lots of restaurants on the avenue, but not many where you can have a bird's eye view.

Russian Tea House fare beats Wendy's fast food by a mile, and
then some. We loved the view of University Ave. heading for
downtown Minneapolis!

Fall is a time for comfort food, and the Tea House's beef stroganoff (available on Fridays only) fits the bill. Mmmmm: a beefy sauce with chunks of green pepper ladled over a sort of dumplings called potato veneniki. Christian and I also split a tasty piroshki. Not to take anything away from the piroshki, but it made me wish there was a place in the Twin Cities to get a Cornish pasty (similar to the piroshki, but with onions, turnips, etc. in addition to meat). A steaming cup of tea was the perfect complement to the stroganoff and piroshki, not to mention the Russian teacakes we enjoyed for dessert.

OK, I'm not a fan of the Tea House's styrofoam plates, and the plastic forks were so flimsy they could barely cut a dumpling. But I'm willing to cut the Tea House some slack. It's not a full-service restaurant, but it has survived a long time by filling a unique niche. I'll definitely plan to return a little sooner than I did last time... Joel