Food court eats are usually synonymous with deep fried goodies – from burgers and fries to slices of pizza and cans of pop.
One New West woman has broken the mould and is offering an alternative. Russian Spoon – located inside Royal City Centre between A&W and Amar’s Indian Feast – is the first restaurant in a Canadian food court that serves home-cooked, traditional Russian cuisine, according to its owner.
“It’s very healthy. It’s cooked from scratch,” said Natalia Mitrofanova, proudly. “We never use canned food, we never use preservatives or MSG.”
Mitrofanova, who immigrated to Canada 15 years ago with a degree in microchip engineering, opened Russian Spoon last July. Prior to that, she was selling Russian piroshki at farmers markets around the Lower Mainland.
“We saw a very good customer response,” the mother-of-two told the Record of her reason to start up the business.
Asked why she didn’t move into a café or a restaurant, Mitrofanova said the food court setting is more “stable.”
“Here, people can stop in anytime, grab food, taste almost anything. It’s faster in the mall. People can see this food. It’s in warmers, it’s hot, and you serve them in three minutes.”
Business, however, has had its ups and downs, she added. She said many locals aren’t even aware of Russian Spoon’s location.
“Not a lot of people know about Russian food. They’re surprised, they’re scared to try and they think it’s spicy. It’s mild.”
The menu consists of (but not limited to) borscht (beef or vegan), fried cabbage with sausage, cabbage rolls (beef or vegan), plov (beef and rice stir-fry) and pelmeni (beef and pork dumplings). There’s also pierogis, beef stroganoff and made-in-house cottage cheese.
Foodies can order combos (between $8 and $10) or pay $2.50 per spoonful. Mitrofanova even hands out a free, hand-crafted wooden spoon, painted in black, red and gold, for orders of $50 or more.
On the sweeter side of things, the pastry selection includes stuffed crepes, vatrushka (a baked bun with sweet cottage cheese on top) and napoleon cake.
Mitrofanova tries to educate her customers as much as possible by posting photos with every dish. She answers any and all questions related to her cuisine – from how much magnesium is in a serving of buckwheat to what ingredients make up her beef and potato stew.
At the end of the day, it’s about keeping her family’s traditions and recipes alive.
“In Russia, women love to cook, it’s our hobby, it’s our tradition. They put a lot of passion in it.”
That’s why Mitrofanova decided to make her business motto, “Made with Russian Love.”
“They say, ‘Why is it so tasty?’ We say because there’s love there.”
