Russ & Daughters is a family-owned shop offering high-end smoked fish, caviar & New York-style specialty foods. Established in 1914 by Joel Russ, a Jewish immigrant from Poland, who named the store with his three daughters in mind. Joel Russ got his start in 1907 selling herring from a pushcart until he saved sufficient money to open Russ & Daughters, which had become a New York City institution and boasts a Michelin Bib Gourmand award.

"The first New York business to have '& Daughters' in its name."

"Appetizing " stores, shops specializing in fish and dairy products, were popular with Eastern European immigrants, and prior to the 1960s there were plenty of " appetizing " shops on the Lower East Side and throughout New York City.

Today Russ & Daughters is run by family members from the fourth generation of the Russ family, Niki Russ Federman & Josh Russ Tupper. Together they opened the Russ & Daughters Café on neighboring Orchard Street in 2014, followed by a Brooklyn location in 2019 that became the new home to the bakery and shipping hub.

“Appetizing” is a Jewish food tradition that is most typical among American Jews, and it is particularly local to New York and New Yorkers. The word “appetizer” is derived from the Latin “appete,” meaning "to desire, covet, or long for.” Used as a noun, “appetizing” is most easily understood as "the foods one eats with bagels.” Its primary components are a variety of smoked and cured salmon, homemade salads, and cream cheeses."