Niki Russ Federman

Host Traven Rice speaks with Niki Russ Federman for episode 11 of The Lo-Down Culture Cast. She's the 4th generation co-owner of the esteemed appetizing shop, Russ & Daughters. Known for the best bagels, lox, herring, caviar babka and other traditional baked goods and smoked fish in New York City, the landmark shop has been in the same location at 179 East Houston Street since 1914. Russ & Daughters was the first small business in the country to add "& Daughters" to its name and ownership. Federman and her cousin, Josh Russ Tupper, took over the family business in 2009. They opened their first-ever sit-down cafe in 2014 and have now expanded to Brooklyn and the west side of Manhattan. Rice and Federman discussed what it takes to turn an established shop, that was once considered common place, into what is now known as an iconic destination on the Lower East Side.