About

Based in Toledo, Ohio but often in Cleveland.

Sarah Bania-Dobyns and Melanie Ferstman both grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, where they ate many Russian tea biscuits. But Sarah didn’t know Russian tea biscuits had a Jewish Cleveland story until Sarah moved away and discovered she couldn’t find them anywhere else. This prompted her to start wondering: are Russian tea biscuits from Cleveland? Are they really Russian? Were they brought to Cleveland by immigrants? These questions, and many others, fueled her desire to uncover the story of the pastry.

Sarah and Melanie both bring a zest for history and a passion for bringing to life people’s stories, and these two threads are driving the production’s research/development phase and early production process. They are currently immersed in archival research and interviews with professional and home bakers, eaters, and food experts. Contact us by email or in Share Your Story if you have a story to tell about Russian tea biscuits.