Izba is run by Olga Rogacheva, a home baker with no formal training other than recipes handed down through her grandma's Russian pastry bible.

Rogacheva's Napoleon cake is a mille-feuille that takes two days to make. This version is more spongey and dense, and a little less sweet than the traditional French iteration. The most popular cake, however, is the medovik, a delicate Russian honey cake. Despite having intricate layers of pastry and honeyed cream, the beautiful creation falls perfectly to the slice of a fork. You’ll see them on almost every table at Izba with a tea or coffee, that latter brewed with beans from Alexandria roasters, Crave.

Rogacheva's vodka desserts are far from gimmicky in both production and alcohol content. The White Russian combines vodka cream, Kahlua ganache, and vodka Kahlua jelly into a stratified shot glass. It contains a standard drink, but the flavour of the alcohol is well balanced with the creaminess and sweetness of the dessert's three layers.

The savoury side is made up of Russian pancakes, pies and buckwheat porridge. The pancakes or blinis are like spongey burritos packed with spiced mincemeat; cottage cheese; salmon; Nutella or a combination of jams, honey, condensed milk and cream.