Franics Bastasch (Great Great Grandfather Frank) arrived from Bohemia and settled in Portland, Oregon, where he opened the New York Bakery on Stark Street (later renamed Luxury Bakery). The hours were long, the work was done by hand, and warm bread went out each morning by horse and carriage. He was the first of four Franks to run the ovens. The standard he set was simple: pay extra for real ingredients, and the rest takes care of itself.

Francis "Peter" Bastasch — the fourth Frank — and his wife Elizabeth started Elizabeth's Food Company out of their home in Cambria, California. Two years earlier, their daughter Maria had been born; Peter and Elizabeth had met at USD years before that, bonded over the ocean and surfing and a shared idea of a good life. Peter brought four generations of baking craft and an engineer's mind. Elizabeth brought a California whole-foods upbringing — eating clean, real food long before grocery aisles or wellness culture caught on. Together they shared one conviction: what you eat matters. They started with bagel chips. The rest followed.

From a Bohemian flour mill to a Portland bakery, and from Los Angeles to South Carolina, the work has always remained the same. The same work Frank believed in generations ago: bake with care, use real ingredients, and make food worth gathering around.