How a 16-year-old owns a family-run bakery in Texas
SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage) — If you find yourself driving through the Texas Hill Country in Menard, Texas, you will see a brightly painted building right off the road. Walking inside, you will be greeted with smiling faces, the smell of ground coffee and the aroma of freshly baked goods. This is Texas Scratch Kitchen, a family-owned business looking to bring more than just delicious treats to their community.
Joe and Amy Prest have five kids together that make up the Texas Scratch Kitchen family. The three older siblings, 16-year-old Maia, 18-year-old Zea and 14-year-old Laila Prest, were all born in England, where they were accustomed to French and European pastries made by their Nana. The two younger siblings, seven-year-old Sienna and five-year-old Jet Prest, were born in Texas.
The Texas Scratch Kitchen is a Southern/European market and bakery, bringing fresh food to Menard and surrounding Texas communities. The owner, who is just old enough to get her driver's license, Maia Prest, has been in the kitchen since she was six years old, having grown up in a family full of love and lots of enjoyment of food.
"We used to take Maia to the bakery on the High Street and she would just look inside the case with big wide eyes in awe," said Amy Prest.
Eventually, the family moved to Menard, Texas, where their great-grandmother resided. Their great grandmother was well known for her baking throughout the town where many had grown up eating her cakes. The three older siblings are the eighth generation to live in Menard, Texas.
"They got to eat her cake and they got to eat the choux pastries and the French pastry that their Nana made and they kind of put the two together naturally," said Amy Prest.
The Texas Scratch Kitchen has a unique meaning to each of the three older siblings. Maia Prest wanted to share her love of making and eating food with the community and put herself out there to test her skills. For Zea Prest, food has always been an experience, telling CVHP she wanted to provide a sense of community and gathering to the residents of Menard. Laila shared that she finds food comforting, enjoying the time spent with her family.
"This is my main hobby and it turned into something so much bigger, " said Maia Prest. "That's honestly so incredible."
Starting the business from scratch, Maia, Laila and their family started making food to bring to the local farmers' market, something they still do on Saturdays.
"It quickly became popular," said Laila Prest, "People out here didn't have access to good pastry, we were kind of in a food desert at the time, more so then, than now."
From there, they began expanding to farmers' markets in Junction and taking on catering orders. The demand for their goods became so high it was finally time to upgrade to a bigger kitchen and provide a space for customers to come to them. Each of the sisters took on a unique role - Maia as the owner, Zea as the marketer and designer and Laila as the family cheerleader and crafter.
"I'm kind of a menace when I get into the kitchen," said Laila Prest. " That's what I love about baking and getting to try new things, maybe they will turn out, maybe they will be a disaster but it's always fun."
After several months of design and hard work, the Texas Scratch Kitchen opened their doors to the community. Alongside the family's passion and love for one another to make this dream a reality was what can only be described as true Texan hospitality.
"We couldn't be here without the support of both communities. It has been outstanding," said Amy Prest. "They came and supported them week after week after week and their customer base just grew."
Community members had nothing but praise for the family during their ribbon cutting on September 5. The shop was abuzz with congratulations and joy as customers milled around drinking coffee, admiring everything the business had to offer and how far they had come.
Jet and Sienna Prest are very proud of their older siblings and the business their family created working together.
"It's been worth the wait and I like being here, letting this shop grow day after day," said Sienna Prest.
"Every single day Maia, Zea and Laila all work as a team to get this shop running," said Jet Prest. " And I think they have done a great job."
Looking forward, Maia said she hopes they expand their business and their product line while continuing to grow and learn. Laila hopes to continue bringing good food to the Texas community and Zea wants to start incorporating more local ingredients into their dishes.
"We've always been a really strong family unit," said Zea Prest. "This has always been our home and our roots are here."
The Texas Scratch Kitchen is located at 300 Ellis Street in Menard, Texas open Tuesday through Thursday 6:30 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. and Friday 6:30 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
To keep up with the family business, check out their pages on Facebook and Instagram.