How did your career as a baker begin?
I was born and raised in Poland, a country with an incredible baking culture. Bakeries are everywhere, fresh pastries are part of everyday life, and homemade baking is deeply woven into family traditions. Every weekend my grandmother baked for the whole family, and my parents baked too because where I grew up, homemade was always better. Polish baking is also wonderfully complex. It isn't about shortcuts or three-ingredient recipes. It takes time, patience, and technique, and I think that's what shaped me as a baker. I love a challenge, and I'm incredibly stubborn. If something doesn't work, I'll keep trying until it does.
I started by baking cakes for friends and family. After moving from London to New York in 2016, I found myself desperately missing really good European-style sourdough. Before the sourdough boom, it wasn't easy to find, and when I did, so many loaves contained sugar which, as a European, still surprises me! Bread, unless it's brioche or challah, doesn't need sugar or some complex additives. So I started baking my own. Then, after developing health issues, my focus shifted entirely to gluten-free baking. What began as a personal necessity quickly became an obsession with proving that gluten-free baked goods could be just as exciting, beautiful, and satisfying as traditional baking.
I started taking orders from my apartment through Instagram (1K followers at that time). Then one day Ashley Graham ordered from us, people started sharing our products, and somehow... the orders never stopped. We built Sixteen Mill with no investors, no loans, and no formal business plan, just a lot of determination, long hours, and customers who believed in what we were doing. Today we're a tiny bakery in Gowanus, and I'm still amazed every single day that it all started in my home kitchen.
Tell us about your gluten-free, plant-based and refined sugar-free bakery, Sixteen Mill.
We're a 100% gluten-free bakery, but our goal has never been to simply replace wheat. We wanted to build a bakery that celebrates incredible ingredients. We blend our own flour mixes in-house rather than relying on commercial gluten-free premixes. Under our work tables you'll find buckets filled with different flours that we mix depending on the texture we're trying to achieve. Every bread, cake and pastry has its own formula.
Whenever possible, we source locally. Our buckwheat comes from Birkett Mills in Penn Yan, New York, the oldest continuously operating buckwheat mill in the United States, and we prioritize organic ingredients whenever we can. Instead of refined sugar, we sweeten most of our baked goods with pure maple syrup from Barred Woods Maple in Vermont, a wonderful family-owned farm we've worked with for years.
Going completely plant-based was probably the hardest business decision I've ever made. I'm not vegan myself, I'm more of a pescatarian, but it turned out to be one of the best decisions for the bakery. It pushed me to innovate and create products that are inclusive without compromising on flavor or texture. We wanted to prove that vegan and gluten-free baking doesn't have to be dry, dense, or disappointing. It can be soft, moist, beautiful, and genuinely craveable.
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Can you tell us the story behind the name?
People ask us about the name all the time. We were throwing around ideas one evening, and "Sixteen Mill" just sounded right. The inspiration actually came from 16mm film, the classic motion picture film format introduced in the 1920s. It has this timeless, artistic feel that we loved, and we liked the idea of creating something with that same sense of craftsmanship. At the same time, "mill" naturally connects to flour milling, which felt perfect for a bakery that's so focused on grains and flour blends.
And honestly, we also liked that people can interpret it however they want. Some people think of milling flour, others think of measurements, others just think it sounds memorable. We kind of love that.
What's your favorite part about New York's sustainable culinary community?
Without question, it's the people. When I moved to New York, I didn't know a single person. Today I feel like I'm surrounded by an army of people who genuinely want each other to succeed. The sustainable food community here is incredibly generous. Instead of seeing each other as competition, people share ideas, recommend suppliers, lend equipment, celebrate each other's wins, and show up when things get difficult.
As a small business owner, those relationships mean everything. We've built friendships with farmers, millers, maple producers, chocolatiers, chefs, and fellow bakery and restaurant owners. Every collaboration makes us stronger, and every day I'm grateful to be part of a community that believes there's room for everyone to do well.
We were so excited to see your release of the Sixteen Mill bagel! What was the process like developing a gluten-free version of a New York classic?
Bagels have probably been the hardest product we've ever developed. We actually made them years ago, between 2020 and 2022, but after moving into an all-electric production space, making them the traditional way became nearly impossible. We were boiling huge pots of water on small induction burners and baking in second-hand ovens I'd bought on Facebook Marketplace. It simply wasn't sustainable if we wanted to grow.
So I spent the next few years completely rethinking the recipe. My goal was never just to make a gluten-free bagel. I wanted to make a bagel that someone who grew up eating New York bagels would genuinely enjoy. The chew, the crust, the fermentation, the flavor - everything mattered. We naturally ferment our bagels, giving them time to develop flavor instead of relying on additives. I tested countless flour combinations until I found something that delivered the texture I was chasing.
Ironically, I now eat one almost every single day. They're my favorite bread we've ever made (although our seeded sourdough is still a very close second). The biggest compliment we receive is when someone says, "I can't believe this is gluten-free." That's exactly what I was hoping for.
Do you have a favorite item on the bakery menu right now?
It changes almost every week. Right now I'm obsessed with our sour cherry cake. It's honestly difficult not to eat a slice every day. But generally, my favorite product is always whatever we've just added to the menu. If something makes it into the display case, it's because I absolutely love it and can't wait for other people to try it.
One thing I'm especially proud of is our weekend specials. Whenever we get our hands on exceptional seasonal fruit or vegetables—often regeneratively grown from Natoora—we'll create something that's available for just one weekend. Sometimes we never make it again. I think that's what makes those specials so exciting. They're a snapshot of a particular moment, a particular harvest, and once they're gone, they're gone. If you see one, don't wait until next weekend—it probably won't be there anymore.
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