WASHINGTON — Every state is represented in the nation鈥檚 capital, but most Texan transplants argue their home state鈥檚 interests are seriously lacking in D.C. — only, their complaint has nothing to do with politics and everything to do with pastry.
But this frustration will soon come to an end when D.C. residents Chris Svetlik and Brian Stanford launch and start serving their kolaches to the masses.
鈥淎ny Texan will tell you how they miss things like Tex-Mex and how you can鈥檛 find good Tex-Mex here, and kolaches are up there as well,鈥� says Svetlik, a 27-year-old Texas native. 鈥淜olache means something to everyone in Texas.鈥�
For Texans, kolaches are as common as doughnuts — a ubiquitous breakfast or snack food found in most bakeries and convenience stores. The stuffed dough came to the Lone Star State by way of Czech immigrants in the 19th century.
And while many Czech families continue to make kolaches the traditional way — with fruit filling — the pasty has gone through a bit of an evolution in the South. Now, it鈥檚 common to see kolaches stuffed with meats, cheeses, potatoes and more.
鈥淏asically a lot of things you would find in a breakfast taco in Austin have made their way to into these savory kolaches as well,鈥� Svetlik says.
In addition to taking on new flavors, kolaches have taken to new regions as well. Over the years they鈥檝e grown from being staples in rural Czech communities to a popular street food in Texas cities.
In fact, Bon Appetit magazine鈥檚 Adam Rapoport kolache a new 鈥渋t鈥� food for 2015. (Svetlik and Stanford are happy to point out that kolache was designated a trend after they announced plans for their business in Washington City Paper鈥檚 section.)
鈥淚t鈥檚 almost similar to what barbecue has done in the last couple of decades in Texas,鈥� Svetlik says. 鈥淭he best barbecue and the best kolaches for a long time were found out in the country in these tiny little country bakeries, and then it鈥檚 really caught on in the cities more recently. You鈥檒l have people who don鈥檛 have the cultural connection — their Czech grandmothers didn鈥檛 make kolache — but still, it鈥檚 an amazing food and it caught on in the cities.鈥�
Yet, however mainstream kolaches are in Texas, they鈥檙e difficult to find in D.C. And when Svetlik and Stanford were introduced via mutual friends in the District, the two bonded over their nostalgia for the hometown comfort food.
Then, there came a point when they stopped reminiscing and decided to do something about it: They decided to bring kolaches to D.C.
Svetlik鈥檚 dad, who grew up in what Svetlik calls a 鈥渢ypical Czech-immigrant family,鈥� is the keeper of the family鈥檚 kolache recipe. And for the past year, Svetlik and Stanford have been working with that recipe to make a few different varieties of their own.
鈥淲e鈥檝e tinkered and refined it. I think we are trying to take an approach where we have a solid basis with the authentic old style of doing Texas kolaches, but we鈥檙e also experimenting. We are here on the East Coast and we鈥檙e seeing what we can do that does provide an East Coast spin on things,鈥� Svetlik says.
The duo is working on a D.C.-specific kolache with a half-smoke, cheddar and jalapeno. Stanford explains that a beef-based sausage kolache is a common variety in Texas, so this is their nod to the District.
鈥淲e thought it would be a great way to marry up those two culinary ideas of the kolache,鈥� says Stanford, 34. 鈥淚t鈥檚 basically a fancy pig in a blanket.鈥�
They are also experimenting with a breakfast kolache (think of chorizo, egg and cheese, and ham, egg and cheese), and a few different types of seasonal fruit kolaches, such as blueberries and cream cheese and pear.
鈥淲e鈥檝e thrown away a lot,鈥� says Stanford in regard to all of the recipe testing. 鈥淎s scientific as you can get about it, it鈥檚 just recording results and saying, 鈥極K — this worked; this didn鈥檛 work; this could work better; perhaps if we tried this or that.鈥� And again, it took the better part of the year doing that before we said, 鈥極K. We have something that passes our very high standards of what it should be and what it should taste like.鈥欌��
With a recipe that meets their standards, Svetlik and Stanford are gearing up to launch; they intend to start selling kolaches at pop-ups and a few local farmers markets.
For both Svetlik and Stanford, Republic Kolache Co. is a side project (Svetlik runs his own design and technology studio; Stanford is an attorney for the federal government), but Svetlik says they鈥檙e up for seeing where the business takes them.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 have it here, and it鈥檚 just a thing that we鈥檇 like to see kind of take root here and just to be able to share it with people who haven鈥檛 had them before,鈥� Stanford says.
鈥淭he two of us wanted a good, reliable source of kolache. And at the end of the day, wherever this thing goes, I know I鈥檓 going to make my dad proud, so it will be worth it,鈥� Svetlik adds.
Follow Republic Kolache Co. on and to learn about their upcoming launch events.
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