Bakery Thieves Leave Cash, Take Recipes

Ry Stephens, the 28-year-old pastry chef and proprietor of Mr Holmes Bakehouse in San Francisco, was stunned to discover his bakery had been the victim of a robbery, and even more stunned when he realized the thieves left all the money and valuables and instead made off with 230 of his recipes.

According to the New York Times, Stephens' signature item at the Bakehouse is the "Cruffin," a Cronut-esque, muffin-croissant hybrid stuffed with a flavored cream filling. The $4.50 pastry is wildly popular, especially on Instagram, and so popular customers are willing to wait in line for them first thing in the morning. They take three days to make, but on February 27, someone broke into the restaurant in the night and stole 230 recipes, including the recipe for the Cruffin.

The crime was discovered by an employee who showed up to work one morning and found the front doors unlocked. When she started to make some scones, she realized all the recipe binders were empty. 230 recipes were taken, but the thieves did not touch any of the other valuables in the bakery, including cash, expensive bakery equipment, computers, or an iPad.

The police are investigating the theft, but Stephen says he's sure it wasn't someone from the bakery. He said he trusts his employees and has told them they can have any recipe that they want as long as they can execute it.

Stephen was shocked by the loss of the recipes, but news of the robbery has helped drive up demand for the Cruffin, which is commanding Cronut-like lines in front of the bakery.

"If someone stole it, it's got to be good," explained one of the customers waiting in the Cruffin line.