From a tiny home kitchen to the pages of The New York Times, The Sour is more than a bakery, it’s a testament to faith, family and community.
Peter and Makenzie Mitchell are the proud owners of The Sour, a bustling hub located in the heart of downtown Rapid City. What is now a vibrant, full-scale café is years in the making. Before opening their downtown location, the Mitchells operated out of a commercial kitchen, and before that, they baked loaves in their family home.
“I’ve just always been very interested in food,” Peter said. “I happened upon a sourdough starter from someone in a Facebook group and then just started using it to make pizzas and bread and everything else.”
The couple spent the early years of their marriage traveling. Before settling in Rapid City, they served as missionaries, living in New York City, South Africa and Hawaii, before eventually settling in California. But in 2016, after a business restructuring left Peter without a job, the two began to consider a move to a more affordable location.
“Well, do we try to find something else?” Peter said. “Ultimately, we decided to move out here [Rapid City] because I have family out here, and it was much, much cheaper at the time to live out here.”
Their decision to relocate wasn’t made lightly, it came after a period of uncertainty and reflection. With Peter suddenly out of work and the high cost of living in California weighing heavily on them, the couple began to weigh their options. They needed a fresh start. That’s when Rapid City entered the conversation.
“It was like a breath of fresh air, we could actually afford to live, coming from California,” Makenzie said.
After the move, Peter worked in corrections at a juvenile detention center, while Makenzie took a job at a veterinary office. The two rarely saw each other and found it difficult to spend time with their children. That changed during the pandemic.
“At that point, we had very little time for our family because we were both working during the pandemic, and so we rarely saw each other,” Makenzie said.
Looking for a way to spend more time together, they decided to turn Peter’s passion for baking into a business. In 2021, they launched The Sour out of their home, baking just 10 loaves a week. What started as a side hustle quickly gained traction.
“At one point, we were leaving on vacation, and we had to cut off our pre orders, but it was like two months out,” Makenzie said. “We were like, ‘What is this? How? Why are people willing to wait two months to get bread?’”
The response was overwhelming. The Sour’s success allowed both Peter and Makenzie to leave their jobs and pursue baking full-time. Makenzie worked until 11 p.m., while Peter began baking at 2 a.m., becoming a round-the-clock operation.
Within a year, demand had outgrown their home kitchen. They needed more space and staff. On Mother’s Day weekend in 2022, the two opened a commercial kitchen and began to see the potential of the community they were building.
“It was fun because we always got to connect with people, watching our small mom-and-pop shop bring people together,” Makenzie said.
The commercial space allowed them to begin wholeselling to local restaurants seeking fresh, handmade products rather than food supplier staples.
“We’re the only bakery in this area that even makes its own pastry, we make our own dough, our own butter blocks, we laminate our own pastry dough,” Peter said. “We don’t even use commercial baking yeast in any of our products.”
Peter uses only natural fermentation methods, a slower, more traditional process that yields complex flavor and texture. While many bakeries rely on commercial yeast, Peter is dedicated to what he calls “a return to basics.”
“It’s the way humans have made bread forever up until the invention of commercial yeasts,” Peter said. “It’s going to take more than twenty four hours to get your bread mixed, shaped, fermented and baked. You’re on a different timetable.”
That commitment to craftsmanship has contributed to The Sour’s success, but it hasn’t come without challenges. Even in their commercial kitchen, the Mitchells faced space and staffing issues.
“Bakeries are notoriously very space-dependent,” Peter said. “You need a lot of refrigeration, your ovens are large, your mixers are large. And when everything’s hand-cut, hand-shaped, it’s more people, more space.”
They still use their original location to meet demand. Staffing has also been an ongoing challenge, especially during national labor shortages.
“Everyone in food service goes through staffing issues,” Peter said. “When you have more demand, you need more people, and you’re always hard-pressed to find people who want to work in a café.”
Despite those obstacles, The Sour has continued to rise, quite literally. In June 2024, the Mitchells opened a downtown café, a warm and welcoming space that reflects everything they’ve built.
Previously confined to a small storefront with only standing room, Peter and Makenzie dreamed of a space where customers could relax, connect and enjoy a pastry or cup of coffee. The downtown location, with sunlight streaming through large windows and plants lining the sills, brought that dream to life.
Everything in the space reflects their values: bread as a conversation starter, a source of joy and a reminder to live more slowly and intentionally
The downtown café also allowed them to expand their offerings. The menu now features rotating weekly specials, take-and-bake options, coffee drinks and crowd favorites like cinnamon rolls, morning buns and jalapeño cheddar bagels.
“Our kids are obsessed with the bagels,” Makenzie said.
Peter’s favorite item on the menu is typically the newest thing.
“Right now, we’re getting ready to do a strawberry rhubarb hand pie,” Peter said. “It’s really good.”
As for what the community loves, Peter said the demand constantly shifts.
“There was a while there where we couldn’t make enough ham and cheese croissants,” Peter said. “We were selling out by 9 a.m. every day, now everyone’s back on a cinnamon roll kick, the kouign-amann are really popular as well.”
The summer is expected to bring a new wave of excitement following the bakery’s recent national recognition. On Christmas Eve, Peter was surprised to receive emails from people across the country asking to order bread after spotting The Sour in The New York Times.
The Sour was named one of the 22 best bakeries in the country. A recognition that took owners Peter and Mackenzie Mitchell completely by surprise. A freelance journalist had interviewed Peter in November, presenting the conversation as a general inquiry into bakery life. She never revealed the true purpose of her research.
The Mitchells only discovered themselves on the list when inquiries started pouring in on Christmas morning. Peter, who was initially told the interview might not even be published, was initially skeptical. To his surprise, The Sour was not just mentioned once, but featured in two separate pieces, one highlighting the experiences of bakery owners and another listing the top 22 bakeries in the nation.
The recognition brought a surge of attention to their small Rapid City bakery, drawing interest from food lovers across South Dakota and beyond.
“We weren’t seeking or looking to get featured,” Peter said. “We were just trying to make good bread and pastries for our community. That was our goal.”
As The Sour continues to grow, what remains at the center of their story is a deep-rooted commitment to faith, family and community. From a few loaves in their home kitchen to national acclaim, the Mitchells have built more than a bakery. They’ve created a space filled with intention, creativity and warmth, a place where good bread brings people together.
And perhaps, that’s the secret ingredient after all.
