Our Story

We love food! This is the principle that started Old Capitol Food Co. Our mission is simple: We want to prepare the best food, using the best local ingredients. When you purchase one of our products, you can be sure that it was lovingly prepared in our Iowa City kitchen to meet our exceedingly high standards.

Jake Gratzon and Matthew Mesaros are the co-founders of Old Capitol Food Co. Both lovers of good food with strong ideals, Jake and Matt started playing with the idea for a food production company. Originally, flavor infused tofu was on the menu, but they soon realized that they first needed to master the complex world of traditional tofu. And so, the long process of learning the ancient art of tofu had begun. Many moons passed building equipment, constructing a kitchen, and of course, making and eating a ton of tofu! Today, this journey has resulted in the absolute best tofu straight from our gorgeous Iowa City facility. Tomorrow, this journey will result in flavored tofu (yes, it’s still on the menu), more local products, and more fun!