Babunya’s Gourmet spice was born nearly over 100 years ago.
However, before the tasty spice was made available for public consumption, the Kostiw family had been enjoying them for centuries on hamburgers, chicken, steak, tuna and other classic delicacies. Even former first lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis was moved by Babunya’s delicious meals when she first got a taste of it in the 1980s.
The Babunya story began in Eastern Europe in 1926. It was there the family matriarch, Janina Kostiw, was born.
Janina’s parents, who had four other children, grew tired of the many changes in government that the ongoing revolution had brought.
With the war intensifying, the family sold all of their belongings and moved to Italy, and then on to Brazil. It was there that the family would settle in Rio Grande Do Sul in the city of Porto Alegre. Soon thereafter they moved on to Santa Rosa. It was there that Janina’s culinary skills were honed.
Janina’s mother, Karolina Trusz, was a sensational cook as were other family members, including her grandmother and aunts.
Janina later found love and in 1943 she married Thomasz Kostiw, a native of Liviv, Ukraine, whom she met while he was working in Porto Alegre, where the newlyweds would settle.
From this union came 2 children Paul and Maria. In 1967, Thomasz decided to sell his business and retire in the United States, where some of Thomasz’ family members had earlier settled.
Shortly after the couple’s move to the U.S. and 18 years after raising their children, Thomas Jr., was born in December 1967.
The grandchildren affectionately referred Janina to as Baba, short for Babunya, which means grandma in Ukrainian.
Each day, the children and grandchildren of Janina and Thomasz were delighted to enjoy home cooked meals prepared with Babunya’s family recipes with old world spice that have been passed down through generations.
Today, Thomas Jr. and his wife Marlén, wanted to make sure that everyone got a chance to enjoy the Babunya’s family recipe, so they started a company called MELT Enterprises, LLC to bottle it up and make sure that others get to enjoy her secret gourmet recipe spice.