Daisy Chow, owner of Arlington’s Breadboard Bakery, has forged a unique path from engineering to artisan baking over the past two decades. Now 48, Chow opened her bakery seven years ago after nearly five years of hosting pop-ups at Cutty’s in Brookline while continuing to hone her craft at Clear Flour Bakery, where she worked for 15 years.

Chow grew up in Texas, where her family ran a Chinese restaurant, nurturing an early connection to kitchens despite her academic focus on math. She attended Columbia University’s engineering school and initially pursued a career as an engineer at an MIT startup in Somerville. However, after about a year, she reassessed her career trajectory during what she describes as a quarter-life crisis, ultimately deciding to leave engineering behind to pursue baking.

Starting with no formal culinary training, Chow began working at Maison Robert, a French pastry kitchen, which she credits as the foundation for her baking knowledge. To support herself financially while developing her skills, she balanced part-time work at Formaggio Kitchen before successfully joining Clear Flour, where she learned the technical and hands-on aspects of artisan breadmaking.

Chow’s transition into owning her own bakery was gradual. She initially approached Cutty’s through personal connections—discovering that Rachel Kelsey, who operated Cutty’s, was a college acquaintance—using pop-up events there to refine her business model and build a local following. This period allowed her to experiment with recipes and establish a clientele before securing a dedicated storefront in Arlington.

Breadboard Bakery emphasizes bread as its core product, featuring a range of sourdough and yeasted breads such as baguettes and challah, often incorporating whole grains and locally sourced flours from Western Massachusetts and Elmendorf Baking Supplies in Cambridge. Among the bakery’s specialties are croissants with 30 percent whole wheat flour and kolaches, a nod to Chow’s Czech-Texan heritage. Breadboard operates three days a week, requiring early morning starts as early as 2 a.m.

Chow considers Arlington a practical choice for her bakery, citing affordable rent and a space already equipped for food production. Despite long, erratic hours, she describes the work as rewarding and values the connection to her local community.

In addition to her baking career, Chow has twice won Le grand Prix Elmendorf du Pain, a baking competition organized by Elmendorf Baking Supplies. She also maintains an active interest in Boston’s broader food scene, noting an increase in Asian-owned restaurants and a desire for more mid-range dining options such as diners and sandwich shops that people can frequent regularly. At the same time, she points to challenges faced by food entrepreneurs in Boston, particularly high rents and expensive real estate, which can hinder new businesses.

When not working, Chow enjoys local eateries like BoonNoon, praising their crispy chive cakes and curry dishes. She also fondly recalls now-closed spots such as Blue Asia Cafe and Hungry Mother, underscoring a sense of community and culinary history within the Boston area.

Chow’s journey reflects a blend of calculated risks and sustained effort, moving from a technical background into a creative and demanding food industry, where precision and passion meet.