The Real Story Behind Stay Real

This isn’t about cookies

Hey, I’m Polly. And no, I didn’t start this brand because I wanted to sell cookies. I started it because one morning, I found myself in the back of an ambulance in the Lower East Side. My chest was tight, my heart was racing, my hands were shaking, and my mind was spiraling.
“Is this it? A heart attack at 36?”  (Spoiler: it wasn’t.)

It was high cholesterol and a full-blown panic attack... the kind that sneaks up on you after years of trying to “do it all.” The long hours, the pressure, the city grind. I thought I was managing it fine. I worked out, I didn’t eat much fried food, and I avoided most junk. But my body had other plans.

That wake-up call hit hard. I realized I was living a double life: I cared about wellness and fitness, but also queued up for post-work pizza and wine because… well, indulging felt like living. I was doing all the “right” things, but I wasn’t feeling right.

Why I Started Stay Real

It’s the comfort of knowing you can treat yourself and still take care of yourself

That moment made me rethink everything I believed about “healthy.”
I was constantly swinging between extremes of being “good” and then “cheating,” counting calories one week and giving up the next. It wasn’t sustainable. And it definitely wasn’t kind to my soul and body.

As a chemical engineer from Taiwan, I grew up with food that was real: homemade, balanced, and never too sweet. “Not too sweet” was actually the highest compliment. Somewhere along the way, that balance got lost in translation.

So I went back to the kitchen.I started experimenting with cookies that were actually balanced! Low in sugar, gluten-free, high in protein, and made with ingredients I could pronounce. Cookies that felt indulgent but didn’t leave me with guilt or brain fog.

At first, I made them just for myself to eat better and feel better. Then I started sharing them with friends who were also juggling work, stress, and the never-ending “shoulds” of city life.

That’s when I realized something important: We’re all craving the same thing! Not more rules! Just more realness.

And that’s how Stay Real Food was born.