Krispy Kreme Expects to Roll in Dough
By Corey Lyons
Contra Costa Newspapers
Oct. 21, 2001
PITTSBURG -- It's the most sacred sphere of the bakery business, a divine doughnut that promises to go down in a glaze of glory.
A raw ringlet of dough, no doubt, has seldom inspired such holy devotion.
Indeed, the widespread appeal of Krispy Kreme remains as mysterious as its own secret yeast-raised recipe.
A doughnut is a doughnut is a doughnut, no?
Apparently not. On Saturday, during a special tasting at the Southern chain's first shop in Contra Costa County, customers spoke religiously of a weightless sphere that melted in their mouths.
Grown men were seen pushing their faces against a glass partition, through which they witnessed hundreds of inflated rings roll slowly along a mechanical track.
"It doesn't get any better than this. You can't get a better doughnut anywhere," said Joe Davi of Pittsburg, shortly after knocking off a few original glazed doughnuts.
"It's a following that, until you try it, you will not fully understand."
The new 4,000-square-foot shrine off Highway 4 in Pittsburg officially opens at 5:30 a.m. Tuesday.
Lines are expected to form Monday night, possibly earlier, so cultists can claim to have licked the first glaze from their fingertips before anyone else.
Saturday's private tasting attracted more than 1,000 people. It was held to hail the store's East County arrival and give new employees practice dealing with large crowds of hungry, impatient people.
The tasting drew a wide range of people, including firefighters, police officers, a clown and curious residents whose key contacts gave them access to the event.
Some slack-jawed motorists, believing the store was officially open, were turned away by security guards. Inside, folks struggled to explain how a particular doughnut could incite such unadulterated passion.
"They're just, well, warm," said Mikaila Snyder, 10, holding an animal-shaped balloon.
The brown-haired girl, whose father, John, helped build the Krispy Kreme store in Union City, said she has been to several company tastings.
Her grandmother used to take her to a doughnut shop in San Francisco. "But those other places taste like spinach compared to Krispy Kreme," she said.
Patricia Duncan, who works in the financial department at Berkeley Farms, said the doughnut's rising popularity is difficult to explain.
"I can't put a finger on anything specific," she said, wearing a paper Krispy Kreme baker's cap. "But they're very good with a glass of milk."
The Pittsburg store, which includes a 24-hour drive-through window and employs about 100 people, is expected to make a lot of dough: more than 220 dozen doughnuts an hour, precisely.
Brad Bruckman[CJL5], operator of Golden Gate Doughnuts, the Northern California franchise for Krispy Kreme, said the draw will be countywide.
"We think this store's opening could be in our top 20 of all time," he said.
Of course, not everyone in East County is celebrating the arrival of their new neighbor.
But workers at Al's Donuts on Railroad Avenue in Pittsburg do not believe the corporate gorilla will steal their loyal customers.
"Most of our customers are in a hurry. They rush in for a cup of coffee and rush out," said employee Steve Ly. "They don't want to wait in long lines."
Outside, a Pittsburg man who wanted to be identified only by his first name, Sal, smoked a cigarette and expressed his loyalty to Al's.
"A doughnut is a doughnut," he said. "I don't care where you buy it. You still put 12 in a box and head out the door."
Contra Costa Newspapers
Oct. 21, 2001
PITTSBURG -- It's the most sacred sphere of the bakery business, a divine doughnut that promises to go down in a glaze of glory.
A raw ringlet of dough, no doubt, has seldom inspired such holy devotion.
Indeed, the widespread appeal of Krispy Kreme remains as mysterious as its own secret yeast-raised recipe.
A doughnut is a doughnut is a doughnut, no?
Apparently not. On Saturday, during a special tasting at the Southern chain's first shop in Contra Costa County, customers spoke religiously of a weightless sphere that melted in their mouths.
Grown men were seen pushing their faces against a glass partition, through which they witnessed hundreds of inflated rings roll slowly along a mechanical track.
"It doesn't get any better than this. You can't get a better doughnut anywhere," said Joe Davi of Pittsburg, shortly after knocking off a few original glazed doughnuts.
"It's a following that, until you try it, you will not fully understand."
The new 4,000-square-foot shrine off Highway 4 in Pittsburg officially opens at 5:30 a.m. Tuesday.
Lines are expected to form Monday night, possibly earlier, so cultists can claim to have licked the first glaze from their fingertips before anyone else.
Saturday's private tasting attracted more than 1,000 people. It was held to hail the store's East County arrival and give new employees practice dealing with large crowds of hungry, impatient people.
The tasting drew a wide range of people, including firefighters, police officers, a clown and curious residents whose key contacts gave them access to the event.
Some slack-jawed motorists, believing the store was officially open, were turned away by security guards. Inside, folks struggled to explain how a particular doughnut could incite such unadulterated passion.
"They're just, well, warm," said Mikaila Snyder, 10, holding an animal-shaped balloon.
The brown-haired girl, whose father, John, helped build the Krispy Kreme store in Union City, said she has been to several company tastings.
Her grandmother used to take her to a doughnut shop in San Francisco. "But those other places taste like spinach compared to Krispy Kreme," she said.
Patricia Duncan, who works in the financial department at Berkeley Farms, said the doughnut's rising popularity is difficult to explain.
"I can't put a finger on anything specific," she said, wearing a paper Krispy Kreme baker's cap. "But they're very good with a glass of milk."
The Pittsburg store, which includes a 24-hour drive-through window and employs about 100 people, is expected to make a lot of dough: more than 220 dozen doughnuts an hour, precisely.
Brad Bruckman[CJL5], operator of Golden Gate Doughnuts, the Northern California franchise for Krispy Kreme, said the draw will be countywide.
"We think this store's opening could be in our top 20 of all time," he said.
Of course, not everyone in East County is celebrating the arrival of their new neighbor.
But workers at Al's Donuts on Railroad Avenue in Pittsburg do not believe the corporate gorilla will steal their loyal customers.
"Most of our customers are in a hurry. They rush in for a cup of coffee and rush out," said employee Steve Ly. "They don't want to wait in long lines."
Outside, a Pittsburg man who wanted to be identified only by his first name, Sal, smoked a cigarette and expressed his loyalty to Al's.
"A doughnut is a doughnut," he said. "I don't care where you buy it. You still put 12 in a box and head out the door."
posted by Corey at 11:18 PM
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