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callmebruce 14 years, 1 month ago.
first question…why do so many of us that hold degrees in CIS wind up in food service? 🙂
i’ve owned a couple of restaurants, and i’m now taking my show on the road with a new trailer.
as far as your equipment…consider your infrastructure as well…ventilation, sinks, grease traps, etc.
also…bathroom needs for public. call your state health dept, have them send you the requirements.
check out the mini donut makers, you could customize your batters, etc.
and start off using non transfat oils…you’ll end up there anyway with the new laws.
have you thought about doing mini-funnel cakes instead? with different toppings, or using flavored batters?
i’m in chicago, and dd is all over the place here…but i still go to a local place that makes their own…its a family thing and they L I V E at the shop.
another thing to consider might be a beignet…they are very simple to make and are the perfect companion to a cup of coffee.
There is not a doughnut shop where I live.
I find it odd, as when I USED to live in the Boston area, there is a DD on every corner.
There are KK and DD in Myrtle Beach, but no one has ventured into Conway. (which is 20 miles NE-I call it the ‘burbs of Myrtle)
I was actually thinking the OP’s thoughts today after watching Anthony Bourdains visit Monday night to Portland, and he featured the VooDoo Donut shop.
There is a little bakery downtown here.. There are enough people here to support another one.
Glad to see the replies here.
Then I just saw this article.
Hello All,
Bruce, when I started my current job I wasn’t sure I wanted to be there.
An add in the paper wanted someone to be a baker in a donut/bread shop
that was going to open. I applied and the owner allowed me to come in one
night that I was off from my other job to see and help in his operation.
I was amazed. The science of making donuts floored me. I am serious.
I decided it was too much for the pay he was offering me. I admired
his dedication and knowledge. Unfortunately, he went out of business within
three months.
I hope your path is fruitful.
Take Care,
Fieldthistle
Bruce
I think Jimeats has the best idea so far.
Talk to several Donut Shop owners and tell them you would like to learn the business. This is something you cannot learn in culinary school.
They may say no but I would offer to work for free.
Ronnie
Working in a bakery on weekends sounds like a good idea. I also checked my community college, and they offer a good deal of courses that could be helpful. While I have a BS/CIS – it would be a good idea to learn more about what I want to do. What I’ve gone to school for and what I’ve done the last 20 years is not what I want to do for the next 20 – so I might check it out. At the very least, I could come away knowing how to cook a little better.
I also like the idea of doing it the old-fashioned way. That would be very similar to what I have been doing at home to learn, only on a larger scale – so it would translate well. I messed up the blueberry, raspberry and strawberry cake donuts last time I tried – think I’ll pay closer attention and try again this weekend. Probably just try one type – hmmmm, raspberry cake donuts with a raspberry glaze anyone?
Bruce, I’ve been giving this some thought and you might want to consider working part time at a bakery a few days a week for free. Nothing like a hands on experience to get a feel for what your in for.
As far as start up costs to keep it minimal you don’t need all the latest machinery to produce a good donut. Do it the old fashioned way, hand cut and stand over the fryers with dowels to turn and remove to drying racks that double as a proofing racks. Also fill with a pastry bag you don’t need the machine to start.
I haven’t made donuts in quite awhile, tomorrow is going to be cold and rainy here and I’ve got plenty of lard, sounds like a plan. Chow Jim
Bruce
I also agree with CajunKing. You need to purchase used equipment and only exactly what you need to operate. You must operate on the bare minimum for a 2-3 years to survive.
Wish I could find the news story I read a few years back. An asian couple worked in a chain here Shipley’s donuts and learned the business and saved. Then bought their own Shipleys donuts and they slept in the back room and only they worked at the store. They became a success 🙂
Ronnie
In high school I worked weekends in the local bakery of one of our grocery stores.
they use to make everything there on premise, then my Junior year they switched to "Rich’s" donut blanks, and mixes. The bakery dept closed less then 6 months later.
I don’t mind paying a little more for really fresh homemade donuts, I looked into opening a small shop but could never make the $$$ work out. The equipment is usually so specialized, and expensive, plus product, plus labor, plus rent plus insurance, plus everything else. I can see why so many donut shops start up and then close shortly there after.
Which leads to corporate clones and mass produced tasteless donuts, selling at every convience store and kwiky mart around.
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Bruce, I wish you the best of luck if you do decide to proceed, the hours are long and odd.
there’s a daylight donuts place in our town (no kk or dd). Nice little shop. Opens early and closes around noon. Serves coffee, donuts, and sausages in some type of pastry shell. He does a nice business.
here’s the parent company – http://www.daylightdonuts.com/
I think the daylight agreement is based on buying their products. not sure if it would be a fit for you but it came to mind when i was reading this thread.
The nearest donut place is a Dunkin Donuts. Their drive-through is very busy. Sunday mornings DD is extremely busy, the rest of the week it is busy in the mornings and then tapers off. The nearest KK is about 4 miles away. Not far for most locales, but it’s a bit of a sit and wait for suburban ATL traffic. They’re busy in the mornings.
The idea of a diner/luncheonette is a good one. I thought I’d try to start out as coffee and donuts, then expand to limited breakfast items and lunch items if I could staff up. The general idea was to put in the killer hours while starting, and try to be a one-person shop six days a week – starting at two AM to prep, and closing around 2:00PM-3:00PM, giving a little time to clean up. If it looked like I could break-even, I’d add staff so we could do the breakfast and lunch items.
You’re right about the equipment. I looked at pricing for used equipment (Belshaw 616, proofer, handheld depositor, cutters). It seems steep. Add in a fridge, dishwasher, storage, and building out – and it’s a major investment. I’ll continue researching and testing, though.
I agree with some of Jimeats concerns about dietary issues. I dont eat donuts at all. I will eat a Kolache if they are brought into the office.
How busy are the Krispy Kremes? They are always built in the new suburban sprawl areas. Are they still in business. There are several successful bakeries here in Houston where Hispanics are concentrated. Seems to be a culture thing they dont worry as much about carbs and such.
I think the location would be the key component.
Ronnie
That’s a big dream you got going there. It can be very labor intensive and costly. Different types of dough yeast or cake, different fillings and toppings. Also large fryolators that look like large troughs hood and ansel system not to mention a hobart mixer proof boxes, on and on.
It’s also pretty much a 7 day a week operation getting up at 2am and going home about 4pm. With todays diettary concerns it’s going to be a small market compared to back in the 60s. You might consider a diner/lunchonette that happens to sell great hand cut donuts along with other items. Good Luck, Chow Jim
I am not a donut maker…just an eater lol but I always thought those little donuts machines that ‘poops’ them out and fried in front of the customer were awesome to eat & watch them fry. I am in Dayton,Ohio and a store here called "Woody’s Market" ( now closed ), they made them on special occasions and they sold tons of them. I did a small search on Google and first link I looked at had the machine I was talking about :
http://www.donutexpress.com/machine.asp
I hope this helps ….Pam
What is the environmental health permitting requirements for donuts? Call your local health dept for guidance. I would setup at an upcoming festival and see what the feedback is. This are similar to funnel cakes at a fair. I have worked several fairs and festival here in Texas. I think they would sell well in the morning (guess this is the market time for donuts huh :)). Kolaches also sell well here in Houston.
Ronnie
I should have read more of the forum. Okay, my church rents out the kitchen. It’s inspected. They normally rent it for weddings, … – but I bet I could make a deal for just the kitchen itself when nothing else is going on.
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