Even though I’ve been curious about the cronut craze, I’ve stayed away from the copycat versions popping up everywhere, until now. Currently, I know of three places in San Diego that have tried making their own version: Donut Bar, Acuzar and Paris Baguette (both the Zion and HMart locations).
I’ve been too lazy to try to get the ones at Donut Bar and Acuzar. But the Paris Baguette ones seemed more manageable. At the Zion location, they come out with them every day at 1pm and you can also pre-order. We actually didn’t know about the pre-order, so we got really lucky.
Sunday morning, I was catching up on TiVo recordings and caught a segment where Chef Dominique Ansel (creator of the original cronut) was demonstrating the making of his cronuts and suddenly I didn’t think I could wait until a trip to NYC to try the real thing. I had something going on in the afternoon, so I couldn’t make it to Zion, but Mr. K, showing once again what a good husband he is, agreed to go and try to get me some.
He arrived a few minutes beforehand. I had called ahead to check and was told the kronuts would come out at 1 pm and there would be a separate line near the counter to get them. Mr. K was the sixth person in line. There was a max of 5 orders per person and they only had 20 kronuts. I’m not sure if 20 includes preorders and whether it’s always just 20 a day. When it got to Mr. K, there was exactly 2 left and so he got the last two. The person behind him apparently was quite upset and actually screamed “Noooo!!” She then offered Mr. K $100 for his. He never got to find out if she was serious because the person taking orders told her she could pre-order for tomorrow which seemed to mollify her.
The kronuts look very much like the Dominique Ansel version. Flaky croissant dough layers, cut into a donut shape, deep fried, coated in sugar, with a layer of pastry cream in the middle, and topped with a ring of icing. The kronut had a definite crunch to it from the crispy fried dough layers. It does feel very rich and a little greasy but that’s to be expected. Croissant dough is already very buttery and now it is being deep fried. I thought it reminded me more of a croissant rather than a donut. I’m quite curious now how it compares to the original cronut.
I thought Paris Baguette did a pretty good version. I’ve heard people complain about other copycats being dry, falling apart, etc, and this did not have any of those issues. It pretty must tasted how I imagined it would: a deep fried croissant with some pastry cream inside. It’s not something I would indulge on often and I don’t think it’s going to rank as one of my favorite pastries, but I did think it was pretty tasty.
On a recent trip to a Paris Baguette in Cerritos Mall, I also picked up the new “Blackout Bread” which has a squid ink bread with a hot dog stuffed inside. It’s also available in San Diego. I love how it is shaped and it tasted pretty good. I also picked up a guava congolais which just tasted like a coconut macaroon with guava jam inside.
Finally, some more places have opened in the Zion food court.
Noodle J-I recently opened and there’s been a constant long line. I haven’t yet had the patience to wait.
Another place, simply called “Korean Food” also opened.
And there are signs for two more upcoming places:
Paris Baguette (inside Zion Market)
7655 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92111
directions per
https://weeklysauce.com/macaroons-cupcakes-cronuts-new-food-craze/
:
Made with a laminated dough similar to a croissant, the cronut is proofed, then fried in grapeseed oil, rolled in sugar, filled with cream, and topped with glaze. The bakery says that the process takes up to three days. There is only one flavor of cronut each month. The craze began with Rose Vanilla for May, and for June it is Lemon Maple.
if Chef Dominique Ansel (creator of the original cronut) has showed how to bake and fry the cronut why dont people just make it themselves?.
I am not into crazes(didnt go crazy for cake pops nor cupcakes nor macaroons) so I’ll just wait for cronut/dosissants to be available at dunkin donuts.
I think the problem is coming up with the perfect recipe, and of course he hasn’t shared his recipe. The process is pretty easy to follow but most of the copycats can’t get the right recipe.
I know you didn’t try the noodles at Noodle j-l but do you know what bokkeummyeon taste like compared to Hong Kong style lo mein?
I have no idea, sorry. I can tell you that I didn’t see anyone order it. Every person eating there was ordering jiamppong and jajangmyeon, which are what they are known for
Whaaaat? $100 bucks? That’s crazy! I remember reading an article (linked in Mary’s post about her cronut experiment) that some enterprising folks who got cronuts at Ansel’s bakery would then “sell” them to people in cars who didn’t want to wait. Yikes!
Points to Mr. K for doing “research” for you! What a great guy!
Bert and I were at Zion Saturday afternoon but not for cronuts. We tried that blackout bread (I liked how it looked from Cathy’s post). I’m always fascinated with anything made with squid ink. I saw those congolaise too but didn’t get any.
I spy the other plate! 🙂 The small ones are perfect for single pastry photo shoots.
Hehe. It fit the kronut perfectly! Yeah I have also read that people are selling the cronut boxes in the street and on ebay and stuff from the original Dominique Ansel bakery. craziness!
When I picked up my cronuts (I wanted to pick them up on a Friday, and when I reserved them on Sunday I got the last 2 spots for that Friday), the guys working said they make 40 on weekdays – 20 for pre-orders and 20 for walkins. On weekends, they make 60. I don’t like standing in line when there’s no guarantee I’ll still get something, so I’d probably do the pre-order again. Or order 10 from the H Mart location if we’re having people over.
We attempted to make them with croissant dough, but we all agreed that what we liked about the cronut were the flaky layers you could actually peel apart. The croissant experiment was flaky and buttery, but without all the layers.
Oh, good to know. Yeah next time I’m doing the pre-order. I wish they had told me about pre-order. When I first saw the sign I had asked an employee and they just said it comes out at 1 and sells out fast. Second time when I called, they just told me where to line up. I never heard about pre-order until the day Mr. K was in line. Luckily he got the last two.
I’ve only seen signs for the Paris Baguette kronuts, never in person! Great to know about the pre-orders though – I appreciate it when stores really try to make their special items available to more customers, rather than the ones who can get in line at 1pm 🙂 I haven’t been to any of the places in the food court but am excited for Spotted Cow!
I love the way the food court is shaping up. I’m happy about the pre-orders too. Wish more places did that!
i went to paris baguette this sat and they were out of the crossiant donuts, so i asked them about it. they make 40 a day. 20 to sell in the store, 20 for pre-order. the maximum you can get is 5 at a time. they earliest i could reserve was for wednesday.. so i’ll be picking up 5 then! 🙂
Oh thanks for the additional information! Hope you enjoy yours
Wow, I didn’t realize cronuts were such serious business. I don’t know where to get them in Boston, but I haven’t really tried looking. Maybe I will, just to see what all the fuss is about!
It’s been pretty crazy! The original bakery in NYC which came out with them in May, there is a long line and you have to wait starting around 6am. Now every other bakery is trying to jump on the craze and make their own version. I’m sure there are some copycats in Boston too.
1) Agree with you about Kronut:taste, freshness and even value (one is enough and can be shared) was excellent, but has to be a rare treat.
2) The unimaginative owners of “Korean Food” (both name and three item menu) are extremely nice and I think the food is not ‘Americanized’ at all…it’s somebody’s kitchen located in a Food Court.
3) Ever since experiencing the walnut cakes baked in a special machine at Deli Manjoo franchise at the Diamond Bar HMart, I have been seeking walnut items; hope this cocohodu will be similar.
You take some beautiful photos and I really like all your plates and the wood table.
I am curious about trying the Korean Food place though I wish there was a bigger menu. The plate in these photos is actually a gift from CC! I really love it too.