A line wrapped around a corner building in Kimball Junction on Friday morning for a chance to taste a fresh, free doughnut from Chomp Donuts & Coffee on the store’s opening day.
The long line shed some fair-weather fans as the wait became too daunting, but the waft of sugary dough kept spirits high. A little girl pressed her nose up to the window of the store and watched a baker pour tantalizing batter into a big silver vat.
“Why’d they have to invite everyone? They should have just invited us,” she chirped.
Her mother gently chided her. Everyone wants a doughnut, after all, and Park City has needed a good doughnut place, she said.
“They’ve been trying to open this place for two months now,” said the man in front of them.
Indeed, the shop had originally planned to hold a ribbon cutting Oct. 10, but issues with the building, weather and roofing had led the store to push it back. It seemed Park City would have to wait a bit longer for its fine-dining doughnut shop.
Then — surprise! On Wednesday, the store posted on its Instagram to announce it would give away free coffee and doughnuts all day Black Friday as a way to say thank you for the town’s patience.
Ready to be done with patience, the town showed up hungry.
Leah Erickson, one of the three co-owners, ran the register, while Rick Nemeroff, second co-owner, passed out plain and white chocolate doughnuts. Could they accommodate a newsroom’s order for a dozen on this busiest of mornings?
“I wish I could — tomorrow?” Nemeroff said. “We got absolutely slammed this morning. Lines everywhere, longer earlier, and this has been going nonstop since 7 a.m.”
A good problem to have. The store, at 1612 W Ute Blvd. Suite 118, has touted its high standard for dining and hospitality, a product of the combined experience of its three owners: Erickson, Nemeroff and Jeff Mahin.
“This idea of small-town community, and then being able to bring a hospitality that you would see at a French Laundry, at a good Ritz Carlton, but in a doughnut shop — that’s what we’re trying to do,” Mahin said in October. “We’re in this pursuit of perfection.”
Though the Friday morning menu was limited in order to keep up with demand, the shop’s general menu includes blackberry ($4.75) and caramel apple fritters ($5.00), cake doughnuts like chocolate ($3.75) and blueberry lemon crumble ($3.50), filled doughnuts like lemon meringue ($4.50) and Boston cream ($4.50), yeast-raised doughnuts like maple bacon praline ($4) and cinnamon crumble ($3.75), and old-fashioned standbys, Friday’s menu of classic ($3.25) and toasted white chocolate ($3.50).
Plus, coffee of all kinds, from classic drip (starting at $2.50) to flat whites ($4.75) and macchiatos ($4.50).
The store will also cater, including custom doughnut walls, creative displays and in-house delivery.
“Outside of brick and mortar, we have catering and events part of the business, and then also a delivery part of the business,” Erickson said in October. “Rather than utilizing DoorDash or Uber Eats, for quality control purposes we’re going to be doing in house delivery. … We want people to have the same experience that they would have in the shop through delivery, too.”
Chomp Donuts & Coffee is open daily 7 a.m.-3 p.m. The full menu is available online at chompdonuts.com. Find the shop on Instagram at @chompdonuts.
