New donut company is all the glaze

Freshly made donuts are laid out in preparation for being sold and boxed.
Freshly made donuts are laid out in preparation for being sold and boxed.
Leader photo by Luke Anderson
Posted

When owner Zack Skogen-Acevedo opened on Memorial Day it was obvious that the town had a huge craving for donuts.

He sold out in 24 minutes. 

“It was a slap in the face. I was terrified,” he said. 

About a year before opening, Zack’s wife Tressa had asked him if he could learn to make donuts. 

Skogen-Acevedo, who already loved to cook, began searching online for recipes, and when he found one he liked, reached out to his grandfather who owned three bakeries in New York for an expert’s opinion. 

In true New Yorker fashion, his grandpa said, “You know what, kid? No, no, no! Where did you get this information? Is this from the internet? No, no, no, no…”

Now taking a decidedly different direction, Skogen-Acevedo began honing in on an updated recipe, testing out new ingredients and trying out different cooking methods. 

In the beginning, the test donuts were given out to a few lucky friends and family members, who reported back with satisfaction. As everyone began to enjoy them more and more people were asking how they could get their hands on some of the donuts, Skogen-Acevedo began to think about getting a space to cook and a place to sell. 

He’d always wanted a food truck or a vending cart, but those come with a hefty cost, along with the expenses of purchasing kitchen appliances. 

So, Skogen-Acevedo looked around for rentable kitchen spaces and found Lila’s Kitchen. 

There are some unforeseen benefits of operating out of a shared kitchen space, Skogen-Acevedo said. 

Though the hours can get varied and unusual at times because everyone is working around each other, the separate business often brings in customers for the others, and vice versa. Someone who comes for a burger at Batch Brothers may realize they have to top it off with six donuts from Skogen-Acevedo. 

In 2000, before settling in Port Townsend, Skogen-Acevedo was in the Navy, stationed in Bremerton. But in the years following 9/11 he was constantly deployed out to sea.

Having met his wife Tressa in Port Townsend, and falling in love with the area, Skogen-Acevedo knew where he wanted to be. 

“I love it here,” he said. “I love it here because this place is perfect for the entrepreneur getting started.” 

Interestingly, the donut game requires a very rigorous schedule. Oftentimes, Zack and Tressa are up at 2 a.m., frying and glazing donuts through the night to prepare for the day. 

“It changes everything. We have a 10-year-old daughter, so it’s basically naps. I look forward to really good naps.”

Zack’s Old Fashioned Donuts is located at 887 East Park Ave., right by Discovery Bay Brewing, run out of the same building as Batch Brothers and Guerrilla Kitchen. 

Check out Zack’s Old Fashioned Donuts on Facebook for more info.