No one knew that one Mother’s Day in 2013 would be the start of a 10-year pastry legacy that has sweetened the lives of New Yorkers, and people around the world.
In search of a special Mother’s Day treat, Chef Dominique Ansel released what was supposed to be a limited-time croissant doughnut hybrid pastry on May 10, 2013, which he dubbed the Cronut. Its creation took two months to finalize. But once the dessert hit social media, it became a viral sensation within hours.
Suddenly, more than 150 people were waiting on line to get a bite of the unrivaled pastry. And at this point, only four employees were running the operation at the SoHo bakery (two cooks and two baristas). By the month of August, lines averaged at 300 people per day.
As customers wait, rain or shine, on line each month, the bakery makes sure to care for their customers by serving warm hot chocolate and hand warmers in the winter, lemonade during the summer and even handing out roses on Valentine’s Day.
To this day, the cronut has become the most talked about dessert in history. Reaching Berlin to Singapore, the one-of-a-kind treat is sold at the original SoHo store and Dominique Ansel Las Vegas, continuously selling out within the first few hours each day.
So to honor the 10th anniversary of this iconic NYC-born dessert coming up on May 10th, 2023, we’re going to share 10 fun facts you might not have known about the Cronut!
10 fun facts you didn’t know about the cronut
1. The first-ever cronut flavor was Rose Vanilla, with rose sugar, Tahitian vanilla ganache, and a light rose glaze with crystallized rose petals.
2. In time, the line for Cronuts got so rowdy, the bakery eventually had to hire line bouncers to help
3. Flavors change monthly, and have never repeated
4. Chef Dominique Ansel tried 10 different versions before perfecting the current recipe
5. The entire process of making a cronut takes three whole days
6. Dominique’s son, Celian, was born on the Cronut‘s birthday (May 10th) in 2020
7. Dominque Ansel Bakery raised $100,000 for charities fighting against hunger by auctioning off 24 Cronut pastries in the first year of its creation.
8. TIME magazine named the Cronut one of the 25 Best Inventions of 2013.
9. There is such a thing as the Cronut Bible that tracks every monthly flavor of each year
10. There have been 121 Cronut flavors in NYC, and more than 250 globally
You can celebrate the Cronut’s 10th birthday next week at the SoHo bakery by getting your hands on the Raspberry & Pistachio May 2023 Cronut. A Cronut Holes gift box will also be available in-store at the SoHo location between May 5-7th, while supplies last, featuring some of the best flavors from the past decade. Plus, you can take a Cronut quiz and discover your Cronut personality—we’re a Raspberry Earl Grey!
📍189 Spring Street, New York