Asia's Bakeries Copy The Cronut

The Cronut craze is still going strong, from the long lines in front of New York's Dominique Ansel Bakery to across the world. Ever since Ansel launched his croissant-doughnut hybrid in May, we've seen Cronut copycats everywhere (even we have our own recipe.) In Asia, several bakeries have already started selling their Cronut knockoffs.

In Manila, Philippines, Ana Lorenzana-De Ocampo, who runs Wildflour Cafe + Bakery there, had her New York-based brother send her Cronuts, according to Wall Street Journal. After tasting them, she reverse-engineered the pastry by adjusting the butter-to-dough ratio for her bakery's croissant dough, shaping it into a doughnut, and frying it. Two weeks later, De Ocampo rolled out her own version. De Ocampo named the final product "croissant doughnuts," because Ansel had trademarked the name "Cronut."

In Japan, Banderole, a bakery chain, spent two months perfecting their recipe. They launched their Cronut knockoff on July 1st, offering flavors such as green tea. In Beijing, The Sweet Spot's manager Michael Chung was inspired by an Australian Cronut imitator, and eventually brought the croissant doughnut idea back to his bakery. Now, The Sweet Spot sells a peanut caramel version with crushed peanuts, caramel, and custard. "We didn't want it to taste exactly like the American or Australia versions," Mr. Chung told Wall Street Journal, asserting that "Chinese people... prefer custard over jam."

There are more bakeries that are selling their imitations, including Hong Kong's The Mandarin Cake Shop, Singapore's Da Paolo Gastronomica, and a deli in Bali.

Food fad or not, the Cronut drama continues, with knockoffs, scalpers, Cronut mashups, and more.