What’s been missing in Santa Barbara, land of wine and sunshine and tacos al pastor aplenty? For those seeking a top-tier doughnut, the stretch between Leadbetter Beach and La Cumbre Peak is so bereft that our best bet is driving an hour-plus north to San Luis Obispo or south to the San Fernando Valley. That’s a commute that mortgage lender-turned-entrepreneur John Burnett could no longer suffer.
One morning in 2013, Burnett realized that, despite the few classic, workhorse doughnut shops in town, he couldn’t find the kind of high-end morsel he craved. “All of these people in Santa Barbara love fresh, seasonal [foods],” said Burnett, so he started brainstorming flavor combinations with his wife, Denisse Salinas, a private chef. “That got us really excited. We recognized that the doughnut is a perfect canvas.”
Inspired by nouveau doughnut artists such as Sidecar Doughnuts in Santa Monica and The Salty Donut in Miami, Burnett and Salinas — who’s also a food blogger at LePetitEats.com — began developing the concept for Hook & Press Donuts. “Hook” refers to the mixing attachment used to make the dough, and “press” for coffee, which is the doughnut’s finest accompaniment.