A Filipino-inspired doughnut shop in New York that began as a short-term initiative after its owners lost their jobs due to the pandemic has amassed a waiting list of 10,000 people.
The Kora doughnuts, which are gaining media attention, join a long list of popular baked delicacies in New York that have seen demand skyrocket owing to their popularity.
Meet the creators
Kora’s Chef and Co-Founder is Kimberly Camara. Camara is a Filipino who has worked with groups such as Union Square Hospitality Group (USHG) and Make it Nice. She is a pastry chef who graduated from the Culinary Institute of America. Together with her is Kevin Borja, Kora’s Director of Operations and Co-founder who is from Brooklyn, who also has an experience at USHG.
How did they start?
Kimberly Camara and her partner Kevin Borja started producing doughnuts in their apartment in Woodside, Queens, in the summer of 2020, after they both lost their jobs at USHG when the city was ravaged by the coronavirus.
Both 28, Camara and Borja, initially relied on friends and family to transport their products to clients. However, they now have a five-person team, an industrial kitchen, and plans to operate a shop.
According to the brand’s website, the doughnuts pay homage to Camara’s late grandmother, Corazon, and celebrate Filipino heritage.
One of their signature creations is a Leche flan doughnut, formed from brioche dough with a spherical slice of flan in the center.
The doughnut is produced using Camara’s late grandmother Corazon’s Leche flan recipe from a notebook she discovered after she died. And by chance, she came up with her own version of doughnut recipe out of frying rather than baking it.
Kora is one of several new online pop-up bakeries in the States that have been overwhelmed with orders.
The bakery has expanded from a 5,000-person waiting list to 10,000 individuals, and their Instagram followers have blown up to 49.9k, thanks to their unique doughnut creations.
Source: https://fromkora.com/
