Mmmm … doonuuts

Sol’s pastry chef oversees new Donut Bar at Willoughby eatery’s weekend brunches

Despite Willoughby’s many restaurants, Sol owner David Bartulovic realized there was a shortage of places people could go just for dessert.

So he’s begun the weekend Donut Bar, thanks to the skills of pastry chef Erica Coffee. A dozen varieties of freshly made donuts are stylishly arrayed on a table near the restaurant’s entry during Saturday and Sunday brunch hours from 10 a.m to 3 p.m. They’re available for $1 or $2 for eat-in or carryout.

The stylish served brunch includes the classics, such as a chicken-and-waffle plate, but also continues Sol’s Latin and Spanish twist with offerings such as Cerveza con Queso Hash and Avocado+egg Enchiladas and “kicked up benedicts” such as the Crab Cake Bennie and the Smoked Beef Brisket Bennie.

Coffee soon will expand the dessert offerings with a tableside dessert cart she’ll wheel around during weekend dinner hours.

“Having Erica on board as our pastry chef gives Sol an opportunity to grow its food and catering program — continuing our scratch-kitchen model, with the addition of house-made breads and desserts to end a meal the right way,” said Bartulovic.

A Culinary Institute of America graduate, the aptly named Coffee began with traditional culinary school studies at the Hyde Park, New York school but switched to pastry when she developed a severe allergy to shellfish and no longer could work with many types of fish. Many traditional chefs don’t like to bake because it involves variables such as humidity and air temperature, which cooks find to be too fussy.

But for Sol, her career switch to the pastry arts has worked out well because few restaurants these days can afford a dedicated pastry chef. Coffee, who has been on staff for two years, works in the kitchen at regular chef duties and turns her hand to baking for the Donut Bar.

Again, she’ll also be the one to wheel out the pastry cart when that debuts later this spring.

“I was here at 4 a.m. making donut batter,” she said.

The same batter is used for all the different donuts, which vary by the topping, glaze and filling.

“If there’s any left over, which is rare, we can freeze it,” she said.

While growing up in Richfield Township, she got the cooking and baking gene from her grandmother, whose kitchen always smelled of fresh bakery.

“Gram had a strong influence on me, and for high school I was accepted to the Culinary Arts Management program at Medina County Career Center,” she said.

That program for high-school juniors and seniors gives students hands-on experience in the kitchen arts. After graduation, she applied for and was accepted at the prestigious Culinary Institute of America, where she finished a university-level program for the next two years. She did her externship in Florida, which she said was difficult given her shellfish allergy.

Coffee further honed her donut expertise by opening her own bakery business, City Girl Donuts in Rocky River. Then, two years ago, she accepted a full-time chef position with Sol, where she’s now in charge not only of donuts but in developing other desserts, such as the Tres Leche cake — vanilla caramel butter cream, caramel sauce, whipped cream, cake crumble topped with caramel candied popcorn — along with baked breads.

JANET PODOLAK — THE NEWS-HERALD Pastry chef Erica Coffee, who makes the donuts for Sol’s new Donut Bar, likes the lemon donuts best.

JANET PODOLAK — THE NEWS-HERALD More than a dozen types of freshly made donuts are available to eat in or take out during weekend brunch hours at Sol’s new Donut Bar.