 |
 |
|
History of Dad's Donut Shop
[...] Chris Hart, landscape architect, former county director of planning and unabashed Maui design cheerleader, was supposed to be a baker.
[...] How did the dream begin? Hart's paternal grandmother had 18 children; four of them, including Hart's father, Leonard D. Hart, became bakers. Uncle William operated Hart's Bakery in Berkeley, Calif., Uncle Richard was the baker at the Frontier Hotel in Las Vegas and Uncle Norman worked in bakeries his whole life, but never owned one.
Leonard had two very successful full-service bakeries in upstate New York, and beginning in the third grade, Chris worked part-time after school and full-time during summers and school vacations until he left for college.
"My father's bakery had a great reputation and there were always lines out the door, like Komoda's," said Chris.
Chris, however, decided to follow in his grandfather's footsteps, not his father's. Chris' grandfather was a horticulturalist and botanist. Chris has fond memories of his grandfather taking him into his yard and showing him all of the plants and imparting both his love and knowledge of botany and gardening.
Despite the success of Leonard Hart's business, he sold it a year after Chris graduated from college.
"That always bothered me," said Chris. "My dad always felt bad because I didn't go into the business. When you reach a certain age, you get to know what it means to have a legacy."
After his father died, Chris found out his sisters had his father's secret "formulas". Leonard wrote them in pen and pencil and kept them in looseleaf notebooks. Chris told his sisters about his desire to open a shop, and they gave him the notebooks.
He spoke wistfully about what a "bright, witty and literary" man his father was. He had sayings, what his family referred to as "Lennyisms", such as, "Were you standing behind the door when the brains were passed out? In life, you have to make choices. You have to understand which side of the bread the butter's on..."
Hart's father worked from 2 a.m. to 7 p.m. every day the bakery was open. His father often spoke to him about the burden of manufacturing such a wide variety of products every day, and having to sell them all on the same day. Leonard had an idea, which, in retrospect, seems rather prophetic.
"He always told me, 'You can make a lot of money if you keep it simple'," said Chris.
That's exactly what Hart intends to do with Dad's Donut Shop - keep it simple. Admitting he hasn't fried a donut in 40 years, he said, "It's like riding a bike".
[...] Chris wants to provide his customers with a comfortable place where people can walk up to the window and have their coffee and donut seated at cocktail tables while they read the paper.
[...] Chris believes the future of Maui "lies in a community of small towns" and supports pedestrian-friendly development. He decided he wanted to be more than just an advocate for the revitalization of Wailuku. He wanted to be a part of it. With this project, he has demonstrated that commitment and put his money where his "Hart" is.
Quoted from Maui Weekly article, January 24, 2008
|
Home | © Copyright 2010. Dad's Donut Shop. All Rights Reserved. |
|