SoDo Donuts Lands Its First Permanent Weekend Residency at Hammerling Wines

Three years of East Bay farmers markets, flower shops, and street fairs built SoDo Donuts a cult following without a single fixed address. That changed today, when founder Elle Cowan brought her sourdough starter and toolkit of curds, creams, and custards to Hammerling Wines at 1350 Fifth St. in Berkeley's Gilman District, launching the company's first permanent weekend residency.

SoDo Donuts, which Cowan describes as the Bay Area's first all-sourdough donut company, runs Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the West Berkeley wine bar. Sister company EC Confections is part of the residency as well, with both brands sharing the space.

The donuts themselves are the product of a genuinely unusual production timeline. Cowan's dough is made with single-varietal, organic, stone-milled flour from Cairnspring Mills and ferments over three days before frying in rice bran oil, which the company uses for its neutral flavor profile and allergen-friendly properties. The result, according to fans on Yelp, is "the perfect combination of sweetness with the right amount of flavors," with a crusty exterior that behaves more like a good sourdough loaf than a conventional fried dough, wrapped around a pillowy interior.

The flavor combinations reflect Cowan's biography as much as any baking method. She attended culinary school and spent her early career managing pastry and chocolate programs in Los Angeles, New York, and internationally before relocating to the Bay Area in 2020. The sourdough donut concept itself originated at a cafe she worked at in Bangkok. "The idea for sourdough donuts started at a cafe I worked at in Bangkok," Cowan says. "We had a donut on the menu that took too long to prepare each morning. I realized that by switching to sourdough, we could develop the flavor overnight and simply bring the dough to room temperature in the morning."

Back in California, she combined that Bangkok technique with the state's seasonal produce and launched SoDo Donuts in 2022. Current flavors include kaya and coffee, where the kaya is a Southeast Asian coconut custard made with pandan leaves; caramelized leek and chevre cheese; Earl Grey chocolate custard; Backyard Lemon Curd; and a Rhubarb Fritter. The range signals exactly the kind of savory-sweet, internationally inflected menu you'd expect from someone with her background.

Cowan's connection to the Bay Area runs considerably deeper than her 2020 move. Born in Santa Cruz, she is an 8th-generation Californian and a descendant of the Peralta family, which shaped the East Bay's development throughout the 19th century.

Online pre-orders remain paused while Cowan focuses on the Hammerling residency and plans for an eventual storefront. Private orders of 100 or more donuts can still be arranged through the company's website. For the foreseeable future, the Hammerling residency represents the most reliable way to find SoDo Donuts on a regular schedule.