Tidbites | Week of April 17, 2014

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A look inside one of the Bronuts\' blue balls

BRONUTS LOOKS TO REBRAND THE DONUT HOLE IN BOULDER 

They’re brothers. Who make donuts. Bronuts. Teehee.

Brett and Mitch Magdovitz, the creators of the recently launched Boulder company Bronuts, are looking to push their ballmaking skills — they only make donut holes — to the next level by obtaining a mobile bakery truck.

The brothers Magdovitz were first introduced to sugary wonders by their baker grandfather in Germany as little lads, and have chosen to “revolutionize” the way donuts are made and shaped today. They took the concept of a donut hole, made it larger, and filled them with punchy fillings, such as bacon, banana, peppermint and blueberry (“blue balls”). Then they top the balls off with an array of glazes from maple to blueberry.

Some aspects that make Bronuts stand out among the rest are that their balls are a combination of rising yeast donuts and cake donuts. They also make gluten-free, vegan balls, use sustainably sourced palm oil shortening in their fillings and bake their balls instead of frying them.

They go with the motto “the revolution takes balls,” and it looks like the revolution takes money as well, considering the brother team have taken to crowdsourcing site Indiegogo to raise money in order to make their operation mobile. They’re looking to raise $25,000 and are hoping exposure at events at the Boulder Chamber of Commerce and the Gear and Cheer event with The Women’s Wilderness Institute will push them over the top.

EATING GREEN ON EARTH DAY 

Jill’s Restaurant, part of St Julien Hotel and Spa, located on Walnut Street, is doing its part on Earth Day on April 22 by providing a fivecourse prix fixe vegan dinner using locally sourced ingredients.

The restaurant already encourages sustainable organic farming practices for its daily menu, but they are going one step further for this environmentally conscious holiday by going vegan to cut down on the amount of natural resources needed to produce meat products. Executive Chef Laurent Mechin, who has extensive experience in creating menus around regionally available ingredients, has crafted some fresh dishes, such as spring pea and carrot soup mosaic, quinoa tabbouleh salad, curried tempeh and lemon blueberry panna cotta, for the special event.

The five-course meal is $39.95, with the option of a biodynamic wine pairing for an additional $19.99. The Ponzi Vino Gelato wine has been chosen to go with the meal. The wine’s creator, Luisa Ponzi, describes the wine as full, velvety and viscous, tasting of decadent cobbler, muskmelon and lemon zest, wrapped up in mouthwateringly juicy acid.

NEW OWNER LEE GIVES BITTER BAR A FACELIFT 

Hopefully, the third time is the charm for James Lee, new owner of The Bitter Bar. The notorious bartender has left and returned to Boulder three times since the bar opened in 2009, but this time he’s put down some roots by purchasing the bar from the Big Red F restaurant group.

Lee will be changing things up a bit, closing the bar April 21 to make some décor changes, and training the staff on the new drink menu. Lee is reopening the bar May1 and going for a more relaxed neighborhood bar vibe by doing away with formal seating. The food menu will be replaced by a deli refrigerator containing some desserts, while more focus will be put into providing a wide variety of specialty and craft cocktails, such as Moscow Mules and White Russians. All the cocktails on the menu will now range from $8 to $9.

Lee will be getting some help behind the bar from Josh Burbank, formerly of Jax, and currently at Machete. The two will also collaborate on making root and ginger beers.

ROWDY MERMAID GETS ROWDY FOR OPENING 

The Rowdy Mermaid, a company that makes kombucha, had their grand opening on April 12. This new company handcrafts their kombucha using organic tea, Colorado snowmelt and fresh fruit. They celebrated their opening with DJ music, Verde food truck Mexican grub and nine beers on tap. The Rowdy Mermaid located off 49th Street, offers the first dedicated komucha tap room in Boulder, and is willing to give tours and samples and answer questions about their fermentation techniques.

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