SoDo Donuts is stepping out of pop-up purgatory and into a regular weekend café at Hammerling Wines in West Berkeley, with doors opening this Saturday. The sourdough-based donut project from pastry chef Elle Cowan will roll out a rotating mix of seasonal fried pastries, plus coffee and housemade nonalcoholic drinks. After three years of bouncing between farmers markets, flower shops and street fairs, fans are finally getting a predictable spot to find them.
Hammerling Wines, part of the Gilman Wine Block of tasting rooms, will host the weekend operation inside its tasting room, which keeps regular weekend hours and throws monthly First Friday block parties, according to Hammerling Wines. A related job listing describes the setup as a weekend café inside Hammerling and spells out Saturdays and Sundays to start, with occasional Fridays in the mix.
As reported by The Oaklandside, the new residency kicks off this Saturday and will run Saturdays and Sundays from 10 AM to 3 PM. The outlet also notes that SoDo, which launched in 2022, has moved production out of Berkeley Kitchens and into a new Emeryville facility equipped with a proofer and a fryer to handle larger-scale service.
Menu And What To Expect
SoDo's online shop currently lists seven donut varieties that make up the opening lineup, ranging from jam-heavy sweets to savory options like a sun-dried tomato donut with chèvre. The baker notes that flavors will rotate with seasonal produce. Product pages on the site carry a banner reading "Coming Soon! Residency at Hammerling Wines," which confirms that this weekend café is the project's first dedicated service location, according to SoDo Donuts.
Why West Berkeley
West Berkeley's Gilman Wine Block has a history of pairing small food operations with natural-wine tasting rooms, turning weekend tastings and those First Friday block parties into regular stages for pop-up cooking projects. Coverage of the wine block has already highlighted SoDo's previous pop-ups at these events, a sign that donut-and-wine pairings are not exactly a hard sell in this corner of town, per SFGATE.
SoDo's product pages also show several items marked "Sold out" at various times, a hint that quantities may be tight while the team ramps up staffing and service at the new weekend spot. Fans should keep an eye on Hammerling and SoDo for updates on hours, special appearances and shifting menu lineups as the residency settles in.
