005: Sunday morning was donut day. It’s a core memory from my childhood. My dad would take me and whatever sibling was available (I have 5 siblings, so there was a lot going on). We went to the same place every week, it was called S&S Donuts. The owners knew us and our regular order. I always ordered the same cake donut with chocolate frosting and rainbow sprinkles. I still believe it’s not the same without the sprinkles. My dad always ordered a medium coffee in a large cup. It was a weekly ritual that we all looked forward to, and the few times we went to different locations, it was never as good. My mom passed away a few years ago. On a drive home from the hospital, my dad and I stopped and got donuts for the family.

This week sparked those memories. I woke up much earlier than normal to visit Raised Doughnuts, and talk to their co-founder Mi Kim Lapsley. I first met her in 2017 at her second ever doughnut pop up. I was still new to the Seattle foodie and Instagram scene. There was a line around the block and they sold out fast. It was the my first food pop up. Obviously, she wasn’t the first to do it, but I associate Raised Doughnuts as the beginning of a new food generation in Seattle.

At this time, Instagram was becoming incredibly popular. The “Phones Before Forks” trend had become a thing. Everyone was lining up to take a picture of her doughnuts. Only after the photo, everyone found out that these doughnuts were damn good. Everyone wanted to try them. After 12 pop ups, Raised would end up in a permanent retail location in Seattle’s Central District. Mi Kim’s journey has been incredible to follow and I’m excited to share more of her story.

— Conner Cayson

Mi Kim Lapsley
^{Founder & Baker, Raised Doughnuts and Cakes}

It’s 5:30am on a Tuesday, and I’m standing on E Union Street in Seattle’s Central District. It’s cold, dark and wet, and the street is very quiet at this time in the morning. Looking through the windows as I approach the shop, I can see Mi Kim in the back working away. She unlocks the front door for me and lets me in, greeting me with her big signature smile. I’m half asleep, but I can tell she’s ready to go, she’s been here for a few hours already. 

Who is Mi Kim Lapsley?

Mi Kim grew up in Sumner, Washington. Her parents owned a small breakfast diner-style restaurant, so she is naturally comfortable in a kitchen and service environment.  During her high school years, she knew she wasn’t meant for a traditional college experience. She was obsessed with the Food Network “And that's when Food Network was like a teaching show, like a teaching channel. Where you can actually learn something. So we would try things.” She gravitated towards the technical aspects of baking, which eventually took her to pastry school. School led her to multiple restaurants, an internship, and eventually Seattle’s Macrina Bakery, where she stayed for nearly 10 years.

Starting a Doughnut Business

Mi shared a story about her early childhood memories, riding in the car with her parents to work, and stopping at a gas station that sold donuts. This childhood experience would leave a big impression on her. She loved the idea of creating a place where people stop by every morning, or every week, to pick up a donut on their way to work or school. Sounds familiar.

When Mi decided to leave Macrina Bakery, she gave a 1 year notice. Yes, I bet you reacted the same way I did when I heard this. I almost wrote the entire newsletter about that one decision. It is an example of how she operates, how she treats people, and the level of care, and dedication she puts into her work. 

She started working on doughnut recipes, experimenting with different ingredients, shortenings, and oils.

Doughnuts or Donuts?

Raised Doughnuts is different from the other donut shops around Seattle. That’s because Mi Kim made two big decisions with her bakery. First, she was making yeast-raised (hence the business name) doughnuts. She wanted something that was less sugary, and wouldn’t feel like a gut bomb that cake donuts will give. Second, she is frying her doughnuts each day in oil, whereas most donuts are made with shortening, which gives donuts more shelf stability. Because of this, Mi Kim is adamant about one very specific thing…. “The donut you're getting is like as special as it can be. And we recommend that you eat them the same day.”

The first doughnut she made was the raspberry doughnut hole. I personally think it is the signature item here. There is not another doughnut in the city like it. “I just wanted to use freeze dried raspberries because they're so good.” I agree, they really are that good. Their chocolate bars and maple fritters are still a crowd favorite, but she also has a mochi donut and each week they celebrate “Cruller Fridays.” Raised Doughnuts has 7 doughnuts that are always on the menu. And each month they rotate 4-5 different unique, seasonal flavors. One for March is a Pineapple Upsidedown Doughnut.

Starting with Pop Ups

I remember going to Raised Doughnuts’ second ever pop up. I had only recently started Find Me in Seattle and I remember inviting a few new Instagram friends to meet me there. There was a line around the block at Eastern Cafe in Seattle’s International District. This certainly wasn’t the first pop up in Seattle history, but for me, it felt like something different and new for the food community. Instagram had only recently become mainstream, and this was the first time I was seeing people line up to take photos of food. 

The pop up model was great for Raised Doughnuts. Mi Kim hosted 12 pop ups that year, mostly at Eastern Cafe, but she appeared at a few other cafes around town, including Mr West. She talked about how her overhead was low at that time, because the cafes weren’t charging her to pop up (very unlikely nowadays). She was arriving at Eastern Cafe at midnight the night before each event. She would work through the early morning hours mixing and cutting dough, frying, and glazing. 

In 2018, after searching for nearly a year, Raised Doughnuts found themselves in their first retail location in the Central District. They painted the building black, with their signature white elephant at the top. And just like the pop ups, there was a line around the block. In 2022, Mi moved the business to their current location, just a few blocks away, into a brand new retail space on Union St.

Her Doughnut Business Now

Turns out that waking up early AF isn’t unusual in the donut business, or bakeries in general. I showed up on that Tuesday morning at 5:30am, but Mi had already been there for hours. At this point she had already mixed and cut the dough, lined them up in trays near the fryer, and had started the frying process. This happens almost every day in the Central District (Raised is closed on Wednesdays).

The business is designed to minimize waste. Everything is compostable, and they try their best to not over produce. After 6 years, they have a better understanding of daily demand each season, and try to produce just enough to meet it. “It can scare customers away when you run out of donuts everyday,” but Mi Kim said they don’t sell out like they used to.  But even with that being said, I recommend showing up early. The donuts are freshly made everyday, and they are worth getting up early for. If you’re going to make a large order, it helps them a lot to give them a heads up a few days beforehand.