Sweet Dream for Doughnut Fans

A famous deep-fried Southern sin has come west.

Krispy Kreme doughnuts--a Deep South staple for 61 years--opened its first California shop in La Habra on Tuesday, and a line was waiting out the door at 5:30 a.m.

Some might say Krispy Kreme is a strange culinary interloper in a land fabled for granola, sprouts and holistic health. But truth be told, the chain is venturing into the nation’s doughnut capital; Southern California’s 1,600 doughnut stores give it more per capita than any other region.

Still, for a cult of pastry fanatics that included a bloated Elvis, Krispy Kremes are a cross between recaptured youth and a transferred religious experience.

There’s even a Krispy Kreme Web site and an exhibit in the Smithsonian Institution, where Chief Archivist John Fleckner once said the “story of Krispy Kreme is a blend of nostalgic memories and revealing business and social history.”

And, by the looks of those inside America’s newest Krispy Kreme shop, there may be a legion of devoted followers here.

“My father got up on Sunday morning and before we went to church, he’d come home with a dozen or two,” said Ed Tillman, 34, an Atlantan living in L.A.

In another crowded corner, George and Rosemary Rootes of Huntington Beach were filling their mouths. True, Krispy Kreme doughnuts probably aren’t nature’s gift to nutrition, but the Rootes were devil-may-care.

“You gotta die of something,” George said bravely. “Might as well be something you like.” His wife, nodding toward him, quipped, “He just came from having a cardiac stress test. Is this a sick man or what?”

But there may be more to Krispy Kreme than nostalgia and great inner cravings.

“People are feeling free to [enjoy] heavier foods,” said Anna Graves, a Los Angeles attorney and restaurant industry expert. “It’s also just indulgence. You see cigars, martinis making a comeback.”

Krispy Kreme “very much has a retro feel,” she said. “They have a cult following.”

The chain, based in Winston-Salem, N.C., was mostly regional for nearly six decades. But it began breaching the Mason-Dixon Line about four years ago.

In 1997, it opened in New York City, where it took on the bagel, and began forging west to Chicago, Houston, Omaha and other cities. Today there are 140 stores in 25 states.

Great Circle Family Foods of Los Angeles, the exclusive franchisee, plans to open 42 shops between San Luis Obispo and San Diego. The hallmark “Hot Doughnuts Now” neon sign beckons the faithful around the clock.

Krispy Kreme may produce a simple doughnut, but it gets more than its share of respect.

Men’s Journal last year ranked its glazed variety, the company’s signature nosh, No. 3 on a list of the 100 best things to eat.

Of course, one of the biggest endorsements came from Elvis Presley, who ate Krispy Kreme jelly doughnuts by the box.