New Bike Cart Touting Vegan Doughnuts and Coffee Pops Up in Austin

A new vegan bakery via bicycle is opening in Austin this month. Knead will offer vegan doughnuts and coffee around town starting this month.

Knead’s vegan doughnuts include classics like glazed and sugar-coated, as well as their own creations. Of the latter, there’s the Hottie, an almond-glazed doughnut with sprinkles; the Purple Rain, an ube doughnut; the strawberry shortcake, made with a strawberry cake doughnut coated in a vanilla glaze, crushed golden Oreos, and dehydrated strawberries; and the Samoa, where the chocolate-dipped cake doughnut is covered with toasted coconuts and caramel drizzles. There are plans for gluten-free ones too.

Coffee-wise, there are plans to offer caffeinated beverages from various coffee shops and roasters around town, switching it up every month.

Co-founders and couple Stephanie Herrera and Cisco Chavez plan on riding around on the specially designed cart, around on the bike offering deliveries via online ordering, and popping up at locations around town. They’ll also serve at events and markets.

Knead’s first pop-up will take place at the new coffee shop Vision on 7601 South Congress Avenue, Suite 500 as part of the cafe’s grand opening party on Saturday, January 14 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Unfortunately, this first event won’t feature that bike due to a delay, but there will be doughnuts.

Herrera and Chavez would often travel and seek out doughnuts wherever they were. “I love food that creates memories, food that holds nostalgic feelings,” writes Herrera, who is a pastry chef, to Eater over Instagram direct messaging. “Doughnuts are one of those things. You can’t help but walk into a doughnut store and feel transported to a feeling of pure happiness.” She learned how to knead the dough and bake bread with her mother who would bake for her in between her long nursing shifts.

In Albuquerque, New Mexico, after Herrera graduated from culinary school, she started selling empanadas on her own in 2013, which grew into selling at coffee shops and markets, and then into a physical vegan cafe and bakery, Wanderlust, where her husband Chavez eventually joined the venture. During the pandemic, they decided to close the business and move to Austin.

And then in Austin, she launched the Forking Vegan, her own vegan bakery and food service in early 2021. She’s going to open a brunch truck under that name at the end of this month.