HAMPTON — By 1 a.m., Brandy Fertitta is busy making doughnuts — anywhere from 600 to 1,200 daily.
At her downtown shop, Glazed Doughnuts, Fertitta and one or two employees have to mix, shape and cook their dough before they can turn into artists.
In Fertitta’s hands, “decorations” go far beyond glazes, powders, icings and sprinkles. As a painter and former school art teacher, she prefers to play with colors, textures and flavors. Pistachio, lemon, cherry or peanut butter could be cream filling flavors.
Potato chips, pretzels, bacon, peppers, maraschino cherries, marshmallows, cookies or assorted cereals could be toppings.
“Fruity Pebbles is a really popular one,” Fertitta says. “Doughnuts are fun because you can be so creative with them. Our customers can come up with ideas too.”
Fertitta opened Glazed on Wine Street in late 2015 and now plans to launch a second business, a bistro called Baked, next door this summer.
Baked will be open for breakfast, lunch and happy hour, with locally-sourced ingredients and items such as egg dishes, sandwiches, soups, fresh breads, beer and wine and one of her favorites, loaded baked potatoes.
“With both businesses, I just wanted to do something different down here,” she explains.
Creating a gathering spot
Fertitta, 43, has deep connections to Hampton.
Although she graduated from Poquoson High School, her parents both grew up in the city and her grandfather and great-uncle once operated a hot dog stand there. Her aim is draw more people into its downtown area, which she calls a hidden gem.
For some regular customers, Glazed has become a community hub. Red Ryan, a local Realtor, pops in several times weekly for coffee and occasionally his favorite blueberry cake doughnut as he works on his laptop.
“It’s a bustling place with a good vibe, friendly and funny staff and good music,” Ryan says. “It’s a good place to run into lots of people I know.”
Growing up, Fertitta dreamed of owning a business one day (and loved eating doughnuts). At age 15, she started working in the restaurant industry, taking jobs first as a beverage cart girl and later as a cook and server at local golf course clubs.
When she became a teacher in Smithfield, Fertitta spotted a cute doughnut shop in town and thought Hampton could use one, too.
She doesn’t sugarcoat how difficult that process was for a novice entrepreneur: lining up a private loan from a friend, renovating a former bank building and passing numerous health and permitting inspections. She painted Glazed’s pastel-colored walls and decorative touches herself.
Sharing the riches
Today, Fertitta remains in near-constant motion as she oversees Glazed and its roster of 10 full- and part-time employees, while also renovating the adjacent space for Baked.
She often commutes by pink bicycle from her home in nearby Mill Point, her long hair in ponytails, and tries to be in bed at 5 p.m. so she can bake from midnight to at least 7 a.m. One batch of yeast doughnuts takes about two hours start to finish, while cake doughnuts are quicker.
Glazed also sells apple fritters, cinnamon rolls, bagels, breakfast sandwiches and coffee from Rogue Elephant Roasting Company, also based in Hampton, and hosts events such as art shows and birthday parties. “Cakes” can be giant doughnuts or smaller ones shaped in each letter of “Happy Birthday”.
Rebecca VanDyke of Poquoson bought a two-layer doughnut cake for her husband William’s 35th birthday, a rich concoction of peanut butter cream, chocolate icing and Reese’s Pieces.
“He is not very expressive, but he got this big grin when he saw the cake,” VanDyke recalls. “It made my day, and his.”
As for Fertitta’s own favorite doughnut, the artist is surprisingly old-school.
“I’m boring,” she says with a laugh. “I like plain chocolate iced and glazed.”
