Cronut Copy-Cats Upset Over Cease-and-Desist Letter

Even a year after its release, Cronut imitators continue to pop-up. According to the Reno Gazette-Journal, Rounds Bakery in Reno, Nev. has been sent a cease-and-desist letter from Cronut inventor/pastry king Dominique Ansel's lawyers for violating his trademark on the pastry's name. The letter demands that Rounds Bakery stop using "the word ‘cronut' and any derivation and spelling of the world ‘cronut' when describing" their food products. The term "Cronut"— which refers to the croissant-doughnut hybrid — is a federally registered trademark held by Dominique Ansel.

Sean Cary and Anton Novak, the owners of Rounds, tell KOLO TV that they have "always" called their copy-cat pastry a "croissant donut" and that they avoid using "cronut" because they know the name has been trademarked. They say the problem is that "everybody refers to them as cronuts," adding that they can't be "responsible for what customers choose to call it."

Like mature and professional adults, Cary and Novak took to Twitter to issue a very sarcastic apology to Ansel, adding the hashtag "#NotACronut" at the end of each tweet. The bakery fired off tweets like ".@DominiqueAnsel I had to apologize, so I Googled...Errrrrr! I mean internet searched for your contact information. #NotACronut." They also tweeted out other phrases that made fun of trademarked names: "I ripped open the envelope & got a paper cut. Thank god I had a Band-Aid-oops, I mean an adhesive bandage #NotACronut" and "@DominiqueAnsel I thought an email would be too impersonal, so I went to FedEx you my drawing... ugh, I mean overnight deliver. #NotACronut."

.@DominiqueAnsel I am so sad I upset you, I started to cry & I immediately reached for a Kleenex… I mean paper facial tissue #NotACronut

— Rounds Bakery (@roundsbakery) October 23, 2014

The tweets have drawn much attention and the bakery claims they have had a positive reaction from customers who have offered up their own versions of tweets. Cary tells KOLO TV that they will continue to sell the "croissant donuts in the store" and that customers can "call them what they want." He adds that just like the original pastry, his knock-offs also apparently sell out early in the morning and that there is a line "everyday to get into the store" to purchase one.