Fills, the Berliner-Style Doughnut Bakery, Will Launch a Weekly Pop-Up in Portland

You can pre-order $20 boxes for pickup every Sunday in the former Bar King Bakery space in Southeast Portland.

Starting this month, you'll be able to pick up boxes of Fills' doughnuts from a weekly pop-up. (Photo courtesy of Fills.)
By Andi Prewitt

The former Bar King Bakery space has a new occupant that’s bound to delight pastry lovers.

Fills, the year-old business that introduced Portland’s culinary scene to a new style of doughnut—the Berliner, is launching a pop-up at 726 SE 6th Ave. The shop will operate from 10 am to 1 pm every Sunday, starting Oct. 17.

Originally opened last October in Blue Star Donuts’ former flagship on Southwest Washington Street, Fills expanded to the new Mercato Grove development in Lake Oswego in July 2021.

The business is a joint venture between pastry chef Katherine Benvenuti and Kurt Huffman’s omnipresent restaurant group, ChefStable. After temporarily shuttering the downtown location due to the pandemic, Benvenuti is eager to return to the city.

“Nearly every day, we get people asking us when we’re coming back to Portland,” the owner-baker stated in a press release. “While we’re still focusing on our Lake Oswego shop and not quite ready to reopen the downtown location, we still want to make sure our Portland friends get their Fills.

So what, exactly, is a Berliner? The traditional German pastries do not have a center hole, and are filled with fruit, chocolate or custard. Fills’ version starts with a naturally leavened sourdough starter that’s not too sweet. It’s then fried in small batches, cooled, hand filled and glazed. You can also find the doughnuts put to work as buns for breakfast sandwiches and burgers at the Lake Oswego restaurant.

Flavors inside Fills’ $20 pop-up boxes will change every week. You can order them in advance from the company’s website every Tuesday. Covered outdoor seating will be available for those who can’t wait to get home to devour their doughnuts, and you can pair those fried delights with a cup of Troutdale’s Good Coffee.

Here’s the filling lineup for the first week:

Boston cream pie

S’mores

Maple bacon butterscotch

Blueberry buttermilk

Glazed brioche rings

Cruller

Related: Fills Donuts Has Replaced a Blue Star Donuts and Is Flexing on Voodoo Doughnut With Unexpected, Savory Recipes

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