Copyright Salt Lake Tribune
When Ying Nance first tasted American doughnuts, she told her mother-in-law, “I think I can do better,” she recalled to The Salt Lake Tribune in 2024. That inspiration led her to launch a home baking business, Chubby Baker, which grew into a full-fledged baking company — with a flagship shop in Sandy and satellite locations on 900 South in Salt Lake City and on Orem’s State Street. Her creations included pillowy soft doughnuts — dusted with granulated sugar but not overly sweet — featuring Asian flavors inspired by her native Thailand. This week, Nance said on her company’s Instagram account that her bakery, for now, is being shelved. “With a heavy heart,” Nance announced that all three Chubby Baker locations will close. Their final day of business will be Sunday, Nov. 9. “With the rising costs of goods, payroll and so many other expenses,” Nance wrote, “it has become increasingly difficult to sustain the business.” (The Tribune’s attempts to reach Nance after the announcement were unsuccessful.) Nance also wrote that “as our family continues to grow, I’ve realized how much time and energy this business takes — time that I want to spend with my little ones. I am a businesswoman, but I will always be a mom first.” Chubby Baker will focus on doughnuts and cakes in its last weeks, Nance wrote. “Croffles” and cinnamon rolls will be available while supplies last. More places that have shut down The bakery is just one of several food businesses, including restaurants, that have announced closures in recent weeks. Others include: • Current Fish & Oyster, the 10-year-old seafood restaurant at 279 E. 300 South in downtown Salt Lake City, will close next month, according to an Instagram story. So will its craft cocktail bar next door, Under Current. Their last night of service is Saturday, Nov. 8. (Current’s owners did not respond to a request for comment.) • Pizza Bar, also downtown at 126 S. Regent St., closed on Sept. 27, just months after it opened. Scott Evans, head of the Pago Restaurant Group that ran Pizza Bar, said he has ideas for what to do next with the space, which also housed his company’s Finca Pintxos Bar, but wouldn’t announce anything yet. • Cafe Niche, a brunch and lunch place that was open for 15 years at 773 E. 300 South in Salt Lake City, closed suddenly in early October. The owners left a note on the door: “It has been an honor to be part of this community, and we will truly miss being your go-to spot for delicious food and warm conversations.” • Tandoor Indian Grill announced on Facebook that it closed its Millcreek location, 729 E. 3300 South, after Sept. 28. The Indian restaurant, in business since 2007, is still operating in Holladay and Provo. • Windy’s Sukiyaki, at 3809 Riverdale Road in Ogden — which billed itself as “Utah’s oldest Japanese restaurant, announced on Facebook that it closed on Sept. 26 after 51 years in business. “The decision didn’t come easily, but due to a challenging economic environment we can no longer continue operations,” the owners wrote on Facebook. What’s going on? Utah’s restaurant industry is usually better insulated from national economic problems, said Michele Corigliano, executive director of the Salt Lake Area Restaurant Association, a trade group that represents the area’s hospitality industry. This year, though, “business is down across the board,” Corigliano said. “People are still going out, but they’re going out fewer times during the week — and when they do, it’s usually for a special occasion.” The shocking thing, she said, is that high-end restaurants are not feeling the pinch as much as middle- to lower-priced restaurants. Those restaurants, she said, “have really been hit hard, and they’re starting to get scared.” They are particularly getting hit by the higher cost of ingredients, Corigliano said. “I hear that every day, how everything is so expensive,” she said. “So then their prices have to be raised, or even if they maintain [their prices], they’re just bringing less down — and their margins are already tight.” National economic news, Corigliano said, “is a big stressor on everybody, from farms to table. It’s causing a lot of anxiety and stress to the middle class, and to people who were eating out a lot. … Until that anxiety goes away, I don’t think this situation is going to get any better.”
