Military "Brats", Mark and Michael Klebeck, cofounders of Top Pot Hand-Forged Doughnuts and Coffee, will soon be opening two new locations of their very successful cafés in the Tacoma area. The first Top Pot opened in Seattle in 2002, has a rabid fan base, and is a successful family-founded business.

The two brothers are the youngest of August and June Klebecks' eight children.  August spent his last duty assignment at McChord Air Force Base and retired in the area.  Mark says, "We are military ‘brats' but just missed out on the moving part."  Both attended St. Frances Cabrini Catholic School and graduated from Clover Park High School in Lakewood. August Klebeck was a much loved and respected Deacon at St. Frances Cabrini Catholic Church.

"Both Mark and Michael are great guys and have never forgotten where they came from," said Kim Early, Director of Development at St. Frances Cabrini.  "The school really appreciates generosity from our alumni and loves when they keep in touch with us.  The Klebecks are great supporters of our annual auction.  Mark has great memories from his time at Cabrini and is excited about opening businesses in the area.  I am looking forward to a Top Pot opening near us."

The two brothers held other jobs when an opportunity presented itself to work together on renovating their mother's home.  "We found we enjoyed working side by side with each other and were good working together," said Mark.  A few more projects and they decided they wanted to open a coffee shop.  Because there are so many coffee shops in Seattle, they knew they needed to differentiate themselves from the competition.  "We settled on doughnuts and we saved tons of money opening our first shop by doing all the renovation work ourselves," added Mark.  Their cafés are set in a vintage environment where patrons can slow down and enjoy doughnuts made from a secret 1920s recipe.  The doughnuts are called hand-forged because they are crafted by skilled bakers using old-fashioned techniques.

There are now 21 locations in western Washington and Dallas, Texas, with two Tacoma locations opening in 2017. Top Pot Doughnuts was the supplier of doughnuts for Starbucks from 2005-2011, and in September of this year, Top Pot Doughnuts became the official doughnuts of the Seattle Seahawks.     

"We take a lot of pride in where we come from.  My brother and I both have fond memories of growing up in the 1970s in Lakewood, going to the Commissary and BX at McChord and other activities at the base.  This is a big homecoming for us. Our University Place location should open in January 2017 and the Proctor location sometime in March 2017.  Top Pot Doughnuts has been featured on the Cooking Channel's Unique Sweets and on the Travel Channel's Donut Paradise.

Top Pot Hand-Forged Doughnuts and Coffee, Coming January 2017, 3555 Market Place, Suite 1, University Place, toppotdoughnuts.com

Top Pot Hand-Forged Doughnuts and Coffee, Coming March 2017, 2724 N. Proctor St., Tacoma, toppotdoughnuts.com