![Crazy for Cronuts? Jack in the Box Sells Cronuts](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/jack-in-the-box-sells-cronuts.jpg?quality=85&w=2400)
The cronut has a new impostor—and it’s a Jack in the Box version in Ramona, California.
At least one of the fast food chain’s outlets is selling “croissant donuts,” an imitation of Dominique Ansel’s original invention (one of the 25 best inventions of 2013), reported Foodbeast.
Croissant donuts at Jack in the Box—the first U.S. fast food outlet to sell cronut knockoffs—are $0.89 for one piece and $1.99 for three pieces, over 80% cheaper than the $5 cronuts at New York’s Dominique Ansel Bakery. (And that’s not counting the opportunity cost of waiting in the multi-hour-long line to snag one of only roughly 200 cronuts made daily.)
Other eateries have attempted imitations of the trademarked snack—from “doissants” in Indiana to “New York Pie Donuts” in Seoul—but none have managed to spark their own black markets, as Ansel’s cronuts did when they were resold for as much as $40.
What would Ansel think of Jack in the Box’s latest creation?
“I’m very flattered to be an inspiration for people,” the French pastry chef told Eater. “My lawyer says something else.”
More Must-Reads from TIME
- Breaking Down the 2024 Election Calendar
- How Nayib Bukele’s ‘Iron Fist’ Has Transformed El Salvador
- What if Ultra-Processed Foods Aren’t as Bad as You Think?
- How Ukraine Beat Russia in the Battle of the Black Sea
- Long COVID Looks Different in Kids
- How Project 2025 Would Jeopardize Americans’ Health
- What a $129 Frying Pan Says About America’s Eating Habits
- The 32 Most Anticipated Books of Fall 2024
Contact us at letters@time.com