Hollywood’s biggest night is happening this Sunday and a local Austin company is joining in on the fun. Wunderkeks’ Belgian dark chocolate brownies will be one of the gifts included in the “Everyone Wins” goodie bags at the Oscars. In past years these infamous bags have been valued in the tens of thousands of dollars and are given to the high-profile attendees at the Academy Awards.
So how in the world does a local pastry company get in with tinsel town’s elite? Apparently you have to know someone who knows someone.
“My friend Heidi visited our kitchen a month ago and after I gave her the tour, we sat down and started talking about how she could lend us a hand to grow our business,” says Wunderkeks’ founder, Luis Gramajo. Gramajo says Heidi actually went to high school with the person in charge of the goodie bags and put in the good word. “I sent out the brownies to them and three days after they called and said ‘What in the world is this? The brownies are amazing and it was the best unboxing experience we’ve ever had’,” says Gramajo.
The chocolate fudge brownies are a being specially made for the Oscars and will be covered in edible gold leaf; an appropriate addition for such a glamorous event. Dozens of celebrities will be in attendance will be taking home some of Wunderkeks’ brownies, but Gramajo says a local celebrity couple is who they’re most excited to have try their treats. “I mean, Kirsten Dunst. We love her since “Bring it On” and Jesse Plemons since “Friday Night Lights,” says Gramajo.
This kind of national exposure is huge for the budding LGBTQ+ and immigrant-owned company which launched in 2020, at the height of the pandemic. “We want to be more than just another brand that sells baked goods. We always say that we bake with a purpose and that purpose is to inspire people out there, especially the immigrant and the queer community,” says Gramajo. “It’s not a secret that we are a double minority and that means that we have to work twice as hard, but it doesn’t mean that it’s impossible.”
The Oscars will be broadcast on ABC stations this Sunday, March 27th at 7 p.m. Central.