Showing posts with label Guest Review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Guest Review. Show all posts

Thursday, March 17, 2016

Sandy's Donuts - a guest review

What: maple bavarian cream, butterfinger raised, chocolate frosted cake and cocoa puffs raised
Where: 300 Broadway, Fargo ND
When: Monday, March 7th, 2016

Maureen has wanted me to write a guest review ever since she started flirting with me and crashed Man Time with Tyler at Lamar's Donut Shop.  But I have been a bad husband.  So after being married for a year and five months, I thought it was time I write a review.  For Maureen's birthday, we traveled to Fargo, ND because neither of us had ever been to North Dakota.  We have a tradition for our vacations.  I always look for local doughnut shops and breweries for us to check out.  On this trip, we checked out Sandy's doughnuts.  There is a neat story behind the origin of Sandy's.  It's founder, Sandy, was laid off from his job in his mid-fifties.  He looked for a job but no one wanted to hire anyone that old.  Sandy had baked doughnuts as a child with his mother and he continued making them throughout his life.  Often, he would share his homemade doughnuts with his neighbors.  One of these neighbor's suggested he open a doughnut shop after he went months without finding a job.  And that is just what he did.  Sandy's opened its doors in 1983 and now has two locations in the Fargo area.  That is enough history.  Now it is time to rate Sandy's doughnuts.  Of all the doughnut shops we have been to, Sandy's may have the largest selection.  I wanted to try half a dozen but Maureen limited us to four.  By the end of the day, we ended up with a doughnut from Tim Horton's and a local grocery store so it was good she held me back at Sandy's.  The four we chose was a Dark Chocolate cake doughnut, a Maple frosted Creme-filled raised doughnut, a Butter Finger's candy bar raised doughnut, and a Vanilla frosted raised doughnut with Cocoa Puffs.  I really wanted to try the Maple Walnut Long John but Maureen is not fond of nuts on doughnuts and pastries.  My favorite doughnut was the Maple frosted one.  The frosting was very good and the creme was not overpowering.  If you can't tell, I don't always like creme-filled doughnuts.  The Dark Chocolate doughnut was a good standard doughnut.  I liked the frosting but it wasn't as good as the frosting at Randy's donuts in Lincoln.  The dough was a little dry but not too bad.  Maureen and I both agreed the doughnut with Cocoa Puffs was the worst.  Annoyingly, the Cocoa Puffs kept falling off and they didn't have much flavor.  At least the dough was fresh, but that could not make up for the average frosting and unsatisfying Cocoa Puffs.  The dough on the Butter Finger's doughnut was just right and you can't go wrong with Butter Finger's candy.  Amazingly, the Butter Finger's stayed on the doughnut better than the Cocao Puffs.  Unlike Maureen's, my reviews will always include information about the coffee.  Sandy's coffee was some of the best I have ever had at a doughnut shop.  They brew their own coffee which is always a plus.  They only had a Medium to Light roast, but it had a rich and full taste.  Describing flavors and tastes is not my forte.  But all you need to know is the coffee was very good.  Overall, I would give Sandy's a 7 out of 10.  It was no Randy's donuts or even as good as Lamar's.  Maureen doesn't like Lamar's but their doughnut's have a soft spot in my heart.  I liked the great selection at Sandy's and the fun marketing.  There were signs in the shop that said,  "Take time to stop and smell the doughnuts."  On their doughnut boxes, they had a caricature of a cave man pushing a doughnut.  Their slogan, "We didn't invent the doughnut, but we perfected it," is a good one and it is on all their boxes next to the picture of the cave man and the doughnut wheel.  As Maureen pointed out to me, it was nice that they had a lot of specialty doughnuts but they also had all the standards.  If I am in Fargo again, I would definitely go to Sandy's again.  It would take at least ten trips to try all their doughnuts.  Sandy's also delivers doughnuts to businesses in the area and allows you to order online,  That is another thing that sets them apart from most doughnut shops.  You have reached the end of my first review.  Hopefully, Maureen will want me to write another one.  I will try and be a better husband and write another review after our next trip takes us to another doughnut shop.

Thursday, July 16, 2015

Doughnuttery - Guest Review

On the Westside of Manhattan, across 9th Avenue from the Google office, is Chelsea Market, a building that is part offices and part food wonderland. The ground floor is stuffed full of wholesale markets, specialty food vendors, and quick-stop lunch spots. Tucked in between a Mexican-inspired Thai food counter and a savory yogurt stand is the Doughnuttery, where you can get tiny donuts by the half dozen topped with traditional glazes as well as 18 artisanal sugar combinations.  

 I stopped in on a blazing hot Saturday, curious about these mini confections, and opted for 3 with vanilla glaze and 3 with Speckled Strawberry sugar (strawberry, lemon thyme, sprinkles). Doughnuttery's donuts are similar in taste and feel to funnel cakes -- crispy on the outside, giving way to a soft sweet inside. Their size is to their advantage, as they would be overwhelming if they were the size of a Dunkin Donut, and you can try different flavors without feeling an immediate need to hit the gym. 

The vanilla glaze was light and lovely, set well enough to not smear off the warm donut. The Speckled Strawberry sugar, however, ended up mostly in the bag with only a light dusting clinging to the donut. The strawberry and lemon thyme flavors were nicely balanced, not too sweet, and what was left on the donut was enough. 

If I were in Chelsea Market and had a sugar craving, I would definitely stop in, but I wouldn't make a special trip through those crowded halls. Luckily they are positioned near a side entrance. 

Monday, May 5, 2014

Gypsy Donut and Espresso Bar (sort of a Guest Review)

What: A little of everything
Where: 18 N. Franklin St. Nyack, NY 10960
When: Wednesday, March 19th, 2014
Website

After my grand NYC donut tour with my sister, my brother was excited to get in on some donut tasting as well. He stopped by this place a couple days later and got an assortment to try with his family. 
(CW from top left) Samoa, Funfetti Cake (2),
Salted Caramel, Chocolate Mousse filled
, 

I'm not sure what they thought of them though....So this is really just a post with some pretty pictures and a bookmark to hopefully come back to Gypsy Donut. I want to try the samoa one!

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Dough, a guest review

What: Lemon Poppy raised
When: Saturday, June 29th, 2013


In the heart of New York City’s Hipsterdom of Williamsburg, on a hot slab of concrete that is charitably named “East River State Park,” there is a weekly food fair dubbed “Smorgasburg” (Smorgasboard + Williamsburg and, trust me, it’s one of the least forced +”burg”s in use plus it’s actually accurate). Upwards of 100 vendors, all tucked under EZ-ups and barricaded in by their giant coolers, vie for attention from the hungry foodie masses. The choices run the gamut -- expected food fair fare (ice cream, burgers) to the strange and unexpected (sticky rice in a bamboo tube, artisan hash topped with a farm fresh egg). A mishmash of breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert, there’s not only something for every meal but something for every palette.



But we’re not here to talk about quinoa falafel sandwiches (which, btw, looked amazing but went untested in favor of the mouth-watering Choncho’s fish tacos). We’re here to talk donuts.




Dough, a brick-and-mortar shop out of Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, was the only donut stand at Smorgasburg, which is good because any other donut vendor would pale in comparison. Donuts as a artisan food are on the rise (har har) in NYC -- some might argue they’ve already peaked -- and it’s not unusual to pay $4 for a conservatively-sized donut with high-brow glaze like vanilla lavender or mocha green tea. While those fancy-pants circles of heaven have their place, I’ll take the generously portioned, $2.75 delectable Dough confection any day.

Their display and selection were impressive for a food stand -- 11 flavors in wooden trays behind real glass, including Hibiscus, Berry Mix, Chocolate with Salted Caramel, Plain Glazed, Dulce De Leche, Toasted Coconut, Passion Fruit with Cocoa Nibs, and Chocolate with Cocoa Nibs. It was the Lemon Poppy that caught my eye, perfect for hot summer day where any chocolate would melt right into your lap. The lemon glaze was lightly tart and not too heavy, perfectly balanced by the nuttiness of the poppy seeds. The dough was heavier than Krispy Kreme but lighter than Dunkin Donuts, which made it satisfying without being too guilty. The donut was big enough to share, allowing for multiple donuts to be bought and tasted, which I highly recommend. 5/5.

Thanks to my sister for her excellent guest review! I tried a new donut place today in Lincoln, so I'll review them for you guys tomorrow :-)

Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Donuts to Go

Where: 1400 W. 1st St, Sanford FL
What: I'm not quite sure...coconut was involved for sure. And a square donut...
When: Tuesday, June 4th, 2013

This is actually a guest review, sort of. My best friend decided to start her birthday celebrations by going to Donuts to Go for breakfast (there might be a reason we're best friends), and then posting this picture on facebook.
So obviously I asked for a review. I've been there, but only once and I wasn't that impressed. I got a maple raised, but more on that later. I may given them a second chance next time I'm in Florida.

Here is her review, and I am quoting here: "Delicious. The end."

This is why I'm the one with a donut blog and not her.