Donut Wars
Donut Wars
Mmmmm… I almost jumped up and down at Café Zaiya’s the other day when I spotted a mochi donut. Chewier than a regular donut obviously, but fried + sugar = can’t go wrong. Not pictured: a black sesame frappe that took forever to make, but worth the wait. I loved the nuttiness of it! Café Zaiya did close their Beard Papa’s outlet though, so I’m a little sad about that. But at least there are more registers now!
Tim Horton’s opened up shop in NYC with a bang a few weeks ago - 13 shops opened on the same day. Most are clustered around Penn Station. The iced latte was good, but it was hard to handle along with the big box a dozen donuts came in. I know it’s better to carry the donuts flat, but that shit is a bitch to carry around during rush hour! Whatever happened to those Dunkin Donuts boxes with a handle on top? Anyways, don’t worry, I didn’t eat them all myself! :P
The blueberry bloom was the one donut I really wanted to try. Most “blueberry” donuts I’ve tried taste nothing like blueberries (I’m looking at you Donut Plant!). Unfortunately, the blueberry bloom tasted like… sugar. Overwhelmingly sweet, the blueberry jam tasted a lot like grape jelly to me. That filled me up for the rest of the day. Sugar overload!
The Boston crème didn’t fair well in the sweltering subway system on the way home. The chocolate melted and the crème was almost nonexistent (maybe the heat made the donut absorb some of the crème?). How very un-Boston crème of it!
Blueberry cake donut (notice a theme here?) - more blueberry flavored than the bloom. Betting this would taste amazing if I go and toast it a little *drool*
Blueberry fritter (yes, I’m a sucker for all this blueberry!) - this was a BIG donut! More like a cruller I guess. The flecks of blueberry didn’t taste like blueberry per se, but the blueberry smell was yummy. Best of the 3 blueberry donuts.
Cinnamon bun was ok, nothing to go to Canada for :P
I’ve always liked old fashions. Try toasting it a little! Really yummy with a little bit of crunch.
Had a Tim Horton’s maple donut a week later at Penn Station while getting ready to take the Acela down to DC for a meeting. Really nice maple syrup flavor! The iced mocha was ok - I think the lady put way too much sugar in it for my taste. I actually sucked up a strawful of sugar my first sip.
Actually went to Donut Plant a few weeks ago before Tim Horton’s opened seeking… wait for it… blueberry donuts! Yes, yes, I’m obsessed. Shut up.
The Donut Plant Carrot Cake donut was awesome! Cream cheese filling baby! How they got the cream cheese in a donut ring without it oozing out is a mystery to me, but hot damn, that was a good donut!
Donut Plant blueberry donut tasted nothing like blueberry. It was a yummy donut, but I didn’t get any blueberry goodness from it. Boooo…
The Crème Brule donut - Oh. My. Goddess. Burnt sugar on top. Creamy filling. Worth the trip all the way down to Delancy to get the little bugger.
Churro was ok. I wasn’t in time to get the filled churros which was what I was after. The churro recipe looks relatively easy online. May try my hand at making my own churros this weekend.
Donut Wars verdict:
Ok, so I didn’t get anything from Dunkin Donuts or any of the really great homemade places in Brooklyn. Dunkin I think we all know what their ‘nuts taste like and homemade beats anything mass produced any day, right?
Of the three places I checked out in this post, I’ve gotta say Donut Plant’s Carrot Cake Donut won for me. Too bad Donut Plant changes flavors all the time and you can never tell when you go what you’ll get. Well, besides the counter guy eating his substantial weight in donuts that is. Plus it’s a pain in the ass to drag yourself down to the LESC. I do like Tim Horton’s iced latte; it’s significantly less watered down than Dunkin Donuts.
Mmmmm… I almost jumped up and down at Café Zaiya’s the other day when I spotted a mochi donut. Chewier than a regular donut obviously, but fried + sugar = can’t go wrong. Not pictured: a black sesame frappe that took forever to make, but worth the wait. I loved the nuttiness of it! Café Zaiya did close their Beard Papa’s outlet though, so I’m a little sad about that. But at least there are more registers now!
Tim Horton’s opened up shop in NYC with a bang a few weeks ago - 13 shops opened on the same day. Most are clustered around Penn Station. The iced latte was good, but it was hard to handle along with the big box a dozen donuts came in. I know it’s better to carry the donuts flat, but that shit is a bitch to carry around during rush hour! Whatever happened to those Dunkin Donuts boxes with a handle on top? Anyways, don’t worry, I didn’t eat them all myself! :P
The blueberry bloom was the one donut I really wanted to try. Most “blueberry” donuts I’ve tried taste nothing like blueberries (I’m looking at you Donut Plant!). Unfortunately, the blueberry bloom tasted like… sugar. Overwhelmingly sweet, the blueberry jam tasted a lot like grape jelly to me. That filled me up for the rest of the day. Sugar overload!
The Boston crème didn’t fair well in the sweltering subway system on the way home. The chocolate melted and the crème was almost nonexistent (maybe the heat made the donut absorb some of the crème?). How very un-Boston crème of it!
Blueberry cake donut (notice a theme here?) - more blueberry flavored than the bloom. Betting this would taste amazing if I go and toast it a little *drool*
Blueberry fritter (yes, I’m a sucker for all this blueberry!) - this was a BIG donut! More like a cruller I guess. The flecks of blueberry didn’t taste like blueberry per se, but the blueberry smell was yummy. Best of the 3 blueberry donuts.
Cinnamon bun was ok, nothing to go to Canada for :P
I’ve always liked old fashions. Try toasting it a little! Really yummy with a little bit of crunch.
Had a Tim Horton’s maple donut a week later at Penn Station while getting ready to take the Acela down to DC for a meeting. Really nice maple syrup flavor! The iced mocha was ok - I think the lady put way too much sugar in it for my taste. I actually sucked up a strawful of sugar my first sip.
Actually went to Donut Plant a few weeks ago before Tim Horton’s opened seeking… wait for it… blueberry donuts! Yes, yes, I’m obsessed. Shut up.
The Donut Plant Carrot Cake donut was awesome! Cream cheese filling baby! How they got the cream cheese in a donut ring without it oozing out is a mystery to me, but hot damn, that was a good donut!
Donut Plant blueberry donut tasted nothing like blueberry. It was a yummy donut, but I didn’t get any blueberry goodness from it. Boooo…
The Crème Brule donut - Oh. My. Goddess. Burnt sugar on top. Creamy filling. Worth the trip all the way down to Delancy to get the little bugger.
Churro was ok. I wasn’t in time to get the filled churros which was what I was after. The churro recipe looks relatively easy online. May try my hand at making my own churros this weekend.
Donut Wars verdict:
Ok, so I didn’t get anything from Dunkin Donuts or any of the really great homemade places in Brooklyn. Dunkin I think we all know what their ‘nuts taste like and homemade beats anything mass produced any day, right?
Of the three places I checked out in this post, I’ve gotta say Donut Plant’s Carrot Cake Donut won for me. Too bad Donut Plant changes flavors all the time and you can never tell when you go what you’ll get. Well, besides the counter guy eating his substantial weight in donuts that is. Plus it’s a pain in the ass to drag yourself down to the LESC. I do like Tim Horton’s iced latte; it’s significantly less watered down than Dunkin Donuts.