I have been working in Livingston County for about a year now, but I haven’t really spent much time there. I mostly just go to work, though I have visited a few of the area parks. I would certainly not consider myself overly familiar with the county, though I should probably make more of an effort to become so.
A few weeks ago I was at a meeting, and the host brought in three large boxes of donuts. Two of the boxes were red and grey striped with plastic windows in the top, but I did not notice any distinctive labels (to be fair, I wasn’t really looking, which I now regret). The third box was smaller, white, had no window, and was clearly labelled VG’s Grocery. I had grabbed a donut from one of the boxes and sat down.
I noted, fairly disappointedly, that I had not grabbed a Boston Creme as I thought, but had gotten a cinnamon roll with chocolate frosting. I must admit to being critical of cinnamon rolls, as I find they are often drier and breadier than I like my pastries.
It was delicious. It was light and airy, more donuty than bready, sweet and sticky. The chocolate frosting was slightly whipped and delightfully rich. The fried exterior had just a little bit of a crisp to it in spots, but it wasn’t dried out at all. It was one of the best donuts I have ever had.
I took another donut when I left the meeting and ate it in the car. It was a Custard Long John (one of my favourites) with chocolate frosting, piped along the top was a line of coconut-caramel topping (like the kind on a German Chocolate Cake) and a cherry. It was glorious. Same chocolate frosting as the first one, a generous amount of filling, wonderfully moist donut, the coconut was a stellar addition, and the crispy exterior.
I haven’t stopped thinking about those donuts.
I even tried to email the woman who hosted the meeting to ask her where they came from (while cursing myself for not looking at the boxes when I got the second donut), but the emails keep bouncing back and saying they can’t be delivered.
Desperate, I turned to the internet, scouring reviews and photos of every place in Livingston County that I could find that sells donuts. I have narrowed it down to a few top candidates. My number one candidate is VG’s Grocery, where I know the box of plain glazed donuts came from. Perhaps they use a completely different colour and style of box for their “deluxe” donuts? I am determined to find those donuts again, not least because my family thinks I am exaggerating their quality.
Today, I went to check the first place off my list, a little shop called “Dough Creations”. The shop itself seemed clean and well-kept. I went in about an hour after they opened, so there was a fairly good selection.
I could tell that they were not the donuts I was looking for, but I am on a quest to find the best donuts in Livingston County, so I had to buy a dozen of them.
The box is plain pink with the shop’s name and logo across the top, further confirming what I had already guessed.
They looked like good quality donuts, so I got a mix of the “regular” and the “deluxe”. For a dozen mixed my total was about $22, they accept card and cash payments.
I tried to get a wide variety, though I would’ve needed to get another dozen to try every single one, keeping in mind my own preferences and those of my family who would also be eating them.
As I said before, custard long johns are my favourite, just ahead of a good chocolate cake donut or a sour cream donut. I was excited to see that their sour cream donuts were topped with chocolate. I feel it is a real misstep for so many places to settle for always doing just a regular glaze and never experimenting with their sour cream donuts at all. I love sour cream donuts, but I also love sprinkles!
The donuts overall were enjoyable, a fairly solid choice. Pretty much what you would expect from a standard donut shop. They definitely exceed the quality of the more “fast food” type donut places.
The cake donuts were a little too oily, particularly the chocolate cake ones. They were still tasty, but had a bit of an unpleasant mouth-feel.
The long johns were decent, not enough frosting on top for my taste, and had a fairly thin custard. I personally prefer a thicker custard, but it had good flavour.
The star of the show was the apple fritter, delightfully sweet and chewy.
My final rating of this shop was a solid 2 out of 3. The donuts were good, there was a wide selection, and the service was friendly and efficient.
If you are familiar with the Livingston County area and have any suggestions for places to add to my list, feel free to let me know! I look forward to continuing this journey
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