Donuts are not at the top of my food list, but Kolaches, now that’s a whole other story altogether. Nevertheless, they’ve been steadily climbing the list of my favorites for the last few years.
Marcela, Chunktronics and I spent 27 days on a road trip for the Camacho Bold Burger Battle. During that tour, we drove through 25 states, a few of them twice:
| States | ||
|---|---|---|
| Florida | Georgia | South Carolina |
| North Carolina | Virginia | Maryland |
| Delaware | Pennsylvania | New Jersey |
| New York | Connecticut | Massachusetts |
| New Hampshire | Massachusetts (2nd time) | Rhode Island |
| Massachusetts (3rd time) | New York (2nd time) | Pennsylvania (2nd time) |
| Ohio | Michigan | Ohio (2nd time) |
| Indiana | Illinois | Missouri |
| Arkansas | Tennessee | Mississippi |
| Louisiana | Texas | Louisiana (2nd time) |
| Alabama | Florida (return trip) |
We found ourselves picking up or using drive-thrus for many breakfasts when we weren’t eating the hotel’s morning freebies. So, on most occasions, donut shops became our on-the-drive morning stop.
We tried to avoid national chains and focused on restaurants frequented by locals. However, there was one exception I wish I had made but didn’t: Dunkin’ in Boston.
It seems like there is a Dunkin’ Donuts on every corner in Boston, and they’re all busy. After leaving town, I realized that if I was going to grab a donut and coffee from Dunkin ever, it should be in their hometown.
Most restaurant chains treat their hometown fanbase very special unless you’re talking about Burger King. I’m pretty sure they hate everyone in Miami; I’m just kidding :).
Enter Kolaches
My first interaction with Kolaches was at Southern donut shops. What’s not to like about these giant pigs in blankets?
The first time I remember eating one was from Fox’s Donut Den in Nashville, Tennessee. I couldn’t figure out what to call the kolache, so I asked for a wrapped hot dog. But unfortunately, they didn’t correct me.
Even though a real-deal kolache is a Czech pastry, it is believed that Texans brought meat into the equation. I found a couple of Kolache-centric shops in Houston, and both were great.
One Last Thing…
This list excludes Laurel Tavern Donuts in Laurel, Maryland, which was out of donuts by the time we arrived, but luckily the sliders were not. There was also DONUT-Licious in Spring, Texas, where Chunktronics went at it solo and took some horrible pictures that will never see the light of day.
Donuts and Kolaches
- DONUTS
- Kane’s Donuts – Saugus, Massachusetts
- Frankie’s Donut – Niagara Falls, New York
- Tim Horton’s Donuts – Maumee, Ohio
- Jack’s Donuts – Carmel, Indiana
- Howard’s Donuts – Cordova, Tennessee
- In-N-Out Donuts – Ruston, Louisiana
- Timpson Kolaches and Donuts – Timpson, Texas
- Karma Kolache & Dessert – Houston, Texas
- Krispy Kreme Doughnuts – Pensacola, Florida
- KOLACHES
DONUTS
Kane’s Donuts – Saugus, Massachusetts
There were two spots on my agenda for Boston: Capital Burger, and Kane’s Donuts. We never made it to Capital Burger, but that Kane’s Donuts was incredible!
If you come across one of the Kane’s Donuts locations in and around Boston, you must make a stop. First, eat a breakfast sandwich and a donut, then take some to-go to fulfill your afternoon cravings.
Kane’s Donuts
1575 Broadway
Saugus, MA
(781) 558-5179
Frankie’s Donut – Niagara Falls, New York
The sour kreme donut from Frankie’s Donuts was excellent. Don’t skip out on the pizza—it’s cafeteria school goodness.
However, I could have done without the overwhelmed employee who would drown in a cup of coffee. Also, a couple of fellas were discussing stabbings and killings, which made the wait more tolerable.
Frankie’s Donuts
717 Portage Road
Niagara Falls, NY
(716) 285-7494
Tim Horton’s Donuts – Maumee, Ohio
I’ve had Tim Horton’s in New York City and Columbus, Ohio, before, so this wasn’t a first-time visit. Also, it was near the antique mall Marcela was shopping at, so I had some time to kill.
The coffee and donuts were ok, but those Timbits Donut Holes were excellent.
Tim Horton’s
161 W Dussel Drive
Maumee, OH
(419) 326-2526
Jack’s Donuts – Carmel, Indiana
Most of the Jack’s Donuts locations are in Indiana. It’s a solid choice for donuts, and yes, the sour cream was the best of the bunch.
Jack’s Donuts
516 E Carmel Drive
Carmel, IN
(317) 993-3501
Howard’s Donuts – Cordova, Tennessee
Howard’s Donuts is another small regional donut shop chain in the Memphis area. Again, the donuts were good, but the kolache was even better.
Howard’s Donuts
8130 Bellevue Parkway
Cordova, TN
(901) 213-1100
In-N-Out Donuts – Ruston, Louisiana
In-N-Out Donuts has some magic happening in the kitchen. My favorite things were the kolaches and Marcela‘s croissant, which I was allowed to try, lol.
The chocolate long john filled with Bavarian creme and maple bacon donuts were worthy of a repeat order. But, unfortunately, we were heading to Houston.
In-N-Out Donuts
802 W California Avenue
Ruston, LA
(318) 255-8999
Timpson Kolaches and Donuts – Timpson, Texas
We broke so hard to make the turn when we saw a Kolaches and Donuts sign. They were out of almost all the donuts, so we went with the glazed.
The lady at the drive-in window behaved somewhat erratically. First, Chunktronics asked for a donut; then she’d shut the window to get them, then ask, what else? She repeated this technique for everything we ordered.
Bobas were also promoted on the backside of the building, and Marcela was shut down when she asked for one. The “girl who makes the Bobas” had already gone home for the day.
Kolaches and Donuts
673 N 1st Street
Timpson, TX
(936) 254-9565
Karma Kolache & Dessert – Houston, Texas
Karma Kolache & Dessert offers a variety of kolaches and donuts; sign me up! The old-fashioned buttermilk was the big donut winner as far as I was concerned.
Karma Kolache & Dessert
12647 Tomball Parkway
Houston, TX
(281) 372-6799
Krispy Kreme Doughnuts – Pensacola, Florida
It was getting late; the Krispy Kreme Doughnuts had a beautiful vintage sign, and the Hot Now sign was lit. It was a sign from the nighttime snacking gods.
We ordered half a dozen of those puppies, and luckily they left the last two beauties for me.
Krispy Kreme
980 N 9th Avenue
Pensacola, FL
(850) 438-4639
KOLACHES
Buc-ees – Daytona Beach, Florida
There will be an entire post forthcoming about Buc-ee’s, the mega convenience and gas shop. In the meantime, let’s focus on their kolaches.
We stopped at two Buc-ee’s, one in Florida at the start of the tour and the other in Texas on our way home. The jalapeño cheese kolache took a concise route from the shopping cart to my stomach on both occasions.
Buc-ee‘s version has a sausage link with pieces of jalapeño rolled in American cheese inside sweet bread. While I fumbled to add the following address to my phone, it was the perfect snack.
Buc-ee’s
2330 Gateway North Drive
Daytona Beach, FL
(979) 238-6390
Buc-ee’s
4080 East Freeway
Baytown, TX
(979) 238-6390
Howard’s Donuts – Memphis, Tennessee
The cheese kolache from Howard’s Donuts was good but nothing particularly memorable.
Howard’s Donuts
4348 Summer Avenue
Memphis, TN
(901) 683-2985
In-N-Out Donuts – Ruston, Louisiana
At In-N-Out Donuts, we realized the power of the spicy boudin kolache. It was freakin’ incredible, and we need more, but we are already on our way to Houston.
Chunktronics and I were so excited over the boudin kolache that we were ready to pull over if any sign on the current road trip sign mentioned a kolache.
In-N-Out Donuts
802 W California Avenue
Ruston, LA
(318) 255-8999
Timpson Kolaches & Donuts – Timpson, Texas
Roughly two hours after leaving In-N-Out Donut, we come across a Kolaches and Donuts sign. Unfortunately, they were out of donuts, but cheese kolaches were available.
It was a no-go on the boudin kolache, but the cheese kolache hit the spot.
Kolaches and Donuts
673 N 1st Street
Timpson, TX
Humble, Texas
Shipley Do-Nuts
And speaking of cheese kolaches, Shipley Do-nuts had the best sausage kolache we ate all trip. This was a straight drive-thru visit for a kolache and a coffee. We got the kolache fever!
I enjoyed Shipley’s cheese kolache so much that I returned a few mornings later to repeat the same order. The only problem was the coffee was horribly burnt both times.
No donuts were harmed at Shipley’s because we didn’t eat any. The following morning we found a kolache factory.
Shipley Do-nuts
15135 Old Humble Road
Humble, TX
(281) 441-2622
Kolache Factory – Houston, Texas
A Kolache Factory? Yup, it really exists.
The selection was overwhelming, as you can see below from the three displays. Chunktronics and I picked three kolaches each and added cream cheese for good measure.
The cream spinach was his idea, and I never tried it, nor was there any interest from this guy. On the flip side, the cream cheese is great and not as sweet as I expected.
Also on deck were a potato egg cheese, sausage jalapeño cheese, sausage egg cheese, huevos rancheros, pepperoni pizza, and a pimento cheese kolache. Meanwhile, Chunktronics concentrated his energies on the breakfast kolaches.
I was so enamored with the pimento cheese that I’m pretty sure I never offered him a bite. But it serves him right for ordering that cream spinach when he knew I wanted no part of it.
Kolache Factory
3813 Southwest Freeway
Houston, TX
(713) 629-9626
Karma Kolache & Dessert
We stayed in on our final afternoon in Houston. While scrolling through one of the delivery apps, I came across Karma Kolache & Dessert. They’re a kolache AND donut concept, genius!
We tried the cheeseburger, ham and cheese, pepperoni pizza, smoked brisket, smoked sausage, and sausage cheese kolaches. There wasn’t a bad one in the bunch, but I go with the ham and cheese as the best one.
The simplicity of a rolled slice of ham with American cheese inside of the sweet bread was a winning combo. A very close second was the smoked brisket since I’m partial to brisket sandos.
Karma Kolache & Dessert
12647 Tomball Parkway
Houston, TX
(281) 372-6799
My only real negative takeaway from all of the kolaches I ate in different states is that there is no dipping sauce!