What's behind the Centre Region's doughnut trend?
In February, owner Janette Haas used Facebook to announce the grand opening of a Duck Donuts location in downtown State College. That post was shared 712 times.
A couple months later there's still not much in the way of a working formula in place for translating clicks to doughnuts sold, but Haas has started to notice repeat customers and the shop's catering arm is generating interest just as sure as your social calendar is hurtling toward wedding season.
"Our business has been great. I think people are starting to hear about us," Haas said.
And when they do, it can't hurt that the sound is familiar.
Locally speaking, Duck is following in the footsteps traipsed through State College by Peace, Love and Little Donuts and Dam Donuts in Bellefonte.
The premise is simple. Doughnuts are prepared fresh and on-demand, with the staff taking its cues from a set menu of elaborately designed treats or following the creative whims of a customer with both eyes on what is more often than not a hefty selection of toppings.
We're talking M&M's, bacon bits, Oreo crumbles — basically all of the nutrients you aren't getting from fruit.
A downtown State College eatery called Happy Buns took the whole thing a step further by throwing ice cream into the mix.
"Doughnuts in general all over the United States and worldwide are starting to become more popular," Katheryn Flick, a Dam Donuts employee, said.
Flick has been working at Dam Donuts since last June and emphasized the importance of presentation from the moment a doughnut is removed from the fryer.
Customers typically adhere to the menu but the younger folk can be more impetuous with their orders.
"They load (their doughnuts) up with M&M's, Swedish Fish, the whole nine," Flick said.
Extrapolate that to an entire box of doughnuts and your options and ability to customize far exceed what you'd get with, say, a carrot cake.
More than just variety, Haas thinks that people are on the hunt for a different kind of doughnut. Case in point, she sampled her first Duck Donut confection on the recommendation of a co-worker while her family was vacationing in North Carolina.
"I'd never had a hot doughnut before. ... I had no idea the concept was out there," Haas said.
She liked the layout of the operation too, which allows visitors to track the progress of their doughnut from the fryer to the box. Dam Donuts and Peace, Love and Little Donuts feature a similar arrangement. Jessica Rust co-owns the Beaver and State College Peace, Love and Little Donuts franchises with her husband, Bill, and Lenny and Beth Ellyn Dipaola. She refers to it as "the open theater experience."
"We are specifically making that doughnut for you," Rust said.
They can even make it at your office, if you'd like. Peace, Love and Little Donuts has a travel station for just such an occasion and sometimes that includes weddings.
Doughnuts can make for edible party favors or suitable replacements for a more traditional wedding cake.
"We understand that people want something creative and unique — why not a cake made of doughnuts?" Beth Ellyn Dipaola said.
If you go
What: Dam Donuts
Where: 216 W. High St., Bellefonte
Hours: 7 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Friday; 7 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday-Sunday
Contact: 548-7825, www.damdonuts.com
What: Duck Donuts
Where: 125 S. Fraser St., State College
Hours: 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday; 7 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday; 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Tuesday-Friday; 8 a.m.-7 p.m. Saturday
Contact: 954-4829, www.duckdonuts.com
What: Happy Buns
Where: 426 E. College Ave., State College
Hours: noon-10 p.m. Sunday; noon-midnight Monday-Thursday; noon-2 a.m. Friday-Saturday
Contact: 862-9178, https://myhappybuns.com/
What: Peace, Love and Little Donuts
Where: 421 E. Calder Way, State College
Hours: 8:30 a.m.-6 p.m. Sunday; 7 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Wednesday; 7 a.m.-10 p.m. Thursday-Saturday
Contact: 954-5330, www.peaceloveandlittledonuts.com
This story was originally published April 6, 2018 at 8:28 AM with the headline "What's behind the Centre Region's doughnut trend?."