While on our way to Kentucky, Blognut stops off in the Civil War town of Lexington, Virginia. We grab some delicously-vinegary North Carolina-style pulled pork at Smokin’ Jim’s Firehouse Bar-B-Que and head down Main St. to the Second Hand Shop, where a few years ago we scored a beautiful 1971 Epiphone banjo. We didn’t purchase any instruments this time, but we did talk Dylan, Memphis, and doughnuts with the owner. He knew of no good doughnuts in the area so we moved on.

The next morning, now in Lexington, Kentucky, we pull into Magee’s Bakery in hopes of finding a Southern-Doughnut to relieve our bourbon woes. We walk in and spot a baking rack behind the counter housing scones, cinnamon rolls, and, to our relief, doughnuts. We order two small coffees, a yeast-raised chocolate-frosted, and a chocolate-frosted cake doughnut.

We were definitely most excited about our frosted cake - this breed of Nut is far more rare than frosted yeast doughnuts. The cake was very dense, similar in consistency to those found at Cupcake Cafe in NYC - perfect for dunking. The yeast-raised chocolate-frosted was slightly denser than the average yeast-raised Nut - somewhere in between the standard glazed consistency and that of a cake doughnut. Both had solid flavor and super-rich, chocolaty frosting. Blognut left Magee’s happy.

We were even happier after stopping by the Keeneland horse track that afternoon. In our first-ever bet on a horse race we won $142! The winning horse was named She’s Roughin It.

Blognut is back in Brooklyn and has plenty of Southern Donut Adventure left to share. While we were away it seems there was prominent doughnut-coverage in the New York Times. We realize that this story is now 6 days old but just in case you missed it:

The Style section of last Sunday’s Times ran a feature following Eleanor and Matthew Friedberger of the Brooklyn-based indie group the Fiery Furnaces to Telly’s Tavern, a Greek restaurant in Astoria, Queens where they proceeded to eat loukoumades (Greek doughnuts). The feature failed to comment on the quality and taste of the doughnuts so Blognut will have to undertake this appraisal. We have not yet made our way to Telly’s but plan to do so in the near future. I hope the doughnuts were better than their 2005 album, Rehearsing My Choir - a review of which can be found here (hi Amanda).

For a review of the New Fiery Furnaces album, Bitter Tea, a much better showing than their previous effort, click here. …and yet another by our friend Imbidimts.

Blognut would like to thank Rod and Matt for keeping us posted on this breaking doughnut news while we were traveling.

Blognut returns to Charlottesville, Virginia (our former home) to see Mom, Dad, friends, and Wilco - luckily, we find time to sneak away and enjoy our favorite home-town doughnut - the Spudnut.

Spudnuts
309 Avon Street
Charlottesville, Virginia

In Charlottesville, the only thing more beloved than Dave Matthews (and maybe the University of Virginia) is the Spudnuts doughnut shop . This much-heralded doughnut dealer, located in Charlottesville’s Belmont neighborhood, has been a local favorite since it opened in July, 1969. Founded by native Charlottesvillian Richard Wingfield, Spudnuts was originally part of a west-coast chain which only has a few remaining locations. It now sits proudly as the franchise’s only east-coast branch.

As their name suggests, Spudnuts are made from another Blognut favorite, the potato. Orignally raised from mashed potatoes, followed by gelatinzed potatoes, and now from potato flour, Spudnuts have been forced to “change with the times,” as Richard’s daughter Lori puts it. Blognut sat down with Lori Saturday morning after the store had closed to discuss Charlottesville, her father, and doughnuts.

“Everybody loved my father,” says Lori, “People didn’t just come in for the doughnuts, they also came in to see him - he always knew what people needed.” Sadly, Richard passed away last year at age 75, leaving many locals grief-stricken and skeptical about the future of Spudnuts. To the town’s relief, and in what may be an unspoken homage to her late father, Lori and her husband plan on keeping Spudnuts going as long as they can - “We’ve been doing it so long it would be hard to give up,” she says. Blognut could not be happier with Lori’s decision.

We get the feeling that the Spudnut-Asthetic hasn’t changed a bit since it opened 37 years ago. Linoleum floors, vinyl stools, and plenty of neighborhood comfort, Spudnuts exists in its own time and its own dimension. The walls are lined with original paintings by friend-of-Spudnut Dr. Jim Lincoln, a 107 year-old Oregon native who reportedly helped take some the earliest photographs of DNA and once played Chamber music with Albert Einstein. We could have stayed all day.

The Spudnuts menu includes such classics as the plain glazed, chocolate frosted, and cinnamon varieties, while also offering more Progressive-Nuts like blueberry cake, coconut, and cherry cinnamon. Blognut ordered 2 piping hot coffees and half a dozen doughnuts: 2 glazed, 2 cinnamon, and 2 chocolate covered (we wanted to try the coconut and blueberry but by noon on a Saturday the town has pretty much gobbled up all but a handfull of Nuts). We returned Monday morning on our way out of town and were able to snag a cherry cinnamon.

Blognut’s taste buds may be clouded by home-town nostalgia, but Spudnuts are the finest doughnuts we’ve encountered in two and a half decades of Donut-Eating. The plain glazed and cinnamon are just about perfect, with the other varieties close behind. The glazed is just-sweet-enough while the cinnamon relies on a blend of its namesake and granulated sugar. Incredibly soft and moist, and just slighty potatoey, Spudnuts have created the Ideal-Nut. The cherry cinnamon is wonderful update on the more traditional cinnamon bun doughnut.

Blognut hopes that Spudnuts will continue serving as Central Virginia’s most magnificent doughnut dealer for many years to come - we’re already planning our next trip back.

Doughnut Scores:

Glazed - 10.0
Cinnamon - 10.0
Chocolate frosted - 9.3
Cherry cinnamon - 9. 5

Doughnut with Virginia Skyline
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Disclaimer: Blognut would like to apologize to Wilco. They had initially been the focus of our trip back to Virginia but have been overlooked in this post due to the over-whelming goodness of Spudnuts. The show was great and Jeff Tweedy was in a really good mood - an unexpected occurrence considering his recent stint in rehab. Their new Sonic Youth-esque noise rock sound is working well.

I hope they made it to Spudnuts before heading back to Chicago.

Blognut will be on the road for the next week or so but will try and update whenever possible. Check back early next week for the first leg of our Southern Donut Adventure (a hint: it will involve potatoes).

To tide you over until the next post…

After munching on an Amy’s Bread low-fat applesauce doughnut (pictured in the Freewheelin’ Donut), Blognut is still hungry. We decide to finally try the much-anticipated Corner Bistro hamburger.

Cheap beer, lots of meat, and old-school tavern charm makes the Corner Bistro a popular hangout with late-night, drunken burger seekers, so it’s best to go early. At 2:30 on Sunday afternoon we have no problem getting a booth in the back room. Seeing no doughnuts on the short menu, we order a cheeseburger with French fries. We put the fries on the burger (a common Blognut practice).

We eat the burger.

Burger verdict: Thick, messy, and delicious. The only downfall being that it was a bit overcooked (we ordered it medium but probably should have gone medium-rare). Not overly complex, the Bistro burger relies on simple, All-American flavor to please its eater - a definite must-try for any burger-loving New Yorker. The fries were perfectly crisp and good as well.

Burger with French fries.

Burger without French fries.

Burger score: 8.9

In our continuing effort to become International-Doughnut-Connoisseurs, Blognut hops on the F- train and rides down to Brighton Beach in search of an authentic Russian Nut.

Called “пончики”, ponchiki in Russia, and “пампушки”, pampushky in the Ukraine, these former-Soviet-Nuts are somewhat lighter than their American counterparts. They are often filled with jam and are enjoyed primarily during celebrations. There is also a savory form of the Ukrainian pampushky flavored with mashed garlic and olive oil and typically served as an appetizer or as an accompaniment to soup.

With a few hours to kill on Saturday afternoon, and an urge to break from the monotony of the standard NYC-doughnut-offerings, Blognut figures what better place to find a Russian doughnut than Brighton Beach, the heavily Russian Brooklyn neighborhood referred to as “Little Odessa.”

We arrive at Brighton beach around 3:00 PM and make our way down the boardwalk, somewhat in awe of the fact that New York City actually has a real beach – who knew!? Feeling pressured to try the Russian staple, we stop in the Tatiana café and scarf a plate of garlic rosemary potatoes. We then pop over to Brighton Beach Avenue, the main shopping and dining thoroughfare in the neighborhood.

We find out immediately that eating in Brighton Beach can be difficult when you don’t speak Russian (Blognut took French for 3 years in high school and 1 year in college, and definitely has no idea how to order a Nut in Russian). Brighton Beach Ave has countless cafes, food markets, and street-side vendors all selling baked items labeled in Russian, and most of which seem to be variations on the meat-pie.

We’re not sure if Brighton is just not into doughnuts, or if our poor Russian pronunciation prevented us from conveying our orders properly, but Blognut was unable to find ponchikis or pampuskies anywhere. We spent the entire subway ride home wondering what might have been had we found and enjoyed an authentic Russian Nut.

If anyone has any recommendations on how to acquire a ponchiki or a pampusky in the NYC-area, can you please let us know.

Maybe the doughnuts were in here.

Frankies 457 Court Street Spuntino
457 Court Street
Brooklyn, NY

Spuntino [NOUN] - An informal meal or a snack; also, a casual Italian eatery

Frankies 457 has been a regular stop on Blognut’s dinner circuit for quite some time. This former-speakeasy turned quaint Italian trattoria is nestled deep in the heart of Carroll Gardens and definitely lives up to the recent hype it’s received from the NYC-foodie crowd. Co-owned by 2 Frankies, Frankie Castronovo and Frankie Falcinelli, Frankies 457 quickly became a neighborhood favorite and serves up some of the best Italian food in the area. If you don’t mind waiting for a table, the simple and comforting recipes made with high-quality ingredients make for a warm and delicious dining experience.

After having eaten numerous Super-Good dinners at Frankies, Blognut decides to finally try their brunch.

Saturday morning, 11:30: We arrive at Frankies and join the slew of groggy Brooklynites already enjoying their morning Spuntinos. Surprisingly, we are seated right away.

Blognut orders the French toast with Canadian maple syrup and the prosciutto and pecorino sandwich. The toast was incredible – sliced extremely thick, and battered with cinnamon excellence, it was some of the best we’ve ever had (looking back, this was probably due to the fact that it sort of tasted like a cinnamon/sugar doughnut…mmm). The sandwich was a hit as well – we loved it. Thinly sliced prosciutto and a perfectly dry pecorino on flatbread provided by the Sullivan St. Bakery.

Frankie’s sandwich menu is definitely one of their strong points. Simple combinations such as sopressata and provolo, Faicco’s sausage & broccoli rabe, and mozzarella, tomato and arugala, are perfect for savory-seeking brunchers. Other menu highlights include an extensive selection of crostinis, cured meats, and formaggio. For dinner, Blognut would highly recommend the home-made cavatelli with Faicco’s hot sausage and browned sage butter.

Food Score: 9.8

Monday morning: As promised, Blognut strolls into Madison Square Park with the intention of acquiring a Warm Heirloom Apple Fritter from Shake Shack. The popular burger/hot dog stand was scheduled to reinstate their breakfast menu this morning but to our disappointment, they’ve decided to hold off on any morning eats.

Blognut walks up to the Shake Shack window and speaks with a Shake Shack-Lady (presumably the manager):

Blognut (perplexed by the lack of patrons): “Hello. I think I’ll try an apple fritter?”

Shake Shack Lady: “I’m sorry, we’re actually not serving breakfast – we’ve decided to postpone the launching of our breakfast menu.”

Blognut (now sad): “Really? …how come?”

Shake Shack Lady: “We’ve decided to start staying open later in the evenings. We close at 6:00 and end up turning people away every night – we’re now going to be open until 9:00 PM. We’re planning on revisiting the idea of serving breakfast though, probably this June.”

Lady with German Shepard walks up (also seeking breakfast).

Lady with German Shepard: “I thought you guys were starting breakfast this morning?”

Shake Shack Lady informs her of the new plan, then offers both of us a donut to compensate for the lack of breakfast (she pulls out 2 large trays of what look like Dunkin Donuts from the kitchen).

Lady with German Shepard: “Sure, I’ll have a glazed.”

Blognut (to Shake Shack Lady): “I’ll have a chocolate glazed”

Blognut (to Lady with German Shepard): “Can he have one?” (referring to dog)

Lady with German Shepard: “He can have part of mine, as long as it’s not chocolate.”

We accept our complimentary Nuts and the 3 of us walk away happy.