The best doughnuts in the Charlotte area belong to a cafe in Gastonia
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National Doughnut Day
2023’s (first) National Doughnut Day is June 2. In Charlotte, we will celebrate with doughnut deals, doughnut guides and doughnut winners. For the record, when doughnut shops are booming, the real winners are us — the customers!
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I have a new tradition every time I drive from Charlotte to see my family in Greenville, and that is to make a pit stop for a dozen doughnuts to-go from Gastonia’s new spot, Yummm Donuts.
I’m exaggerating when I call it a tradition, as I have done this exactly one time so far, but to be fair — I think about it every time, at least.
I heard about Yummm Donuts from you, of course — you nominated and selected the shop in our 2022 Readers’ Choice Contest, crowning the doughnuts the best in the Charlotte region. And so of course, I had to check them out for myself!
Is it bad that I’m planning my next visit to my parents based on when I want doughnuts again? (Just kidding. Maybe.)
About Yummm Donuts
Yummm Donuts opened in December 2021. Co-owner Charlie Sun and his family moved to Gastonia from Houston, where his parents owned a doughnut shop.
Sun has shared with us the secret to the success of the shop he co-owns with his wife, Janice Zhou: It’s the time they spend making the doughnuts by hand. “We make them the traditional way — no shortcuts,” he told CharlotteFive recently.
The team spends 17-18 hours a day in the shop. The doughnut-making begins at midnight and continues throughout. This explains why, when I stopped by about 20 minutes before closing on a Sunday, I wasn’t left with a picked-over selection or stale doughnuts that no one else wanted from the morning. This explains why some of my doughnuts were still warm.
Now, do you see why I’m calling this my new tradition after doing it only one time?
It’s not just me
After being named the winner of our Readers’ Choice contest, my colleagues decided to check the place out for themselves. Shortly after the contest in 2022, we sent two of our hungriest then-coworkers, Jonathan Alexander and KJ Edelman to Yummm. CharlotteFive videographer Alex Cason was there to capture their reactions and officially crown Yummm a winner of CharlotteFive’s 2022 Reader Choice Awards.
Here’s what they had to say:
- “The apple fritter and the maple bacon donuts were probably the two best donuts I’ve ever had,” Edelman said. “It’s definitely worth the drive, just make sure you’re going on an empty stomach.”
- “I love a good glazed donut, and Yummm’s glazed donut was top notch,” Alexander said. “Not too much breading. The perfect amount of icing and glaze. The apple fritter was great, too. But it’s definitely one you’d want to share.”
Yummm Donut
Location: 2516 E Franklin Blvd Suite 9, Gastonia, NC 28056
Neighborhood: Gastonia
This story was originally published June 2, 2022 at 5:55 AM.
