Doughnut shop


A doughnut shop or donut shop is an establishment that specializes in the preparation and retail sales of doughnuts. A doughnut is a type of fried dough pastry, deep-fried from a flour dough, and typically either ring-shaped or without a hole and often filled.
Many doughnut shops, such as U.S. and Canadian national chains, serve coffee as an accompaniment to doughnuts, thus they can also be classified as coffee shops. However, a doughnut shop tends to be more casual and serve lower-end fare which also facilitates take-out and drive-through which is popular in those countries, compared to a coffee shop or cafe which provides more gourmet pastries and beverages such as espresso, latte, americano and cappuccino.

History

Doughnuts in their proper form were introduced by Dutch settlers to New Amsterdam as olykoek in the early 18th century. These doughnuts closely resembled later ones but did not yet have their current ring shape. Some historians believe that recipes brought by English settlers served as a catalyst for the modern donut rather than Dutch olykoeks. The ring shape traces its origin to the mid-19th century and is often attributed to Hanson Gregory, a New England ship captain, and his mother. Doughnuts came into their own and became closely associated with the United States during World War I, when millions of American doughboys in France were served doughnuts by Salvation Army woman volunteers to evoke a sense of home. In World War II, the American Red Cross brought 1.6 million doughnuts and coffee to U.S. soldiers stationed in Europe and the Pacific to boost morale.
File:Dunkin'_Donuts,_Georgia_Avenue_and_Reedie_Drive,_Wheaton,_Maryland_.png|thumb|A Dunkin' Donuts store in Wheaton, Maryland, 1967.
Doughnut shops remained niche until the until the late 19th century, when the invention of the doughnut cutter made ring-shaped doughnuts practical and popular. The first automated doughnut machine, founded in New York City in 1920 by Russian refugee Adolph Levitt, significantly increased production by automatically cutting and frying doughnuts. Levitt founded the Doughnut Corporation of America—which later started the National Dunking Association—and opened the Mayflower donut shop in Times Square in 1931. The doughnut machine became a public spectacle at the 1933–1934 Chicago World's Fair as the "food hit of the Century of Progress." This innovation fueled rapid growth, leading to the widespread popularity of doughnut shops across the United States in the mid-20th century, solidifying doughnuts as a quintessentially American food. Major chains emerged during this period, notably the North Carolina-based Krispy Kreme in 1937, which was known for its large windows enabling customers to witness doughnut production, and the Massachusetts-based Dunkin' Donuts in 1950. Canada also became known for its doughnut shops, with its most famous chain being Tim Hortons; founded in 1964. They continued to expand throughout North America and internationally throughout the 20th and 21st centuries.

Overview

Canada

Doughnut shops have been described as common in Canada and as a "national institution", and doughnuts have been described as an "unofficial national food." Per capita, the largest concentration of doughnut shops in the world exist in Canada, and Japan has the second-highest concentration per capita. Per capita, Canadians eat the most doughnuts compared to all world countries. The large number of Tim Hortons restaurants in Canada significantly contributes to this consumption rate.

United States

Within the United States, the Providence metropolitan area was cited as having the most doughnut shops per capita as of January 13, 2010.

Listing

The following is a list of notable doughnut shops.
NameFoundedCountryDescription
Allie's Donuts1968