There are lots of ways to buy donuts. If you’re not an early riser you can even buy them at a grocery store’s bakery the day before and with any luck they won’t be stale the next morning. Last night I promised my family I would bring donuts home in the morning. Abbe’s donuts. And I vowed to get up early to ensure the best possible selection.
I arrive at the Port Charlotte location at 6am, the only car in the parking lot. Oh no! Could they be closed? I usually wander in around 9am, so this is undiscovered country for me. But not so for the hard working staff at Abbe’s. I can’t even imagine what time they need to start readying the day’s assortment of freshly prepared treats. But there they are. As I fight off the swarming Love Bugs (it’s May) at the front door, I encounter the store as I’ve never seen it before.
There before me is a display case filled to overflowing in every tray, every donut sized space occupied by the range of offerings that is usually full of gaps by my usual arrival time. But not today!
I normally have to adjust my order and the expectations of my family on the fly based on product availability. But to parody Chief Brody in Jaws, I simply say, “I’m gonna need a bigger box!”
Row upon row of cake and colored glazes glistens under fluorescent lighting, beckoning to be selected and given a home like puppies at a doggie orphanage. It’s what donuts live for. And once in a while, it’s what I live for. I love donuts!
There they are, crunchy peanut fragments sprinkled generously on a bed of chocolate frosting, and nearby a vanilla iced sister decorated similarly. Row upon row of long johns, filled to bursting with delectable yellow custard ready to escape at first bite, and slathered with brown or white frosting as desired. Pink frosted donuts, sprinkles issued forth from an extravagant rainbow, coffee rolls wound tight and large, a veritable discus of glazed pastry.
The selection threatens to confuse and overwhelm me, but I stick to the script I was handed hours earlier. To go rogue requires that I bring home a stack of boxes in a fit of madness for which I am financially ill equipped. The apple fritters call to me–they are on the list. Each drizzled sugary mountain of deep fried wonder contains a cinnamon apple surprise, fresh and flavorful, and undoubtedly healthy, yes they must be! I’ll take four please! And now, more chocolate!
At last there is but room for one more delight from this heavenly cakery, and the pot of coffee I left brewing at home demands that I satisfy a classic craving. The purist among donut aficionados understands the understated elegance of the simple, brown plain cake creation that lines rows of a single rack on the lowest shelf. One will do, but please make it two!
My hostess this morning calls me “Sweetie” as I pay. I leave my change and then some in the humble tip jar next to the cash register. Be sure you do likewise. These dear hearts work hard and long, much harder than I ever did in forty years behind a desk. Thank goodness Abbe’s appears to be surviving these challenging times. I’ll be back soon, and hope that you’ll visit too.
😎
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