It’s 7:30 a.m.
My head is foggy and my day is starting off in the wrong gear.
Days are made better with food. Good food. Something comforting but not heavy.
It hits me. Makers Donuts is open. Will they be packed? Will I feel anxious at the sight of a long line because I’ve put off trying these circles of wonder? Who cares, I’m in.
I arrive to a few patrons exiting, carrying their dozen-to-go with a smile. I swing open the door and I’m greeted by a couple of cheerful donut slingers, instantly entranced by the smells and colors.
A colleague prepped me with a request that half the box be filled with cinnamon and chocolate glazed. But these are more than that – they’re Churro, a crispy cake donut tossed in a cinnamon sugar blend and chocolate ganache, a dark chocolate glaze paired perfectly with just the right amount of donut.
I freelance the rest asking the Makers bakers to surprise me.
After being transported back to the office, each donut invites curiosity with a knife as a small bite of each has to be sampled. So many colors, so many toppings. They all quickly become bite-sized pieces of donuts taste-tested down to the last crumb.
Each flavor offers something different – bacon, lemon, fruity tastes that work perfectly with their ingredient mixture. Even the concoctions drawing snarled upper lips are quick to please with each surprising bite.
Beyond the colors, flavors and smells is baking perfection. Crispy on the outside with a perfect cake infusion on the inside. It’s like a something with a something that’s just nom nom nom.
Seriously, there are no words and Makers Donuts is no hype. The social media web that promotes this place is spot on.
Sean Alsobrooks and his wife Sara executed this place like they’ve opened hundreds before it. The branding is new and vintage at the same time. The eagerness to serve by the staff is infectious. And most importantly, the product delivers on levels you don’t expect. Makers has perfected an experience that will delight Knoxville for years to come.
