When I have a trip planned, one of the first things I do is thorough donut research. I do Google searches for "best donuts in *destination*" and read countless articles. I scroll around map apps on my phone, looking for donut shops within walking distance of my hotel. I make lists and navigate to websites, building a possible itinerary and menu in my head. When I started to research donuts for my recent trip to Denver, Habit Doughnut Dispensary was one that often popped up. Conveniently, it was located not far from the REI Flagship store I was interested in checking out, so I planned day one of my time in Denver to explore the Lodo area and visit Habit Doughnut Dispensary. [although, to be honest, I'm not sure if Habit is actually included in Lodo, but it's close enough.]
I had used Google street view to check out the walk to Habit from my hotel, so I knew what I was looking for when I arrived. A large doughnut hung over the doorway, blowing in the breeze and partially obscuring the sign to the small shop on Platte Street. I walked in around 1pm on Monday. The day of the week is important to note as the available offerings are dependent on the day, so if you are to visit on a Tuesday, you will have a different selection of donuts from which to choose. Honestly, I was underwhelmed by the selection. For some reason I expect every serious donut place to have at least 20 separate flavors. From what I can tell, at Habit Doughnut Dispensary, you have nine varieties to choose from during the week, and ten during the weekend. There are four flavors that are featured consistently everyday and the remaining five or six rotate throughout the week.
None of the available flavors really made me excited, but I selected three that I hoped I'd enjoy: glazed, blazed and the peanut butter git wit. It was at this point that I found out three doughnuts was not enough to justify a box, so they were placed in a plain bag and handed to me (typically, I aim to order enough to get a box as they are usually branded and serve as a souvenir once the donuts have been eaten). As the shop was small with little to no seating, I took my bag of donuts and continued toward Union Station in the search of something for lunch.
Lunch happened, as did more city exploring, and before I knew it, I was back in the hotel room 7 hours after purchasing the donuts, finally ready to take the first bite.
It was at this point when I discovered the donuts I ordered were not quite the donuts I received. My blazed donut somehow had become a plain Jane - not a big deal and as you will soon find out, as it probably worked out for the better!
I started with the plain glazed, as seems to be tradition. The glaze very flaky, falling off in chunks with each bite, but taste wise, it was fairly standard - nothing out of this world, yet nothing that makes me want to not continue eating it. I've come to learn that my ultimate test for whether or not a donut "good" is whether or not I feel like it's worth consuming completely. As I tend to purchase donuts in quantities greater than the recommended serving size, I try to go easy on my arteries have a bite or two of each one. Some I have no problem passing on while others keep calling me back for just one more bite. This donut fell into the "I wouldn't object to finishing it" category, but I stopped my self and decided to move on to the blazed donut.
The blazed donut was a glazed donut that had been torched to caramelize the glaze. I pulled it out of the bag and thought it looked more like a powdered sugar donut than the toasted donut I remembered seeing in the display case earlier that day. I figured that was probably the result of keeping it in the bag for the seven hours, and decided just to go with it. I was a few bites in and confused. It was delicious, but completely not what I thought a blazed would taste like. As I began to analyze it more, and study the photos I had taken of the display case, I realized that it was not a blazed donut, but rather a donut Habit calls the Plain Jane. It's described as a honey brioche donut, which it tall and fluffy. With each bite it seemed to inflate to its original height. It was a very simple combination of the most basic of donuts: glazed, and sprinkled with cinnamon and powdered sugar, yet it brought me joy. My tongue danced happily around my mouth with each bite and I had to battle with myself to not finish it.
Once I managed to put the Plain Jane down, I moved on to the finale - the Peanut Butter Git Wit. This one I had high hopes for. I took a big, filling-filled bite, expecting some sort of wonderful peanut butter cup meets donut goodness to radiate from my mouth. Instead, I was left with a glob of grease filled dough, that, at times, had a subtle peanut butter flavor. It's possible that the waiting period between purchase and consumption did not do this one any favors, as its grease seeped deep into the dough as well as its bag. The top was coated in a semi-sweet ganache with crunchy crumbles. I'd like to say the crumbles were peanut butter flavored, but the ganache dominated all flavors making it almost impossible to tell anything else was going on. Tasting the filling on its own revealed that is was actually light and fluffy and pleasantly flavored, and I imagine with a few tweaks it could be a decent donut. Unfortunately, this one doesn't pass my worth finishing test.
If you find yourself in the Lodo area of Denver, my recommendation is to swing by Habit Doughnut Dispensary mid-morning and grab yourself a classic like the Plain Jane. Walk a block or two towards the REI Flagship store and eat it next to the river (assuming the weather will allow for it).
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