Sunday was going to be a double donut day in Providence. I planned to wake up early and hit PV Donuts the moment it opened, then move on to Knead on the west side of the river before heading back to Newport for the last day of the Newport Folk Festival.
I arrived at PV Donuts two minutes before it opened at 8am. The line stretched from the door down the sidewalk for at least a block. I didn't want to wait, so I kept driving and changed my destination to Knead. As I neared its location, my GPS instructed me to make a series of right turns. I felt like I was driving in circles but I trusted it and eventually it took me down a narrow one-way street. When I realized I was about to merge back onto the street I had just turned off of, I was about to give up. Maybe it was actually a no donut day. Knead didn't seem like it was anywhere to be found. But just then, I noticed an A-frame sign on the sidewalk that read "Donuts inside" with an arrow. I found it! A convenient little parking area was located next to the building. The lot was empty and there was no line, a dramatic contrast to PV Donuts.
I pulled open the heavy door and stepped onto the white tile floor. Another Knead sign on the wall pointed to the entrance on the right. The word Knead was spelled out in black tiles on the floor. I walked in and looked around. There were a few people sitting at small tables by the windows. Morning light flooded the area and I was quickly greeted by a friendly employee. I looked at the selection of donuts in front of me behind a glass panel. The varieties were definitely on the more adventurous side with flavors like blackberry, passion fruit, and strawberry cake. The donuts were large and neatly lined up in rows. My traditional sensibilities gravitated towards the vanilla glazed and cinnamon roll, but then I asked for a recommendation for one more. Passionfruit was suggested, so I went with that. The donuts more than twice as expensive as they were at Allie's, costing $6.75 for three.
I opted to take my donuts to-go, packaged in a box, and sealed with a piece of brown packing tape, but I definitely liked the atmosphere of Knead and found it a welcoming place to sit and relax in the morning. When I returned to my hotel, I opened the box and picked up the vanilla glazed. It was slightly larger than a standard Allie's donut. I bit into the perfectly fried ring, and it's light and airy texture collapsed in my mouth. I could tell it was fresh, made not long before I walked into the shop. I wanted to taste the others, but struggled to put down the vanilla glaze. My mouth wanted more! I tried the cinnamon roll next. I'll admit, I'm not sure if it was actually supposed to be a cinnamon roll or a donut that closely resembled a cinnamon roll. There are differences between these two baked goods, and I'm fairly confident Knead's cinnamon roll is donut based (please correct me if I'm wrong). Either way, it too was delicious. I finally ended with the passion fruit. Now, I don't know if I mentioned this before, but when it comes to eating donuts, I'm very traditional. I am perfectly content with a simple, classic glazed ring. Visually, I enjoy looking at more creative concoctions, but I have no desire to eat the more exotic flavors. But, for the sake of this blog, I feel the need to branch out a little bit, so I tried the passion fruit. It was very fruity...and not what I wanted my donut to taste like. I want to say it walked the line between sweet and sour, and the passionfruit glaze was not subtle. If you want to try a strong flavored fruity donut, the passionfruit is a good choice.
Upon some research after my visit to Knead, I discovered the three donuts I tried all were from the brioche donut line at Knead. Their brioche dough is fermented for 24 hours which makes for a richer flavor.
While Allie's Donuts is hard to beat, Knead is right up there. I will definitely be returning, and hopefully trying a few more flavors they have to offer. I want to say if you're in Providence, skip the line at PV Donuts, and head to Knead (but maybe I should wait until I try PV Donuts to make that assertion).
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