Doughnut Plant
Mark Isreal started Doughnut Plant in a Lower East Side basement in 1994, on his grandfather's recipe, and delivered by bicycle to the neighborhood coffee shops.2 There are still no eggs in anything the kitchen makes, cake doughnuts and cream fillings included, and the glazes, jams and fillings are all built from scratch.2
Why go
They fry through the day. Everything on the counter is vegetarian, and the shop is certified Kosher by the International Kosher Council.2
Order this / avoid
- Order: the creme brulee, which Yang says
gets the brittle, somewhat bitter caramelized top layer just right.
1 - Order: the savory cacio e pepe. Yang: it
tastes like a bowl of pasta in fried dough form, and we'd rather have it to begin a meal over any dinner roll out there.
1 - Order: the coconut cream and the tres leches, his other two picks.1
What locals & experts say
- Kenny Yang, The Infatuation (21 September 2022):
The hefty yeast doughnuts, with their slightly dense, spongy, and chewy texture, made this place well-known. But don't ignore their other types like the sourdough, cake, and mini filled ones.
1 - Yang on the habit:
We wake up at least once a week thinking: 'Doughnut Plant sounds good today.'
1
Good to know
- Booking: walk-in at 379 Grand Street. The company runs other doors in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens.1
Verdict
should-visit — Order one savory and one sweet. Two bites will tell you whether baking without eggs costs this dough anything, which is the question worth bringing here.