Dutch Monkey

Yesterday morning, we woke up (way too early for what was supposed to be a lazy Sunday morning) (and yes, we were being heathens; we should have been headed to church, but instead we were on a mission. A mission to find the most amazing doughnuts in the world. Well, at least within an hour drive. We have our limits on an early Sunday morning. Especially after a way-too-late Saturday night. I'm not naming names, but that sleep loss could have been prevented, boys.) and met our friends Carrie and Joel (did you find the original start of this sentance after all those parenthetical comments? Good for you! You could probably keep up with me through most of my rambling real-time conversations. Otherwise, oh, look! A chicken!) and decided to head to the Cumming-ish area to find a particular doughnut-making legend,the Dutch Monkey. And find it we did.

Oh man, this is the coolest doughnut shop you've ever seen. Started by two amazing chefs, this place is hip, fun, and all about the food! With a huge glass display case that displays their fine wares, you can drool over their exotic creations such as "pineapple coconut lime cake", or "lemon meringue" (complete with toasted meringue atop the generous portion). There is a Boston Cream donut, a blueberry with cream cheese frosting (yum!), French Crullers that will make you cry "uncle" (which they didn't have yesterday morning. Boo.), Pomogranate Iced, and even a Maple Butter Bacon, fried with a delicious strip of bacon around it. Oh, and of course, their signature doughnut was the "Dutch Monkey" a banana-jam filled doughnut drizzled with chocolate icing.

We went, we saw, we stuffed ourselves silly. They should have big canteens of milk at each table to help you wash down all the gooey, wonderful sweetness. Hayden loved the bright colors of the place, the kiddie table, especially, watching them make the doughnuts through the Willy-Wonka-ish viewing ports along the kitchn, and most of all, enjoyed her first tastes of a real doughnut!

When we were thoroughly sated, we sat and talked and enjoyed each other's company as we plotted our next visit and choices for the next time. Maybe once a quarter would be enough to visit, we thougth. Otherwise, this place could do some serious damage to our waistlines. Well, maybe once a month, if we promised to be good, and only get one. (We each had to try two this time, just to check out as many flavors as possible). We let Hayden explore the kiddie area a bit, and she even met some of the other kids, including another Hayden, who was about 8 years old and was just thrilled to meet another girl named Hayden (they're apparently somewhat of a rare breed, we're finding).

What a great way to spend a lazy morning. Out with some of our best friends, eating doughnuts that rightly should be described as 'decadent pastries', and playing and laughing with Hayden. Of course, my absolute favorite part of the morning was getting to watch Joel's expressions at he ate. That man knows how to appreciate a good meal!

If you're ever in Cumming, may I highly recommend a stop in to the soon-t0-be-famous Dutch Monkey (and, in full disclosure, no this isn't a paid endorsement. I'm pretty sure these folks don't even know I exist. I just love a good doughnut!)