“We’re taking a detour,” I said, turning south onto Cicero Avenue from 55th Street. “Five minutes.”
7 a.m. Sunday. We had just dropped off our oldest at Midway for the flight back to college. A half-hour beyond O’Hare, as I pointed out hurtling past its runways on the Tri-State Tollway. “If your flight were from O’Hare, we’d be there.”
But he pays for his own tickets now, and the $50 saved is worth it, to him and, I suppose, me. Fifty dollars for driving an hour on a Sunday morning seems smart. Besides, I had a plan to offset the melancholy of his departure.
My wife came along to say good-bye at the airport. It wasn’t exactly the same teary farewell had he been, say 3, with his name on a big tag pinned to his coat. But close.
She had no idea where we were going, but she’s sharp and solved the mystery before 67th Street.
“Doughnuts!” she cried....
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From reading the comments and posts about this, one thing is certain: people tend to be loyal to the places they "find", especially when it comes to food. And especially a place like a doughnut shop; everyone is "sure" that their doughnut store has the best in the whole Chicago area.
ReplyDeleteIt would be fun to try them all, but too much driving around for that. It's true that those old-fashioned type doughnuts, crispy on the outside and soft on the inside are hard to find. The doughnut place in Palatine, Spunky Dunkers, (there's also one in Arlington Heights) has a version of the old-fashioned doughnut, which sounds (and looks) pretty similar to the one mentioned in today's column. They also have a sour cream doughnut which is very good; plain but tasty, with a slight dusting of powdered sugar, I believe, and like the old-fashioned, great for dunking.
Spunky Dunkers is open 24-7, with fresh doughnuts always available, and a large selection to choose from.
SandyK
Update: It seems that Spunky Dunkers currently does not show an old fashioned doughnut on their on-line menu, nor a sour cream doughnut. I know they switch flavors occasionally, adding and subtracting certain kinds. They do have a plain cake doughnut at the moment which looks good. Dunkin' Donuts still carries the old fashioned and sour cream, but they're not nearly as good as Spunkys....
DeleteSandyK
There used to be Huck Finn Donuts all over Chicago.
ReplyDeleteI used to get them at their store inside the Howard L Station.
It's not clear whether you went to the Archer Huck Finn's on Sunday or to my Huck Finn's on Pulaski. The Devil's Food is almost too good -- excellent choice to balance it with the Old Fashioned.
ReplyDeleteI'm not a pancake guy, but my wife ordered some there and we ended up taking them home and didn't get around to eating them until a week later -- they were delicious even then.
john
The Archer HF in June, the 67th and Pulaski last Sunday. Only 650 words to tell these, so sometimes can't go into every detail.
DeleteGood story but it is not safe reading this column/blog at times if someone is watching their blood sugar. Ha
ReplyDeleteGreat place and article. Just wish you could have left the whole political section out. We really need to have some enjoyment sans Trump-talk.
ReplyDeleteFinding the best donuts or pastries in the Chicago area is an endless, and possibly impossible quest. All up and down Archer Avenue From Bridgeport to Harlem, has diners and bakeries with pastries of above average quality, probably because it's been a hub of Eastern European immigration for over a century. Families bring their recipes from Poland and Bohemia, and are not afraid to borrow recipes from places like Vienna. The best remain in business for decades. One of my favorites is Weber's Bakery. Every few years a local news team will do a story on the block long line that starts forming on Fat Tuesday for Paczkis.
ReplyDeleteAnd yeah woodman2 you are right, unfortunately I have to restrict sugar intake.
A nice, almost non-political, way to start the week. Althogh some might find the topic unserious, rhapsodizing essayistically on a foodstuff is a fine tradition going back to Lamb's "Dissertation on Roast Pig."
ReplyDeleteHow did you manage to loose all that weight?
Tom Evans
One could guess that cutting out liquor could help one lose weight.
ReplyDelete