On the search for the best donuts in Connecticut brings us to Young Buns in Mystic.
I stop by Young Buns maybe once a year.
Every time we get a whole bunch of donuts, and are always disappointed.
Except for one donut, which is always excellent.
But that one donut is always a seasonal donut and only around for a month or a couple months at best.
Which is why its only a yearly stop.
I’m sure if I lived in Mystic I could stop by every couple of months to try the new donut, but if you don’t live right there, the experience can be frustrating.
So here is a rundown of all the donuts we have tried over the years.
As flavors keep changing, they keep updating their list. So it’s hard to pin down something consistent.
But as you’ll see, the seasonal donuts are always a standout in a sea of unreliable donuts.
Seasonal Jelly Blood Orange Spice Donut
This post was originally called ‘That Seasonal Donut’ but I had to change it because of this misfire.
Maybe this is just a personal preference issue.
First, the dominant flavor here isn’t blood orange but orange peel.
The reason people make candied orange peels is because peel on its own is bitter and crap.
So you have to really like orange peel for this first.
Then, the ‘spiced’ part is clove, and it is heavy.
Too heavy to offset the bitter peel, which is only helped a little by sweetness.
Then, the powdered sugar isn’t sweet enough to bring balance.
Overall, not one to go for, but thankfully only seasonal.
The Rating: Seasonal Jelly Blood Orange Spice Donut
4/10
Mixed Berry Jelly Donut
Okay, next jelly offering is a mixed berry.
The jelly itself is good, but there is still this taste of bitter candied orange peel.
Also lots of cranberry in the mix, which helps bring down the sweetness.
It is refreshing in a sort of intellectual way, like ‘oh, I see what they did there’, but not in a pleasant to the taste way.
The Rating: Mixed Berry Jelly Donut
5.5/10
Okay, we are out of the jelly donuts.
Next up are donut holes, which are just mini versions of the big ones…in theory.
Cinnamon Sugar Donut Hole
See, donut holes should be tiny compact versions of the big donut.
But this donut hole is dry, with very little flavor.
The outside is over-covered with sinnamon.
Overall, just okay.
The Rating: Cinnamon Sugar Donut Hole
6/10
Glazed Donut Hole
Good. This one has a sweet topping.
It isn’t as sweet as a glazed donut hole at someplace like Dunkin’, but it is about as good.
The Rating: Glazed Donut Hole
7/10
The Young Bun Donut Hole
Vanilla struessel, which is basically like coffee cake.
This donut is very buttery, with a dough that’s dance and almost like bread.
The crumbs on the outside are very sweet.
If it were a full donut it may be too dry, but as a donut hole it works.
The Rating: The Young Bun Donut Hole
7/10
Chocolate Triple Peppermint Donut Hole
This is a great mix of chewy chocolate cake and lots of mint.
The cake is moist, and there is so much mint.
It’s basically the donut version of a thin mint.
The Rating: Chocolate Triple Chocolate Peppermint Donut Hole
8/10
Okay, so the donut holes are pretty good, with the best being an obvious seasonal donut.
Let’s see the donuts now [photo coverage gets a little spotty here].
Blueberry Cake Donut
The blueberry is deep flavor of authentic Blueberries, not that artificial blueberry flavoring.
The cake is a little dry on the inside, but the candy coating on the outside blends nicely.
Overall, quite good.
The Rating: Blueberry Cake Donut
7/10
Mystic cream donutGreat icing, dry donut but good vanilla bean filling.7.5/10
The Rating: Mystic Cream Donut
7.5/10
Smores Donut
Another seasonal donut, this one is excellent.
The chocolate ring on top is a rich bittersweet chocolate, like chocolate chips.
The chocolate glazed donut it sit on top has a nice graham cracker ring around the outside that you taste in every bite.
Even the charred marshmallows are nice.
This is a seriously tasty donut, but sadly only seasonal.
The Rating: S’mores Donut
7.5/10
The Recommendation: The bakers and people who invent the donuts at Young Buns are obviously talented and very clever. Sometimes, too clever for their own good. The flavors are often there, but sometimes they get too inventive and it falls flat. The standard donuts (and donut holes) are fine. It’s the seasonal donuts that really shine, which are only around for a short time. They often sell out, especially of the best tasting donuts. So if you are in Mystic, in the morning, stop in and get whatever is seasonal and not a jelly donut.
Address: 46 W Main St, Mystic, CT 06355
Hours: Sunday and Monday 7am to 3pm
Tuesday and Wednesday Closed
Thursday to Saturday 7am to 3pm