We set out recently to find out if the rumors we heard were true, that Glazed& Infused in Chicago’s Lincoln Park has the city’s best doughnuts. We brought a handful of master taste-tasters, ages 7-10, who were hungry for breakfast after a raucous sleepover.
Glazed & Infused
939 Armitage, Chicago
goglazed.com
Other locations include the West Loop, River North, Streeterville and Wicker Park, the only location with a late night window from 8:30 p.m.-2 a.m. (great for late night pregnancy cravings!)
First, the setting on Armitage Avenue is charming, and there’s plenty of room to eat on site if you choose, although we ordered ours to go. The cases lined with doughnuts in unique flavors can be overwhelming—and then there’s a huge “happy birthday” doughnut almost daring customers to buy the largest doughnut in town.
We passed on the massive doughnut and decided to diversify so we could sample as many variations as possible (which left the regulars behind us slightly and understandably annoyed).
Some of the kids’ favorites included the red velvet smeared with a healthy dose of cream cheese frosting, the glazed vanilla bean and the old-fashioned made from classic spiced buttermilk cake. The sprinkles doughnut, which we thought would be a winner, was actually a bit too densely sprinkled and while good (what doughnut isn’t?) proved to be the crowd’s least favorite.
The grownups were just as impressed with the offerings as the kids. Our picks were the maple bacon long john, layered with real maple glaze and candied bacon; the blackberry cheesecake with homemade blackberry jam and filled with vanilla bean cheesecake; and the chocolate-peanut butter Bismarck filled with peanut butter cream filling.
Given their ample size, the group agreed one was more than enough for a filling breakfast, which makes the $2 to $3 per doughnut price quite reasonable.
Glazed& Infused also offers doughnut-decorating sessions—a hit for birthday parties—where guests can create doughnuts of their dreams.
