Calling all doughnut lovers! We tried 15 flavors of Kane’s Donuts to find out which three reign best of the best.
Buttercrunch, Chocolate Glazed, Chocolate Orgasm, Cinnamon Sugar, Cookies & Cream, Honey-Dip, Lemon, Maine Blueberry, Maple-Bacon, Pink Boa, Plain, Plain Chocolate Frosted, Raised Chocolate Frosted, Strawberry Frosted and Turtle.
You could say we’re pretty stuffed.
We taste-tested every flavor they had available, to help make life a little easier the next time you stumble into Kane’s and are faced with the daunting choice of picking one doughnut out of the 20-plus flavors they have in store every day.
Kane’s has a well-known reputation for a reason. Its doughnuts are crazy delicious and even just the smell that wafts out of the doughnut box when it’s opened is mouth watering. These doughnuts are absolutely massive, and the chefs at Kane’s try to incorporate local and organic whole-food ingredients, which does warrant a bit of a costly price. But it’s well worth it.
No. 1
The Maine Blueberry doughnut.
“It’s kind of a cross between a blueberry cake and a muffin.”
With a crunchy outside and fluffy and moist inside, this doughnut took the well-deserved No. 1 spot. This doughnut had the perfect amount of honey glaze, and tasted like fresh blueberries were mixed right into the batter — which they are! Kane’s actually uses Maine blueberries for this doughnut. Funny… the “Maine” isn’t just there for show.
I’ve tried other blueberry doughnuts before, and this one by far surpasses them all. You can’t go wrong with this doughnut.
No. 2
The Maple-Bacon doughnut.
“Bacon is the reason. The maple glaze adds a nice touch and almost gives the impression that it could replace your breakfast.”
Whether you’re on the maple-bacon wave or not, this doughnut is the ultimate flavor contrast of salty and sweet. The bits of cherry-wood smoked bacon sprinkled on top add a nice crunch and texture, and it pairs perfectly with the thick Vermont maple-syrup frosting that Kane’s loads up on top. It’s that savory-sweet combination that might make you a little skeptical at first, but after that first bite everything will just make sense.
No. 3
Plain
“So light and fluffy. It reminds me of the doughnuts from the doughnut shop in my hometown. Just a classic doughnut in all respects.”
Out of all of the unique doughnut flavors Kane’s offers, I am pretty shocked to say that a good ole’ fashioned plain doughnut ranked No. 3 in our eyes. With a perfectly crunchy outside and a fluffy and light inside, this doughnut was the pastry in its truest form, and would pair perfectly with a warm cup of coffee on a Sunday morning.
Sometimes it really is true that you can’t beat the classics.
Even though these were our top three, a few other flavors were among our favorites.
The Honey Dipped doughnut was next on our list. Again, another doughnut where traditional flavors hold strong. “Our award-winning signature dessert since 1955,” Kane’s website states, and we can attest. The Item’s senior writer, Sophie Yarin, said, “It’s like a Krispy Kreme on steroids.”
Also favored were the Turtle, Raised Chocolate Frosted, Strawberry Frosted, and Cookies & Cream doughnuts.
Kane’s Donuts is a Saugus landmark that has been around since 1955, with its original location at 120 Lincoln Ave. The doughnut shop has since expanded and now operates in two other locations as well, at 1575 Broadway (Route 1) in Saugus and 90 Oliver St. in downtown Boston.
Since 2007, Kane’s Donuts has been praised by countless media outlets including the Boston Globe, The Improper Bostonian, Travel + Leisure, Bon Appétit and Boston Magazines, and was rated a top-10 doughnut destination by The Travel Channel. It also carries an entire line of gluten-free doughnuts, Kane’s Gluten-Free (KFG).
No matter which doughnut you choose, it’ll be packed with strong flavors and a perfect balance of sweetness. Check out these doughnuts yourself at one of Kane’s three locations. For more information on Kane’s Donuts, visit its website at https://www.kanesdonuts.com.
