We heart Granny

Forget the "frou-frou", "artisanal", "gourmet", "trendy", "foodie" flavors such as salted caramel, bacon-topped, beer-infused pretentious doughnuts [although we do love those too], Granny Donuts in West Saint Paul has THE BEST doughnuts in the Twin Cities. We always want to say the grammatically correct Granny's and strangely enough, their Facebook page says Granny's Donuts. Granted we haven't tried out ALL the doughnut joints in MSP, but I'm willing to go out on a limb here. We've patronized Granny a handful of times now, and always leave with a boxful of delicious donuts.

Located off a busy stretch of highway, next to a defunct Blockbuster [r.i.p.], Granny Donuts is a no-frills, mom-and-pop establishment. This past February 1st was their 27th anniversary!

Run by an older Asian couple [Granny and her husband, I'm assuming], the doughnuts are always fresh and delicious. They only make so many flavors a day, most trays are always empty, and we always end up buying what they have available, not necessarily what we want. Both the cake and raised donuts are good, classic flavors though, so no complaining on this end - sugar, plain glazed, chocolate glazed, devil's food, blueberry, old fashion [cherry], et cetera. They also have crullers, Long Johns, turnovers, doughnut holes, strudels, fritters, a whole variety of delectable goodies. Their doughnuts stay soft and moist even after a few days on our countertop, and taste just as good as freshly made...! Amazing!

Granny is always friendly and smiling, and every time we've been in, we've gotten one or two free treats. The doughnuts are inexpensive, $0.75 to $0.80, even cheaper if you buy a dozen. If you read the online reviews of this place, you'll probably come across some negative comments about the cantankerous owner [Granny's husband]. We had no idea what people were talking about until our last visit. Granny was helping us, and we were at the cash register paying for our sweets, when two young men behind us made the mistake of saying, "What's up, man" to Granny's husband. "Man? You address me as SIR", exclaimed Granny's husband. "My grandson is your age!" and he launched into a tirade about respect and kids nowadays, you get the idea. Meanwhile, Granny had a slightly embarrassed look on her face, and kept gesturing for him to stop, although I'm sure she's used to his curmudgeonliness by now.

We ♥ Granny.