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Donut Porn

I’ll never forget the first time I saw the phrase food porn on the web. It made me chuckle. I’ll admit, I’m one of those people. I take pictures of my food all the time. I know that some people hate it when people post pictures of their food, but I truly appreciate good food and a good food pic.

Last weekend when going through my photos from Mary Lou Donuts I found some of the pictures I’ve taken from other doughnut stops. So of course, I had to do something with all of those pictures… Why not a video? That’s easy. Finding the appropriate donut porn music was the toughest part. The music I found reminds me of something from a Jack Horner/Dirk Diggler movie. If you’ve seen Boogie Nights you know exactly what I mean!

So sit back and enjoy 50 seconds of pure Donut Porn. I’m sure that you’ll quickly see that I have a bit of a Fritter Fetish….

Oh, and if you too love taking pictures of your food, let’s connect on Foodspotting.com! It’s a fun website for food lovers like you and me!

Hello Mary Lou

For over 20 years my wife has been dragging me back to Indiana for one thing or another. Usually it’s your typical family functions; holidays, birthdays, graduations, weddings and funerals.

Our journey together started in Indiana, and after all these years I thought I knew every one of my wife’s friends and every one of her haunts around the state. That’s why it was such a shock when I found out about Mary Lou. Throughout all of our years together I’d never heard of Mary Lou.   Not once.  And from what I’m finding out, she’s known throughout the state.  Of course to most she’s known by her full name: Mary Lou Donuts.

Mary Lou Donuts Lafayette INMary Lou Donuts has been a Lafayette, Indiana institution for over 50 years, about as long as I’ve been on earth, but until recently I had no clue.  How could this be?  We travel back to Lafayette regularly.  That’s where most of my wife’s immediate family lives.  Her parents have lived in Lafayette for as long as we’ve been together. (Okay, technically they lived in West Lafayette when we first started dating, but the difference between Lafayette and West Lafayette is only apparent to the people who live or go to school there.)

But not once was Mary Lou Donuts ever mentioned in a conversation.  Now to be fair, when we head back to Indiana we don’t often eat donuts.  Saturday breakfast is usually reserved for another Lafayette institution, The Downtower (where Yolanda nearly hands you your regular drink as you walk in the door).

Over the years if we did get donuts, her folks usually made a quick trip up the road to Corlew Donut Company, another local doughnut baker.  Now don’t get me wrong, I can’t remember the last time I ate a donut I didn’t enjoy, but I also can’t remember anything special from the few times we’ve had donuts from the Donut Company.

So how did Mary Lou finally enter my life after all these years?  Her name actually came up by accident just a few weeks ago.  My wife and I were on one of our weekend trips, this time traveling on Route 66 in Illinois.  We had started our day in Joliet, IL and stopped at Joliet’s award winning Homecut Donuts for a quick breakfast treat.  As we enjoyed our donuts my wife mentioned that one of the Homecut Donuts reminded her of the donuts from Mary Lou’s.  Mary Lou?  I had no clue who or what my wife was talking about.  She looked at me like I was crazy.  It was at that point she finally realized I had never experienced the donuts from Mary Lou’s.  She promised me that the next time we were in Lafayette she’d get up early and grab a dozen or two.

Mary Lou Donuts Lafayette INWell, the wait to meet Mary Lou wouldn’t be much longer.   We already had our next Indiana trip on the books.  We were going to be in Lafayette to celebrate our nephew’s first communion and my mother-in-law’s birthday just a few weeks later.  I’d been in the dark about Mary Lou Donuts this long, I could survive just a few weeks more.

Now I wouldn’t say that I’m a doughnut aficionado, but I’ve eaten my unfair share.  There aren’t many people who get to be my size without enjoying a donut or two…..dozen.  Apple Fritters, cinnamon rolls, glazed, jelly filled, cream filled, I honestly love ’em all and wanted to see if Mary Lou’s would live up to my new expectations.

So last weekend, as promised, my wife got up early (before we headed to  breakfast with the whole family at The Downtowner) and stopped by the small Swiss chalet style building that nearly everyone in Lafayette (but obviously NOT me) go to to get their doughnut fix.  It’s just a few miles from her parent’s house, so it wasn’t long before my wife returned with the goodies.  She bought a couple dozen (for the whole family not just me) and got an assortment so I could get an good idea why everyone in the area loved Mary Lou.

I had a couple right then, and have to admit I did enjoy them.  Were they the best donuts I’d ever had….no.  Were they better than average, without a doubt.  Will it be 20+ years before we visit Mary Lou again?  I can guarantee you that we’ll see Mary Lou again VERY soon.  How my wife had ‘forgotten’ to mention Mary Lou Donuts I’ll never know, but I’m glad that I finally met this Lafayette legend.

I wish I could share them with you right now, but in all honesty I don’t often share my donuts.  I have to keep up my physique.  But I am willing to share a few pictures with you!  Here’s just a sample of what Mary Lou has to offer 6 days a week.  So far, my only complaint about my new friend Mary Lou…. she’s closed on Sundays.  Click on the image to see these beauties up close.  And make sure to have a napkin handy!Mary Lou Donuts Lafayette IN

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Remember Mister Donut?

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This weekend my wife and I were rolling down the road, and somehow got to talking about doughnuts.  I know, there’s a shock!  I’m sure it had something to do with the fact that I’m watching my waistline and missing donuts.  I couldn’t tell you the last time I had one; It’s probably been 3 or 4 years.  I know it won’t surprise you that doughnuts have always been one of my weaknesses.

Having lived all over the country, I’ve never really had one favorite place to eat doughnuts, I’ve had many!  When I lived in Virginia Beach it was Krispy Kreme.  In Quincy, IL it was a local favorite called Dixie Cream Donuts.  And early on in life (in Cheyenne, WY I think) it was Mister Donut.  And that got me wondering about Mister Donut.  I hadn’t seen one in years.

Gone But Not ForgottenI remember hearing that they got taken over by Dunkin Donuts sometime in the late 80’s early 90’s.  I’m told that they used to have good coffee, but I don’t remember that.  I do remember that they had ice cold milk and some of the best jelly doughnuts around.  If I close my eyes, I can almost remember the last time I ate at Mister Donut.  It was in Lynchburg, VA back in about 1984 or 85.

So naturally once we got home I had to do some research into Mister Donut to exactly what happened.  Who knows, maybe I’d find a tribute site.  I couldn’t find one, but did find out that they actually still exist…. in Japan and the Philippines.  I guess I won’t be making a doughnut run to Mister Donut anytime soon…. Although, it would be a pretty cool trip!

Love That SignWhile searching the internet for info about Mister Donut, I did come across this great picture of a now long gone Mister Donut. Thanks to Darren Snow for posting it on his Flickr site.  Click on the pic to see it full size in Darren’s album.  Sweet memories!!

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