Jake Randall and his wife fell in love with Kansas City on a visit. Now he is opening the doors to the much-anticipated Doughnut Lounge in Westport after his family decided to make Kansas City home. Doughnut Lounge opens Thursday, Dec. 17!
The chill vibe of the new Westport eatery features doughnuts as the main star because, as Randall put it, who doesn’t love a doughnut?
A full bar and coffee program complement doughnuts with crazy flavor combinations. "Tell me we can't do it and then we'll do it," Randall laughed.
Those flavors are perfected by Executive Chef Tye Eckert, who also happens to be Randall’s friend from college. He happily relocated to KC too.
The coffee program will feature rotating roasters. Right now, try the nitro brew on tap from Alchemy Coffee in Lawrence. Careful, that’s a lot of delicious, smooth caffeine in a tall, frosty glass!
You’ll find classic doughnuts like double chocolate and seasonal flavors like Egg Nog. Then there are the Noduts, which earned their name because that’s how Randall’s daughter adorably pronounces doughnuts. These are more of a meal and need a knife and fork. Here are a few of the stand out flavors that we got to try!
S’more
YES. Chocolate ganache cradles a dollop of marshmallow fluff and graham cracker crumbs. This is Randall’s favorite for the nostalgia of growing up around campfires.
Glazed & Gravy
This Nodut has sausage and sage gravy spooned over a glazed donut and topped with a fried egg. The yolk was perfect, not too runny, and didn’t overwhelm the dish.
Vegetarian
Another Nodut. A surprisingly creamy, warm sweet corn cake doughnut sat under arugula, roasted garlic mushrooms, goat cheese and a tangy hint of apple cider vinegar that really balanced it out.
Chicken Fried
This is Nodut is no chicken and waffles wannabe. The chicken thigh is crispy and crunchy, and the hot sauce has a lovely, pickled tang. The contrast with the soft, glazed doughnut was awesome.
Doughnut Lounge will bring in new flavors once a month. They are open 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Tuesday. They are closed on Wednesday and open 6:30 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. Thursday through Saturday.
See their website for more: www.doughnutlounge.com
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Lindsay Shively can be reached at lindsay.shively@kshb.com.
