A few days back I made a rather stressful trip to Ikea to return a few items and purchase some more. After waiting in the Motor-Vehicles-type line to exchange some extra items, I then had to wait in another queue to buy the things that I should have purchased in the first place. Driving out two hours later, I noticed a sign with the following equation:
Yonuts = gourmet donuts + gelato & soft serve treats.
This was math I could get into. Plus, after a trip to big-box retail hell, I deserved a treat.
See also: Rhino Doughnuts Is Revitalizing an American Breakfast Staple
Yonutz opened in the little strip mall right in front of Ikea about six weeks ago. The shop is the brainchild of two couples, Emilio and Sarah Freire and Sophie and Ahmed Amer, Weston residents who wanted to open a unique shop in their neighborhood.
Sophie Amer tells me that she and her husband lived in New York, where people line up, sometimes for hours, at bakeries Dominique Ansel Bakery, Magnolia Bakery, and Doughnut Plant. "We wanted to bring something to South Florida that's creative and different."
The little shop was designed by hand by sister Sophie and her husband, Emilio Freire, who has a design background. As Freire walks me through the shop, he explains the subtle touches. Repurposed vintage chairs that he commissioned from an artisan in Cape Coral and a counter from wood from the Florida Keys blend in to make an inviting atmosphere to enjoy the main attraction -- donuts.
Yonutz bakes about a dozen varieties, but get there early for the best selection because the maple bacon, cookies & cream, and choco peanut butter were sold out when I stopped in. In fact, as I was ordering, a woman in front of me snagged the last tres leches donut. Donuts sell for between $1.65 - $2.25 each, and are sold individually, and not by the dozen (although there are boxes available).
Lucky for me, Emilio suggested the coffee latte as a substitute. Basically the tres leches donut with a hint of java, it's a cake donut with a coffee and sugar glaze and a soft, almost buttery texture. It could very well be the best donut I've had in a while.
The classic glazed, a yeast donut with a sugar coating was made better by a five-minute trip in a warm oven. The only disappointment was the peanut butter and jelly. After breaking it in half to eat the jelly part first (a habit since childhood), I noticed only a small dollop of the fruity goodness. Hence, the peanut butter-to-jelly ratio needs to be improved. All in all, these are solidly good donuts that are sophisticated enough for adult palates, but would, of course, be a hit with kids.
The shop also offers a wall full of soft serve gelatos, frozen yogurts, and Chloe's soft serve fruit, which contains only three ingredients -- fruit, sugar cane, and water. Can't decide? Yonutz will top a donut with the frozen treat of your choice, making a donut a la mode, if you will.
Go and indulge. You'll burn off all the calories assembling that entertainment center you just bought at Ikea.
Yonutz is open Monday - Friday from 8 a.m. - 9 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday from 8:30 a.m. - 9 p.m.
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