There are no shortage of fantastic donut shops in Dallas, but the opening of Glazed Donut Works in

Deep Ellum last summer was a game changer for the Dallas donut scene.

Located on Elm Street, Glazed Donut Works joins in the recent trend away from “traditional” donuts and toward fancier, more creative donut flavor combinations.

No more can a simple glazed, yeast-risen donut or an old fashioned plain cake donut pass in the modern donut world.

Other Dallas donut icons like Hypnotic Donuts, Pookie’s Donuts and Yummy Donuts all know this and offer many more creative options that include toppings like peanut butter, bacon, coconut, horchata, salted caramel and others.

But Glazed takes it to another level with high quality ingredients and a unique formula for their yeast-risen donut that adds a chewier, more satisfying and less overtly sweet base to the creative flavors they build on top.

The high quality of their ingredients helps typically boring donuts shine.

The Saigon Cinnamon Sugar uses only a light dusting of the Vietnamese cinnamon, which provides a much more elevated flavor profile than most commercially used cinnamon sugar blends.

Glazed Donut Works’ menu changes every day they’re open, but customers can expect their most popular offerings to be available most days.

The best donut offerings at Glazed are the custard filled ones, such as the Irish Car Bomb: a Guinness donut filled with a Bailey’s Irish Cream custard and topped with chocolate ganache, unlike any other kind of filled donut out there.

The filling is of a much higher quality than typically seen inside a filled donut, and is so luscious, thick and creamy it could be eaten on its own with a spoon.

This filling particularly shines in the Creme Brulee donut, a yeast-risen donut filled with vanilla custard and topped with caramel and caramelized sugar. The strong, authentic vanilla flavor of the thick custard is really highlighted in this donut, and the caramel and crunchy burnt sugar on top really does evoke a bowl of creme brulee.

Their proficiency with cream extends beyond the filled donuts though.

Another popular choice is the Blueberry Mascarpone, which tops their trademark yeast-risen donut with blueberry glaze, fresh blueberries, and a dollop of vanilla mascarpone just as luscious and creamy as the fillings in their Creme Brulee and Irish Car Bomb, balanced by the tartness of the fresh blueberries.

The Banana Pudding donut also shows off Glazed’s more creative side. Topped
with banana glaze and crumbled vanilla, a beautiful bruleed soft meringue adorning the center of the donut.

If these donuts sound more suited for dessert than for breakfast, don’t worry. Glazed is also open late night, where they have a different menu entirely, perfect for those late night snacks while wandering through Deep Ellum on a Friday night.

One of their most popular late-night offerings, and a mainstay on the menu, is the
Donut Grilled Cheese.

A plain glazed donut is sliced in half and a sandwich is made with American cheese and bacon, and is then toasted. The glazed side of the donut faces inward, so holding it doesn’t get too messy. An odd combination of flavors for sure, but the salty sweetness of the donut makes this a guilty pleasure worthy of any midnight meal.

Glazed has also taken the “Old-fashioned” donut, typically a vanilla cake donut with a traditionally crunchier exterior than other donuts, and elevated it beyond its humble base. Peanut butter is added to one, coconut and pineapple are other options.

Vegans aren’t left out by Glazed either. Every day one vegan donut option is available, often just as creative as the regular ones, with flavors like “Blackberry Moonshine,” for example.

Their fritters are also worth trying. The pineapple rum fritter is their most popular, and frequently sells out very quickly. Large and thick, the crunchy exterior conceals swirls of rum and juicy bites of soft pineapple.

The donuts offered at Glazed are truly a unique experience unlike any other gourmet donut in Dallas, and well worth the trip down to Deep Ellum either in the morning or late at night.

Glazed Donut Works, on 2644 Elm Street in Dallas, is open from 7 a.m. to noon Wednesday through Saturday, and 8 p.m. to midnight Thursday through Saturday.