The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Fan favorite Neil’s Donuts coming to town
MIDDLETOWN — The state’s indie bakery shop, which has been luring doughnut lovers far and wide for nearly two decades, is expanding into a second location 15 miles away and nearly 75 percent larger than its flagship.
Neil Bukowski opened Neil’s Donuts, 83 North Turnpike Road, Wallingford, in 2001 in a 1,500-square-foot space in the Yalesville section of town, as a remedy to what he saw was lacking in bigname commercial coffee and doughnut businesses.
A salesman at the time, Bukowski was charged with bringing refreshments to meetings, and was unsatisfied with the quality of the pastries, according to his son Rob, 30, who will be running the new shop he expects to open by late June in the new Citizens Bank complex at 211 S. Main St.
“That was my father’s goal when he opened this place: to bring back quality doughnuts. He actually did it. He’s a fanatic with doughnuts. I try to be like him, but he has a taste like nobody else. He knows what tastes good,” Rob
Bukowski said.
He’s been working at his father’s business since 16, and became a full-time employee 10 years ago.
Customers were thrilled to see the announcement on Neil’s Donuts’ Facebook page Tuesday. Within 24 hours, the news elicited 431 comments.
It said: “The rumors are 99% true!! There is no contract signed, but we are hopefully opening a second location summer 2020! Please have patience as this is a long process, and when we have a better time frame we will update everyone!”
Their retro, 1950s-inspired logo — a smiling, waving doughnut in a baker’s cap holding a steaming hot cup of Joe, proclaiming their products are “Hot! Fresh! Good!” — recalls the beginnings of the fast-food movement in America.
It also harkens back to people’s childhoods, which is a big part of the appeal for older customers who enjoy the classics such as chocolate frosted, sugar and cinnamon, jelly and Boston cream. The newest offering is the Samoa, with toasted coconut, caramel and chocolate drizzle.
“That’s been a big hit,” Rob Bukowski said.
While they haven’t signed a contract just yet, father and son are submitting drawings to the city this week. They expect to sign a letter of intent and lease within the next couple of weeks.
Over the last year, there has been whispering about a Starbucks opening up. Turns out, the new Neil’s Donuts will enjoy the drive-thru lane, something Rob Bukowski has learned can drive up coffee business by 25 percent.
All Neil’s doughnuts, pastries, Danishes, muffins, breakfast sandwiches and other baked goods are made fresh daily from all-natural ingredients.
While some chains have baked goods shipped in from a central cooking location for efficiency , Neil’s insists upon doing it old-school, with ovens in both shops.
It took Neil Bukowski six months to get his first storefront up and running. When he learned a national chain was set to open nearby, he got nervous and added specialty pastries, such as cannoli. The idea was to have some insurance if his doughnut recipe didn’t catch on.
Neil Bukowski came up with his winning formula years ago. But, “It’s not only about the formula. It is about the way you treat the dough, before the doughnut is actually made. There’s a lot that goes into it: The timing has got to be right; you’ve got to account for the weather if it’s humid or freezing,” Rob
Bukowski said.
“It’s taking careful steps throughout the way when you make a doughnut. It’s not all about the ingredients. Our consistency is spot-on. That’s what we strive for, to always be the best. We don’t want to be cheap, either,” he added.
The son approached his father a few times with ideas for expansion — with no success. “I didn’t know if I was ready for it. I always knew it would work. It’s all about getting the right workers, and the right consistency, and making sure everything fits the same quality as we always have,” Rob Bukowski said.
He stumbled upon the new place on a lark, after his sister-in-law, who lives across the street, was helping a friend move to Arizona and saw it was for lease. “This was his only shot to ever see this for-lease sign at the place. He just happened to glance over and look at it,” his father explained.
“It was a sign: It was perfect: on a busy road, with a lot of parking, and a drivethru, larger,” the father said. After seeing his son had done his research, Neil Bukowski gave his stamp of approval.
“He sees what doesn’t work here at times, and also sees how you have to keep everybody happy and hop in when needed,” the elder Bukowski said. “‘Keep the line moving.’ He hears it constantly. It probably drives him nuts.”
Because of all the hype and the fact the news has spread like wildfire, Neil Bukowski is preparing for large lines of customers all eager for a taste.
“We’re going to have to overstaff it. I want it to run like Wallingford. I’m kind of nuts: We have eight people here working that front counter on a Sunday in this tiny, little place, and six to eight people in the back. You can’t even move in here, but it’s what I have to do to keep everything flowing correctly,” he added.
Neil Bukowski is an impatient man, he admitted.
“I’m one of those guys, when I was growing up, I did not want to wait in line. I hated to wait for anything,” he said.
He’s intent on melding his insistence upon freshly made, grilled breakfast sandwiches, which require multiple ingredients cooked at different temperatures at varying times, with the quality he insists upon.
“That’s going to be the challenge. A lot of the chains use microwaves to keep the line moving. I won’t do that. I’ll have everything top quality, just like Wallingford.”