Less than two months after it opened, Donut Crazy has established itself on campus as a new hangout and study space for students and Elm City residents alike.
The shop, which opened Oct. 26 at 290 York St., is open past midnight all nights and sells doughnuts, coffee and other breakfast staples. The store is the fourth and largest of a Connecticut franchise, though another location will be opening soon in Westport.
Michaela Murphy ’17, the only student employee at the location, explained the store’s popularity with its novel concept.
“It’s a weird mesh of a bar lounge and a morning coffee shop, [giving it] a cool vibe that is not like anywhere else on campus,” she said.
Murphy said the place caught on quickly as people were looking for a new study location on campus. She added that though students composed most of the regular crowd, Elm City residents, police officers and security guards also pass through for a doughnut or cup of coffee. The cannoli doughnut, she said, seems to be a crowd favorite.
Murphy added that while at first, customers did not want to try new flavors and stuck to the chocolate or vanilla frosted doughnuts, visitors have become “more adventurous.” Now, people order doughnuts “all over the map.”
“Drunk lines” on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday nights also bring in the most clientele, Murphy added, as the shop is located next to the popular nightclub Toad’s Place. But the morning hours are also busy as people get their morning coffee and pastries to begin their days.
Three students interviewed expressed favorable views of the shop. Though the students interviewed said that they do not believe the shop could replace Blue State for coffee, it has filled a void for pastries.
Jessica Tang ’20 said she loved the doughnuts and the location itself is “a nice place for people to talk” with a “chill vibe.” Tang added that she liked the decor, specifically the paintings.
Although William Yang ’20 has not yet been to Donut Crazy, he said “every meeting” he has gone to has had Donut Crazy. Though in the beginning of the year, clubs advertised their meetings with Insomnia Cookies or pizza, many study breaks now include fare from the shop.
Yale’s Student Technology Collaborative, Yale Undergraduate Science Olympiad and Splash all posted in Yale’s Class of 2020 Facebook page, attempting to entice freshmen to join their clubs with doughnuts and coffee.
Other groups, such as the Society of Women Engineers and the Asian American Cultural Center also advertised events with the doughnuts.
In his Facebook post, Kuan Jiang ’19, a member of Splash at Yale, called the doughnut shop “New Haven’s newest hub for great pastries.”
National Doughnut Day falls on the first Friday of June.