I confess to not being NEARLY well-informed enough about what’s going on up in Belfast these days. Why, the last thing I can remember eating there is one of Weaver’s Restaurant and Bakery’s truly exceptional roast turkey sandwiches on gigantic squishy nutrient-free bread, with lots of extra mayo, or possibly a giant clam basket at the Weathervane, both institutions of the “Old Belfast” that have been gone for many, many years. Honestly, too much of my time has been spent simply passing through Belfast on my way to somewhere much less interesting, and I freely admit to not giving the city of nearly 7,000 its due.
How else to explain the fact that I’ve missed The Only Doughnut, located at 225 Northport Avenue (next to Aubuchon Hardware), which opened way back in 2019, just in time for The Great Scaries of 2020? The uncertainty of the pandemic led to a change in ownership, but when new owners Sherian Swindell and Nina Richard took the helm, they didn’t change The Only Doughnut’s focus and my current obsession: Traditional Maine potato cake donuts.
For the uninitiated, Maine has been adding potatoes to donuts since the early 20th century, when potatoes were absolutely everywhere. And no, they don’t impart a potato texture, or make the finished product taste like hash browns; instead, they improved the moisture and lightness of the cake donuts, extended shelf life, stretched ingredients a little further, and made a dent in using up some of the godamned potatoes that were littering up the state. As the big donut chains ramped up and standardized their recipes, the potatoes started showing up less and less, but a few shops here in Maine are dedicated to the tradition.
And for good reason. Stepping into the back door (or is it the front door?) feels a lot like walking into the back of your weird Aunt’s summer kitchen; there’s a decided DIY ethos to the place, and most of the furnishings and decor you encounter when walking in all feel like they were made by human hands, instead of ordered from a restaurant supply catalog. The humans themselves, on the day we visited, were heard before they were seen; disembodied voices emerging from behind a partition welcoming us to what felt like our own little donut fantasyland.
The shop specializes in just three or four potato cake donut options (including gluten free selections), each cloaked lovingly in a few different dusts, glazes, and shaky bits, including cinnamon sugar, maple, sweet cream, and peanut butter. And while that would be enough for any tradition-steeped donut shop, The Only Doughnut extends themselves even further on the weekends, offering raised brioche donuts with highly creative, Instagrammable, seasonal fresh fruit glazes and toppings.
On the day we visited, we skipped the brioche offerings and headed straight for the good stuff: a maple-glazed plain, a citrus, and a glazed chocolate, with gigantic plastic cups of strong iced coffee, making polite, easy small talk with the workers (owners?) who were incredibly easygoing, light, and who seemed to welcome our visit. We took our donuts outside into the bright Belfast sunshine, pulling up seats in two of the Adirondacks and watching the passing traffic as we marveled at these donuts. They were astonishingly light for cake doughnuts, with a delicate crackle around the edges and just enough little blisters to create a satisfying contrast against the moist interior. The glazes were wonderfully understated in a world saturated with increasingly dizzying donut topping options, a reflection of their traditional roots amped up with modern day blasts of flavor.
The Only Doughnut can be a little tricky to pin down, hours-wise. Taking a cue (get it?) from the barbecue restaurants I cherish down South, The Only Doughnut makes as many donuts as they can manage, and when they sell out, they’re gone for the day. They’re open Thursday through Saturday from 7am to 2pm, and Sundays from 7am-noon, though if you’re planning a special trip, it’s a good idea to call and order ahead to make sure your favorites aren’t sold out. For the rest of us, it turns out Belfast wasn’t just somewhere I passed through. I was simply passing something up.
The Only Doughnut | 255 Northport Avenue, Belfast, Maine | (207) 218-1231 | theonlydoughnut.com
Malcolm is the co-author of “Eating in Maine: At Home, On the Town, and On the Road,” and chef/owner of Honey’s Fried Chicken Palace in Thomaston. He lives in Midcoast Maine and has spent the better part of two decades chasing good meals and even better stories.