This Bay Ridge shop is reimagining how South Brooklyn does doughnuts, with a larger-than-life twist on the classic pastry
by Amanda McCoy
When it comes to gourmet, scratch-made doughnuts, patrons in bustling BK ’hoods like Downtown or Williamsburg shouldn’t have much trouble hunting down a boutique bakery serving up fresh but pricey samplings of the American classic. But for South Brooklyn inhabitants, cravings have been left to be only semi-satisfied by big name chains and fast food joints. This seems a shame for a city that introduced doughnuts to the nation (Dutch immigrants brought them to what they then called New Amsterdam in the form of the somewhat in artfully named olykoeks, or “oily cakes”).
Cue Darn Doughnuts, a Bay Ridge eatery offering house-made fried dough in fantastical flavors, sans trendy price tag.
It’s the principled philosophy of owner Daniel Eivazov— when it comes to what he termed “America’s Dessert:” no New Yorker should have to settle for mediocre or shell out an entire dinner budget for a savory gourmet snack. In his store, a mere couple of bucks grants patrons access to a surplus of decadent originalities.
Imagine what the adolescent version of yourself would’ve asked for in a dream sweet roll, because that’s exactly what will greet visitors. Close your eyes and think homemade dough rolled into larger-than-life portions, filled with ultra-rich strawberry frosting, fresh cream cheese, fluffy marshmallow, and handmade jam. Unexpected flavors such as Cheesecake,
Chocolate Mousse, Brooklyn Crème, and S’mores pack the shelves. A fan favorite, the Pretzel is a glorious blend of sweet and salty bathed in a generous layer of frosting and sprinkles— a signature Darn Doughnut that will immediately make any inner child dance.
“The business idea came to me about four years ago,” Eivazov explained. “I waited in line to buy a donut from a fast food joint, and while eating it thought, ‘This really isn’t very good. There has to be something better than this without going all the way out Downtown.’”
The young entrepreneur’s quest to find a South Brooklyn fresh-made doughnut proved fruitless, so the next course of action was clear. As early as adolescence, he’d dreamt of business ownership, but confided that early ideas were far outside the restaurant realm. No matter what, he wanted to avoid delving in the latest craze or trend. Doughnuts, like pizza and bagels, he thought, never go out of style.
“I didn’t want to get into a trendy business, because the excitement will eventually fade, he said. “I wanted to offer a staple…something that people will always love.”
With a background in accounting and real estate, the owner also humbly admitted a relative lack of culinary experience, but his goal was and is simple and authentic: to create something he loves and share it with the community. After four years of research, development, and dozens of kept and discarded recipes, Darn Doughnuts opened its doors.
“It’s been a long process, and definitely hasn’t been easy,” Eivazov said. “This business has lifted me, dropped me, and then lifted me back up again, but I told myself it has to happen, no matter what.”
And happen it did, with an offbeat flair all its own. In design, for example, the shop’s charm is found in its eccentricities. “Most gourmet bakeries only cater toward adults, and I don’t think that’s right,” the owner added. “We have flavors adults will love, yes, but I also wanted to appeal to kids. I want kids to have a blast whenever they come here.”
To that end, the vibrant locale is marked by an effulgent color theme of bright pink and neon green, an illuminating outdoor nameplate that can be seen from three blocks away, and the store’s very own mascot—a five-foot tall cutout of the Darn Doughnut, of course.
Darn Doughnuts
8723 Fourth Avenue / 718-833-6300