The proven greatness of dough fried, flaky and delicious – that’s the main focus at Blue’s City Donuts. Located at 5735 Raleigh Lagrange Rd., the bakery is a new addition to the Raleigh area.
Local chef Rueal Braden is the owner of Blue’s City Donuts. State Rep. Antonio Parkinson, who represents Raleigh, recently presented him with a state proclamation acknowledging Blue’s City Donuts as the first African-American owned and operated doughnut shop in Memphis.
Braden has been cooking and baking most of his life.
“My family and friends gave me the nickname ‘hood chef’ before I received my culinary license,” Braden said. “I wanted to be taken serious for my craft and not just be known as the ‘hood chef.’ So I went to culinary school.”
While working as a sous-chef at Nike’s distribution center, Braden’s cousin bought what was previously Daylight Donuts and all of its equipment and presented Braden with the opportunity to have his own doughnut shop.
And on Jan. 25, Blue’s City Donuts officially opened its doors to the public. The shop provides a variety of fresh doughnuts, pastries and sweet offerings.
“Each ingredient in our products have been carefully selected to offer the finest delectable for our customers,” said Braden. “Outside of Krispy Kreme, my doughnut shop is the only one in town with a conveyer belt, which allows the doughnuts to move seamlessly from cooking to glazing to cooling.”
Blue’s City prides itself on “outside of the box” doughnuts.
“We set ourselves apart by putting a twist on the standard doughnut,” Braden said. “Once you have a solid doughnut, the creations and toppings can be almost endless.”
The bakery offers dozens of flavors for its signature assortments, such as coconut, strawberry crunch, Oreo, lemon-head lemon crunch, raspberry pop rocks, fruity pebble, triple chocolate cake, Chick-O Stick and strawberry cheesecake – which happens to be my favorite.
The made-from-scratch daily creative doughnuts are displayed in full view the moment you walk through the front door. The atmosphere is warm and authentic and so is the staff.
The new store is painted blue, with a table-top punctuated seating area and a large television to entertain guest. A collage of album covers featuring black artists hangs on a wall, creating a very urban and artsy vibe. Paintings of large doughnuts adorn the opposite wall, augmenting the bakery feel.
All in all, it’s a fun, delicious place with desserts the entire family will love.
It’s a must-try bakery for the Bluff City’s doughnut and sweet treat lovers.
