Speedy Donut

French crullers are Speedy Donut’s best dish. They may be the best crullers anywhere. Luxuriously eggy, yellow enough to almost be a tromp l’oiel for a timbale of scrambled eggs, moist within and croissant-crisp at their swirled edges, they are at once rich and featherweight, tremendously satisfying and yet easy to eat by twos and fours and sixes. Glazed ones add sugary sparkle without overwhelming the steam-risen pastry itself. Chocolate or vanilla frosted crullers are wonderful, and what’s interesting about these is that the surface where there is no frosting is pure, unglazed choux pastry — hardly sweet at all, a sunny taste of heaven.

All kinds of other donuts are arrayed on the shelf in this very humble Route One diner, and the ones I have tried are very good, if not divine like the crullers. Plain cake is dense and creamy, ideal for dunking. Twists are especially substantial, in that way the opposite of the ethereal crullers. Fritters here also are hefty boys, known curiously not as fritters but as spiders. The apple-filled glazed spider is breakfast unto itself.

In fact, some people do like Speedy Donut for a full, hot breakfast (currently not available due to Pandemic precautions): bacon and eggs, breakfast sandwiches, corned beef hash, etc. Even lunch is served (burgers, hot dishes). But I cannot imagine coming to this place for anything but donuts, crullers in particular.