The doughnuts are so tiny. And so is the shop they’re coming from.
The Dapper Doughnut opened Wednesday in Union Station. It operates out of one of the canopies at 701 E. Douglas where 8 Below Rolled Ice Cream and Funky Monkeys Shaved Ice 21 + also are based.
The business, owned by local entrepreneurs Brett and Rebecca Alstatt, specializes in mini-doughnuts and will also sell coffee and milkshakes with doughnuts mixed in.
The shop offers a menu of 13 different cake doughnut flavors, including chocolate powdered sugar, birthday cake, chocolate peanut butter, blueberry lemon and Nutella Dream. People can order six for $4.99, 12 for $6.99, 24 for $10.99 or 48 for $20.99 and can watch them being fried fresh in a special mini-doughnut maker set up at the front counter. The machine can crank out about 2,400 mini doughnuts in an hour.
A big part of the business will be catering at parties and special events, and Brett Alstatt has a portable version of his doughnut maker he can roll in and make the treats fresh on site. He’s already been building the business over the past several months working private events.
The hours are 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays; 6:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Fridays; 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturdays; and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sundays. The canopy doesn’t have room for more than one table inside, but in warm weather months, tables will be set up on the patio area out front.
Brett Alstatt, who played football for Kansas State University from 2004 to 2008, said his love of doughnuts dates back to his days on the team when he would compete in doughnut-eating contests. When he decided to open a shop, he researched various chains and settled on The Dapper Doughnut, which is based in Las Vegas.
He said he’s hoping to draw traffic from the call center that is set to open next year in Union Station, and he also hopes to attract late-night Old Town traffic, especially hungry people leaving the bars and needing a doughnut fix.
This story was originally published December 19, 2018 5:02 AM.