The heavenly scent of handcrafted donuts, fritters and cinnamon rolls will soon waft up and down West Main Street: Charlottesville is getting a Sugar Shack Donuts, directly across the street from the Uncommon Building, this summer.
Sugar Shack owner and self-proclaimed “donut nostalgia nerd” Ian Kelley opened his first shop in a small building in Richmond’s Carver neighborhood in 2013 and has been searching for the right place to open a Charlottesville spot for a while; this will be Sugar Shack’s 11th location.
“Charlottesville is the town we always wished we were part of, and now finally get the opportunity to join. The people, businesses and university have created an incredible environment for community-driven businesses like ours, and we are proud to bring our handmade donuts to a new home,” Kelley says in a press release.
Per Sugar Shack tradition, customers can earn a free house donut if they participate in the almost-daily, usually quirky challenge posted on the shop’s Facebook page. So, Charlottesville: What will you do for a free donut? Will you break out the air guitar and riff along to the chorus of Warrant’s “Cherry Pie”? Wear your clothes backwards (a la ’90s hip-hop duo Kris Kross)? Bust an M.C. Hammer move? Do the “Single Ladies” dance? Oh, this is gonna be good.