Dunkin’ Donuts

I really try to like DD because I really love their dark roast ice coffee and hash browns but the food is gross. Even my bagel with cream cheese was disgusting. How can you mess that up? There was so much cream cheese on it, the amount I scraped off was enough for three more bagels. No wonder America is so fat and unhealthy if they’re eating this stuff all the time. Have you ever eaten a DD egg sandwich of any kind? Are they even real eggs? This is all DD’s, not just this one. I just happened to go here yesterday. Service was very good and friendly.

I love chains. I do. And I make no apologies for it.
Chipotle may be my favorite.
But McDonald’s fries are delicious.
The breaded wings at Hooters are a guilty pleasure.
Taco Bell is full of beans, and my kids love beans.
And I could go on and on.
The point of this is that my hatred of Dunkin’ Donuts isn’t about them being a chain. I could imagine a chain donut place being just fine. Actually, I don’t have to imagine, those glazed donuts hot off the line at Krispy Kreme are fantastic.
Dunkin’s donuts are salty. I hadn’t had them in quite a while, and went back recently to give these insanely popular donuts another try. That’s when I noticed how oddly savory these sweet treats were from this shop.
But it’s not a mistake. Nobody accidentally used salt instead of sugar. I looked up the nutritional information on the Dunkin’ Donuts website and it has 330 mg of sodium. Whoa.
Why the second star?
Well when I was buying my dozen at this location, I was delighted by the honesty of one of the clerks. I asked why the donuts were in the shapes of hearts, and he told me, «to remind you of where they go after you eat them.»
Good point. As long as donuts are bad for your health, you would be well advised to make sure the ones you eat are delicious. Dunkin’ Donuts are not delicious. They are weirdly salty and the blueberry cake donut doesn’t even have a token amount of actual blueberries.
Remind me again, why does anybody eat here?

This is probably the best DD that I’ve been to in Albany. Stopped in during the afternoon rush hour. The service was excellent — it was prompt, the cashier was courteous, and the coffee was hot. He even offered to make a fresh pot if I wanted to wait a few minutes. The floors were very clean (even with slush, salt and sand outside), and the bathroom was immaculate. The donut selection was scarce, but it was very easy to get a cup of coffee (something that is made so difficult at some other locations).