Holtman's Donuts Review

Holtman's Donuts in Cincinnati, Ohio
Photo Credit: Bridgett Raffenberg/365 Things to do in Cincinnati

They say that all great things must come to an end, which is sad, but true all at the same time. As we neared the end of our annual road trip, we wanted to leave the city of Cincinnati with a smile on our faces. What better way to start a five and a half hour drive back home than by eating some great donuts? Cue Holtman's.

A Magnificent Dozen
Photo Credit: Ryan Magnuson/Mealtime With Mags

Holman's Donuts is a family-opened, local donut shop with three locations in Ohio, and has been serving up freshly made, extremely tasty pastries since 1960. Their downtown Cincy shop, located at 1332 Vine Street Cincinnati, OH 45202, is in a very nice location and has tons of charm. One of the coolest things about the location is that you can see the donuts and ingredients being made fresh right in the window. Seeing everything being made right in front of you may cause you to stop in your tracks, but the intoxicating smell of hot, fresh donuts will force you to go in and pick some up.

Not only are they fresh, but the variety is outstanding as well. You can choose from different types of dough, fillings, glazes/icings, and toppings, which was difficult to do for me, but I managed. After scouring the options, the four of us purchased a dozen, each person choosing their own three. We selected four original glazed, four vanilla-iced with sprinkles, a cinnamon twist, a key lime-filled, a red velvet, and a maple-iced topped with bacon. The total for the dozen came out to $13, which may seem steep, but the quality alone was worth the price. I personally had an original glazed and two vanilla-iced with sprinkles and I felt like I died and went to donut heaven. Each sweet, airy bite was better than the next, making me want to go up to the counter to purchase three more. I resisted because we had to get back on the road, but Holtman's was everything I was looking for and more.

I had been searching for quality, fresh-made donuts near home for weeks, but never came across anything worth writing about. No, Dunkin Donuts is not worth writing about. Holtman's answered my call and satisfied my craving, proving to me that the places I was looking for did indeed exist. I will continue to search for great donuts closer to home, but will be counting down the days until I can get back to Holtman's. You can count on that.


Ryan Magnuson is a Baseball/Food Writer from the Chicagoland Area