North Carolina Bakery Makes Best In The Country List
Just the mention of baked goods conjures up memories of warm fresh bread and pastries. I say memories because these days my carb intake is few and far between. However, it doesn’t change my love for baked goods! And, a North Carolina bakery made Mashed’s list of best bakeries in the country. La Farm Bakery in Cary, North Carolina is close to Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill. Although La Farm bills itself as a modern day French American Cafe, they employ centuries old techniques. Customers have the option of challah, Scandinavian rye, rustic Italian ciabatta, and more. And, if you have a sweet tooth, never fear. La Farm offers scones, croissants, cookies, cakes, and cinnamon buns, too! Some customers point to the white chocolate mini baguette at La Farm as “life-changing.” How can you go wrong with white chocolate baked right into bread?
Furthermore, La Farm Bakery serves breakfast, lunch, and brunch throughout the week. Their menu rotates monthly with options including eggs benedict, creme brulee french toast, and more. Mashed.com looked at reviews and awards for bakeries throughout the nation to determine which spot in each state made their list of the best in the country. And, of course, their expert tasters even sampled a few to help compile the list. It’s worth pointing out the best in neighboring states, too. Back in the Day Bakery in Savannah made the list for Georgia.
In Charleston, South Carolina, they named Sugar Bakeshop as a top. Muddy’s Bake Shop in Memphis made the Tennessee list. And, in Virginia they suggest Blackbird Bakery in Bristol. See the full list here. But, take a trip soon to the North Carolina bakery making the best in the country list!
North Carolina Donut Shop Named The 2nd Best In The Country
Friday, June 2 is National Donut Day, and ahead of the celebration, Yelp released its second annual Top 100 US Donut Shops list. And apparently, NC has some delicious donuts. One North Carolina Donut shop was named the second-best in the entire country. The highly praised donuts come to us from Asheville. And 2nd best, that’s some high praise. They weren’t alone as 5 total North Carolina places made Yelp’s list. This includes donuts from Asheville, Fayetteville, and Concord among others.
Did you know there are donut trends? There sure are! According to Yelp the biggest donut trends in 2023 are:
- Outrageous Toppings
- Classic, Old Fashioned Donuts
- Offering Other Bakery Treats
While my current favorite donut spot, The Salty, didn’t make the cut, I’ll be sure to check out a couple of these locations. I enjoy a good gourmet donut but I also can’t turn down a hot now Krispy Kreme glazed donut. There just might not be anything better! The best donut I’ve had lately- a butterbeer one from the previously mentioned The Salty. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately for my waistline) it was a limited-time offering. So how did Yelp come up with these ratings that ranked a North Carolina Donut Shop 2nd best in the country? According to Yelp, they “identified businesses in the donuts category, then ranked those spots using a number of factors, including the total volume and ratings of reviews between January 1st, 2022 and March 31st, 2023.”
Keep reading to see the top 10 donut shops in the US and the other North Carolina locations that were recognized.
Debbie Nance is the afternoon co-host along with her husband on "The Charlie and Debbie Show" at WSOC, Country 1037 in Charlotte, North Carolina. She has been with the station for 18 years. Debbie is a CMA Award winner for Radio Personality of the Year. And, she has worked in radio for 40 years. Before her current afternoon position, Debbie spent more than a decade as co-host on morning shows in several markets across the Southeast. As a content creator for Country 1037, Debbie writes articles about food, new restaurants in the Carolinas and travel experiences.
