Cartems Donuterie- Earl Grey and Maple Bacon Bourbon Donuts
I first read about Cartems Donuterie in the Vancouver Sun
and ever since then I’ve wanted to pay a visit. Their Bacon Maple Bourbon donut in particular intrigued me because I wanted to see if they were better
than the ones I made for my Marketing class last year! If you haven’t read my not too shabby attempt in making and selling Maple Bacon donuts, read it here. They
sold like hotcakes at the SFU campus so I kind of regret not capitalizing on
the idea right then and there! Haha
So anyways, Rae and I ventured to Gastown a few days ago and
bought ourselves half a dozen to share. The pop up shop is very discreet and
you can easily miss it if you don’t see the small white piece of paper that
says “Cartems”.
bought ourselves half a dozen to share. The pop up shop is very discreet and
you can easily miss it if you don’t see the small white piece of paper that
says “Cartems”.
We knew they opened at 10am so we arrived shortly after
around 10:20am. As you can see, most of the donuts were already gone! Luckily,
there were more flavours at the back so it wasn’t as sold out as we thought. We
almost had a heart attack when we thought there was no more Earl Grey donut
left!
around 10:20am. As you can see, most of the donuts were already gone! Luckily,
there were more flavours at the back so it wasn’t as sold out as we thought. We
almost had a heart attack when we thought there was no more Earl Grey donut
left!
The service is friendly and I like how they have branded
their donuterie to be all about using the finest and most local ingredients. It’s
nice to know that everything is handmade and all the ingredients are selected
with care.
their donuterie to be all about using the finest and most local ingredients. It’s
nice to know that everything is handmade and all the ingredients are selected
with care.
Voila! Look at our half
dozen donuts ($15) sitting all pretty in the box. These babies do not come
cheap however as they are $3 a piece.
dozen donuts ($15) sitting all pretty in the box. These babies do not come
cheap however as they are $3 a piece.
The Earl Grey
donut was the most anticipated since it’s their best seller and looked ever so
gorgeous. This cake based donut is infused with organic earl grey tea, topped
with earl grey glaze and a sprinkle of mallow flavours. It sounded wonderful and
all but when I bit into it, I was taken back because I couldn’t taste a hint of
earl grey. 🙁 Don’t get me wrong, it was absolutely scrumptious! But if you
didn’t tell me it was earl grey flavoured, I wouldn’t have known.
donut was the most anticipated since it’s their best seller and looked ever so
gorgeous. This cake based donut is infused with organic earl grey tea, topped
with earl grey glaze and a sprinkle of mallow flavours. It sounded wonderful and
all but when I bit into it, I was taken back because I couldn’t taste a hint of
earl grey. 🙁 Don’t get me wrong, it was absolutely scrumptious! But if you
didn’t tell me it was earl grey flavoured, I wouldn’t have known.
Next up was the Maple
Bacon Bourbon donut and this was by far the best one of the bunch. The
bourbon was faint but noticeable and the bacon had a sweetness to it, almost as
if they were candied bacon.
Bacon Bourbon donut and this was by far the best one of the bunch. The
bourbon was faint but noticeable and the bacon had a sweetness to it, almost as
if they were candied bacon.
We had mixed feelings about the Sweet Heat donut because Rae couldn’t taste any spiciness at all
when I was going “Whoa! So spicy!”. One thing I’d like to mention about Cartem’s
donuts is that they are all quite dense and heavy. They are completely
different from the yeast based donuts you get at Tim Horton’s so it might not
be for everyone. It’s almost like eating cake in donut form!
when I was going “Whoa! So spicy!”. One thing I’d like to mention about Cartem’s
donuts is that they are all quite dense and heavy. They are completely
different from the yeast based donuts you get at Tim Horton’s so it might not
be for everyone. It’s almost like eating cake in donut form!
The Cinnamon Sugar
donut is covered in organic cinnamon/sugar. This was one of my favourites but
others who had a bite thought it was nothing special and tasted almost stale.
donut is covered in organic cinnamon/sugar. This was one of my favourites but
others who had a bite thought it was nothing special and tasted almost stale.
I quite enjoyed the Sweet
Snow donut. I was especially fond of the large organic coconut shavings!
Snow donut. I was especially fond of the large organic coconut shavings!
Calling all chocolate lovers! Rae’s favourite was this Baked Vegan Chocolate donut. There was
so much chocolate involved but it wasn’t overwhelmingly sweet!
so much chocolate involved but it wasn’t overwhelmingly sweet!
Overall, I enjoyed all of the donuts from Cartems and my
very satisfied belly can testify to that. However, I generally prefer yeast
based donuts because it’s lighter so Cartems may not be my go-to donut shop
whenever I’m craving donuts. It’s also a
pricier than Tim Horton’s so I might have to just stick with Timmy Ho’s for
now. 😛
very satisfied belly can testify to that. However, I generally prefer yeast
based donuts because it’s lighter so Cartems may not be my go-to donut shop
whenever I’m craving donuts. It’s also a
pricier than Tim Horton’s so I might have to just stick with Timmy Ho’s for
now. 😛
Service Rating: N/A
Food Rating: 3/5
Price: $
Overall Rating: 3/5
Happy Eating!
No fair! Both you and Janice have gone now 😛
Still gastown is a bit far to go just for donuts… and 10 am in the morning too.
Btw your bacon donuts look better. So I'll steal some from you instead 🙂
Yeah I had to make a conscious effort to wake up early and drive to gastown just for those donuts. :p So it depends on whether you value donuts or not haha
Why thank you! I should make a bunch one day and sell them. Although making the dough/frying it, is such a pain =.=
@Kirby: I know! I always get so fed up with preparing ingredients and cleaning up afterwards. But still there's something about baking/making food that keeps making me do it.
When are we gonna have that crepe-making session?! We should totally do a baking meetup next time! LOL
Oh yeah! We can do it near the end of the month when I am done midterms haha. Nutella bacon crepe!! Yummmmm