Free Doughnuts, Coffee For Honeydip’s 50th Anniversary
The southside restaurant makes all of its doughnuts from scratch.
Doughnuts are prepared from scratch at Honeydip. Photo taken May 15, 2024 by Sophie Bolich.
At Honeydip, it’s always time to make doughnuts.
Twice a day — before dawn and in the afternoon — the restaurant’s kitchen is enveloped in the aromas of sugar and yeast as staff mix, knead and hand cut batches of fresh doughnuts.
The routine has been a pillar of the business at 805 S. Layton Blvd. since it opened in 1974 within a bustling, southside shopping center.
Now approaching its 50th anniversary, Honeydip plans to honor the milestone — and its loyal customers — by offering complimentary coffee and doughnuts each Saturday in June.
Those who visit the restaurant between 6 a.m. and 1 p.m. on June 8, 15, 22 or 29 will receive a free cup of coffee and one Honeydip doughnut (plain glazed), while supplies last.
The promotion, according to co-owner Apexa Patel, intends to strengthen the business’s connection with neighbors while showcasing its scratch-made doughnuts — a point of pride for the longstanding establishment.
Of all the doughnut chains in the area, Honeydip remains “the only place that makes fresh doughnuts from scratch,” said Patel, who runs the location with her husband, Vijay, and a small team of employees.
The Patels worked at the doughnut shop for several years before taking ownership in 2001, said Patel, who noted that Honeydip was her first job in Milwaukee after arriving from India. The same goes for Vijay.
“This was his first job and last job since we came,” Patel said. “We’ve been working for 30 years here.”
In the decades since, restauranting has become a way of life for the couple. The Patels also operate Indian Village Restaurant in Greenfield and are working to open another restaurant, IVR Bar, on Milwaukee’s far Northwest side.
“When I came from India, I did not know anything besides work ethic,” Patel said. “Because I was not speaking English, I didn’t know anything. So I started working in doughnuts.”
Patel emphasized that while doughnuts are Honeydip’s namesake product, the restaurant offers much more than that. Its menu includes burgers, sandwiches and ice cream, as well as a wide variety of coffee drinks and breakfast foods.
A full menu is available to view online.
Honeydip is open Monday through Saturday from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sunday from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Doughnut Photos
Restaurant Photos
If you think stories like this are important, become a member of Urban Milwaukee and help support real, independent journalism. Plus you get some cool added benefits.
Honeydip was one of our regular hang out spots in high school. Still think they have some of the best donuts in town. Congrats on 50 years!