cartems donuterie

there are some things in life that just aren't supposed to be good for you. donuts are high on that list. they should taste sinful, and have very little if no nutritional value whatsoever. you don't go to a donut shop for a healthy meal. leave it to someone in vancouver to yet again try to remake the already perfect. gluten-free donuts? vegan friendly donuts? if you can eat flour or butter, then you have no business in a donut shop. i feel sorry for you, but some things just shouldn't be perverted for a small portion of the population. vancouver needs a good donut shop. tim hortons certainly isn't a good donut shop. all of their donuts are frozen and reheated each morning that they're served- yet some people consider these to be good donuts. with ignorance like that, it's no wonder vancouver doesn't have a fantastic donut shop. krispy kreme isn't horrible, but it's all the way out in the suburbs. i admit that i haven't been to the one on granville island in a long time, but when i was last there it was just average. that honey's place out at deepcove is also passable, but hardly worth the drive all the way out there. i'll also admit that i haven't been to that duffin's place on knight street, but come on- a donut shop that also serves subs? i don't think so. when i go for donuts, i don't want some artsy fartsy, hoity-toity, dirt eating tree hugging druid's idea of a donut. eating donuts at this place is like going to meat and bread and having them cut all of the fat and crackle off their porchetta sandwich. it just ain't right. it's an affront to nature. citizens of vancouver, rise up and unite against these hippie dippy yuppy restaurants that feel like they can recreate and improve on something as simple as a donut. vancouver is screaming out for a good donut shop. an unhealthy donut shop . a donut shop that says: " i am a donut. i am full of sugar, and cream, and butter and chocolate. eat me!!!". a donut shop with a sign in the door that says: vegans and celiacs- enter at your own peril but, i doubt that's ever going to happen. at least not for a while. so, i will have to restrain my donut cravings for when i travel south of the border, to places like top pot donuts in seattle, and voodoo donuts in portland. these guys know how to make donuts, and they know how to reinvent a donut successfully. cartem's donuterie ain't in the same class. if you want a real, actual donut shop, this ain't the place to go. if you are one of those ever increasing number of vancouverites that has to have everything in your life nonfat, soy, or vegan friendly, then i'm sure you'll find this place to be right up your alley. and i'm sorry, i just have to ask: donuterie? seriously what the hell is a donuterie?? get over yourself, you're hardly french you're a freaking donut shop, and not a very good one at that.

$3.00 for donut on the dtes... what?!?!. you never know it's there because everyone is trying not to make eye contact with each other. sure, the neighbourhood isn't prime west end location.

the donuts are kind of pricey, but are apparently the best in town. i only have heard about this place a few weeks ago and always wondered what they were offering. since i was in the neighbourhood, i went for a try. i purchased six donuts for $15 (holey cow!), but only ate two. they aren't you tim horton donuts. these are made fresh everyday and uses local ingredients (tim horton's are made in ontario and frozen for better shipping then re-heated for sale). my favorite out of the bunch was the earl grey doughnut which was the least oil soaked. nicely coated with an earl grey icing and sprinkled with leaves from mallow flowers. the next one i had was the cinnamon sugar. you basic whale tail type doughnut soaked in oil. it was like eating a sham-wow soaked in grease. the after taste was terrible.

i asked if they sell out fast everyday because when i went there today, only four to five options was available. the tip here is that you should go on a day when the weather is bad. a rainy vancouver day. people seems to stay out of the area when it rains. they said tuesday (a rainy day) they have about 600 donuts left over, unusual for them.

the earl grey (infused with an organic earl grey tea, topped with earl grey glaze and a finished with mallow flowers.)

made the list. the earl grey donut has made my "top 5 best things i have ever eaten" list. i don't think i can express how big a deal that is...for reals!

should give it a try at least once. pricey? yes but you can taste the difference in the quality of the ingredients.
they have different flavours all the time. all the donuts were cake based.

the ones we have tried: bailey - it had a good amount of bailey taste to it. one of our favourites that day. guinness - chocolate batter, the beer gave it a bitter taste. earl grey - pretty good. chocolate - nothing that special.

dang gum good .... need more research ;-). @saeryn correll: *anything* is better than tim's donuts, imho.

finally made it down there recently. it was just after 1pm and they still had quite a few types, save the triple chocolate threat. oh well, can't win 'em all. so i got the cinnamon sugar and the maple bacon bourbon. cinnamon sugar was melt-in-your-mouth, so much so that after a few "inhales" it was gone like vaporware. if i could nit-pick, a bit more cinnamon flavour would be nice, but otherwise it rocked. i give it 9/10.

the maple bacon bourbon was highly anticipated, as i wanted to compare it to rocket donut's version. and perhaps that was why i felt a bit disappointed. it was too sweet for my taste, the dough was a bit "moist" in the middle, and the bacon bits ..... not enough and overpowered by the maple bourbon glaze. also the bacon bits themselves tasted sweet, as if they've been candied or something. i was merely hoping for a salty, strong-smoked flavour to juxtapose the rest of the donut. so in that respect, i'd rate the mbb i got a 6/10.

pricey, but worth it.. fifteen bucks nets you a half-dozen. these aren't cheap but they're far better than what you can get at a tim's. these are heavier donuts as well, so they won't feel like a "light snack". the shop right in the street corner, so it can be easy to miss if you're just passing by.

tucked in the middle of the not-so-clean-and-tidy part of gastown (408 carrall), it is not easy to find. and no, those line ups are not for a food bank, they are for donuts - $3.00 a piece donuts. so what's behind this door

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.

speaking of which, these donuts do not come cheap: they’re $3/donut at the gastown location ($2.65 at the commercial drive location), $15 for half a dozen and $30 for a dozen. but with the organic and local ingredients that go into the donut, i can see why they can come at a premium price. they’re also hand made and they use organic coconut oil to deep-fry these babies!

everyone is talking about cartems' donuts. they're not your run of the mill donuts. they're handmade by skilled pastry chefs and the ingredients are sourced locally. donuts are made daily - not frozen. currently housed in the gastown hood at 408 carrall, this pop up donuterie had some serious traffic. pals, mark tagulao, rajesh narine and jordan cash will be updating us on the permanent location in the nearer future. so, here is my journey to get my hands on these donuts: 9:00 am woke up a groggy mess 10:00 am finally got out of bed - still a groggy mess 11:15 am head over to the gastown hood to meet sally who tells me cartems has already sold out of donuts. they opened at 11:00 am! the calvary will bring their reserves at 12:00 pm. noooooooooo!!!!!!!! 11:30 am i loiter around gastown, hitting up a couple of vintage stores. the window @ artspeak 12:00 pm modest line up starts. anticipation is building. yes, i know, these are donuts, for crying out loud. but i heard they are good. real

one of the things that amazed me while reading up on it was that the ingredients are sourced locally -- and they actually give exact details as to where the ingredients are from. now that's transparency.

overall, cartems donuts are definitely worth it! it’s made with locally sourced organic ingredients and are handmade. they come in many creative flavors and are simply delicious! i also recommend visiting the shop as the owners, rags, was fantastic, as you can see him and his team being passionate in what they do. (not to mention the interesting characters you’ll see when you are waiting in line for the donuts.)

love the donuts. definitely an indulgence. at $2.50/each it's on the higher end, but worth the money. make sure you get there early if you want to get your flavours. usually sells out by afternoon. i would recommend making a pot coffee/tea to pair donuts. it's a cute little shop at the corner of carrall street and hastings. the staff there are very nice. overall experience: thumbs up.

design girl and i had our homer simpson moment today when we feasted on a dozen donuts. we call it research for our blogs, normal people would just call it pigging out. cartems donuterie, 408 carrall street, gastown, vancouver if there are two things i love, it's pop-up shops and donuts! cartems donuterie has staked out a small corner in gastown as their pop-up shop. i have to admit that i didn't visit. we ordered these donuts to be delivered. and good thing too! i heard they sell out fast! pre-order is a must! the order form is on their website: http://cartems.com/ . cartems donuterie, 408 carrall street, gastown, vancouver the donut that i was dying to try was the earl grey. i was hoping that it would be as tasty as it was gorgeous with its pale icing and pretty pink and purple flowers. it was! i love the subtle citrus tang of the earl grey tea flavour and the speckled g