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Broad Street Dough Co.
Joseph Ramaglia and Marinna La Cerva serving up doughnut goodness at Broad Street Dough Co. Photo courtesy Broad Street
ColumnsFood & WineLick the Plate

Lick the Plate: Doughnut nirvana at Broad Street Dough Co.

Sometimes it takes a really good doughnut and the perfect cup of coffee to remind how amazing this combination really is and how I really should treat myself to it more often.

It had been way too long since I’ve had this combo, but I revisited it recently when I caught word that a new purveyor had opened shop in the Lumberyard in downtown Encinitas called Broad Street Dough Co.

Some research on Broad Street owner Joseph Ramaglia piqued my interest further, as this guy has some serious culinary chops and a backstory worth telling.

Oh, and by the way, I really wanted to use “chef-crafted doughnuts” in my headline for this because they are, but my recent stories on chef-crafted sandwiches and kombucha would border on the overuse of the term and really, doughnut nirvana suits this place perfectly.

With that, let’s start with the backstory of Joseph, a New Jersey native. When he sent me his resume for my prep for our radio interview (which airs this week on 101.5 KGB and is available on The Coast News website), I thought this guy is going to have some great stories and he did not disappoint.

When someone grows up in an Italian family in New Jersey with easy access to New York City, as Joseph did, there is a good chance good food is going to play a big part in their upbringing as it did for him. Folks from these parts have a true appreciation for a solid slice of pizza (For good pizza, we both agreed on being very happy to now have Mr. Moto in Encinitas).

Joseph attended Fairleigh Dickinson University in New Jersey then Johnson & Wales in Providence, Rhode Island, where he majored in entrepreneurship and minored in restaurant management which prepared him for the professional road he was about to embark on.

After finishing Johnson & Wales, Joseph had stints in high profile celebrity-driven club promotions in New York City that prepared him for what he was about to embark on in Los Angeles. Joseph’s list of gigs in LA was equally impressive and included Colors on Bedford in Beverly Hills, Republic, Cecconi’s, Soho House Group, Areal in Santa Monica and Culina Modern Italian at the Four Season’s Beverly Hills.

In 2014, Ballast Point Brewing and Spirits recognized his talent and tapped him as general manager to open their 18,000-square-foot restaurant in San Diego. The same year, Joseph’s sister had created the Broad Street brand. And being the astute culinary business guy that he is, Joseph recognized the scalability of Broad Street and chose Encinitas as the place to launch it — lucky for us!

My first thought when I walked into a very busy Broad Street Dough Co. for the first time was that this could become another Voodoo Doughnuts, the crazy popular Portland, Oregon based brand that has expanded to multiple locations across the country. I can see what Broad Street is doing catching on very quickly around here and beyond.

Broad Street offers 40 different varieties of doughnuts, all made to order, with vegan, gluten-free and Kosher options. Besides being the best tasting doughnuts I’ve had, they are quite visually appealing as well, created by a team that puts a lot of love into their craft.

From old school favorites like the simple Glazed, Cinnamon Sugar and Jelly doughnuts to the more chef-driven exotics like Chai Town, Funky Monkey, Wake & Bake, CoCo LoCo, Blueberry Bliss, Crunch & Munch, Fruity Pebs and Crumb Bun, you are going to find something at Broad Street to satisfy your doughnut craving and make you smile.

And did I mention they look amazing? Some of them are so pretty it was hard to bite into them…until I bit into them, then it was pure doughnut bliss. Daily and seasonal specials figure into the mix as well. I should note that while doughnuts are best eaten fresh, I was snacking on mine into the evening a couple of days after and they were still very satisfying.

Another delightful discovery about Broad Street was their prices. Given the effort and ingredients that go into their doughnuts, $1.85 for the regular and $2.85 for the “Vlugen” and Kosher varieties (“Vlugen” translating into vegan and gluten-free). Catering, custom orders and the super fun doughnut bars for events are also available.

My suggestion would be to check this place out and eat your way through their amazing menu of doughnuts. You can find Broad Street at 967 S. Coast Highway 101, Encinitas or www.broadstreetdoughco.com 760.704.8633