©2020 SaratogaPhotographer.com
By Jill Nagy
After a series of delays related to the COVID-19 pandemic, Darling Doughnuts opened at 441 Broadway in Saratoga Springs at the end of July.
Natascha Pearl-Mansman, co-owner of the shop, said they have been making and selling 1,000 doughnuts a day.
“We no longer sell out by 11 a.m. but business is really steady,” she said.
The owners signed the lease for the shop in November 2019, but ran into “a lot of hurdles.”
Just as construction got underway and the owners were starting to hire staff, the state-ordered shutdown was imposed. Even after things eased up, only one person at a time could work in the building—and it was usually Glenn Severance, Pearl-Mansman’s business partner.
Work was completed just before Pearl-Mansman’s second daughter, Georgia, was born.
“I never anticipated opening a storefront during a pandemic, let alone while nearly nine months pregnant, but here we are,” she said.
Darling Doughnuts are made from a yeast-based dough that ferments for 15 hours before it is ready. It is a long, slow fermentation, she explained, like sourdough but without a sourdough taste.
The doughnuts are made with fresh natural ingredients sourced within 100 miles of the shop and flavored with “real things.” The yeast dough gives a better texture, making a “very fluffy” doughnut, Pearl-Mansman said.
This is Pearl-Mansman’s first business venture. She studied art and philosophy in college and begin thinking about starting a business a few years ago. She didn’t want to work full time and began baking and selling from home.
On Broadway, she works “more than full-time,” she said.
There are more than 50 glazes and flavors available on a regular rotation basis. Flavors change weekly and are posted on Tuesdays on the business Instagram and Facebook pages. Coffee—fair trade and roasted in Pennsylvania—is sold by the cup or by the bag.
The shop is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. or until the doughnuts are gone.
Customers can pre-order for Wednesday or Thursday pick-up through the shop’s website, darlingdoughnuts.com, after 6 p.m. Custom orders can be placed by email, darlingdoughnuts@gmail.com, or through the “contact us” section of the website. The telephone number is 518 430-2018.