Mel-O-Glaze Bakery

vraamoneyeats
Apr 7, 2019
4 min read

Mel-O-Glaze Bakery is one of those places that people know about and most have been there, but it’s not a place that gets much attention. Is it because they don’t have crazy flavors? Is it because they aren’t active on social media? Who knows, but they deserve more recognition than they currently get. Mel-O-Glaze is a family run business that started when owner Paulette Bosela’s grandfather bought it back in 1961. The building first opened up in the 1920’s and held 6 businesses; 20 years later, the bakery opened. After the Boselas took it over, it’s stayed in the family ever since and boy am I happy it did.

Being around for 58 years, you’d expect a lot to change, but no. Their technique is the same, the recipes are the same, besides a few new additions, and even some of the equipment is the same including their wood table top bench. They’ve been hand rolling and hand cutting their dough on that bench since 1957. The bakers start their day at 7 or 8 pm mixing up dough in their massive stand mixer that looks like a claw tub. They let it proof, then hand roll and cut the donuts right there on that wood bench. It’s a part of the kitchen that has tons of character just like the rest of the place. I got the privilege to walk back into the kitchen and let me tell you what, this place truly is old school: huge industrial bake-ware, one of a kind kitchen tools with even ovens and fryers that have been around since the Revolutionary War (kidding). Even though it’s almost all original, it’s well kept, clean and organized. I shouldn’t paint a picture and say this is a state of the art kitchen, but for an older joint like this, I’m giving them props.

Their philosophy behind the donut business is simple; don’t try too hard, love what you do, have fun and money comes last. Sounds very similar to Billy’s words at Hanisch Bakery. Like I said before, that’s what you want to hear when it comes to a single location family owned bakery. Paulette says she loves the act of giving. Being able to share her donuts with friends, family and the community is what brings her joy. There’s usually free donut holes by the register and whenever she travels or goes to gatherings, she’s there with a box or two of donuts. They pride themselves on high quality with the basics; great dough, great glaze and freshness. Most of the donuts you see on their shelves are Original Raised Glazed Yeast and Cake Donuts with and without icing. However, there’s still Long Johns, Fritters and Bismarcks available. The flavors are modest and you won’t see out-of-the-box mash ups like a few bakeries around the cities. For Mel-O-Glaze, it’s the classics that bring people back.

I mentioned the donut holes earlier, and those little guys are the crowd favorites that people can’t get enough of. They’ve been dubbed “Legal Crack Balls” by how addictive they are and easy to put down like a bag of popcorn at the movie theater. Glazed in an icing with a hint of lemon, they give just enough of a flavor pop to jolt your taste buds while setting them apart from others. Their yeast dough is truly a work of art. You can quote me when I say it is the best raised dough I have ever had. The flavor, texture, size and everything about it is flawless. Honestly, I could probably eat one of these suckers without a glaze and I’d still love it. It’s that good.

Another crowd favorite is their Éclair which is about 3 pounds of choux pastry, pastry cream and chocolate icing. It’s more than a meal and should be eaten with caution! Excessive amounts of said Éclair will cause a sugar high, extreme happiness and food coma. I have abnormally large hands and if you can see in the picture above here, the Éclair is still massive. Taste is not compromised either. The dough is light and airy and the cream is decadent and perfectly smooth without being overly sweet. To top it all off, the chocolate icing is smeared on thick and is the perfect balance between milk and dark chocolate. If you can’t tell, this is one of my favorite, if not my favorite place to grab a classic donut of any kind. So if classic donuts are pastries are your thing, Mel-O-Glaze is your new spot.

BTW.. this place also holds the spot for my #3 donut of all time. The Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Bismarck (see below). It has real banana, real peanut butter straight from the jar, and special chocolate ribbons that melt perfectly while it's in the frier. It's sweet, salty, creamyand packed full of every single flavor. Not one overpowers the other and you can get a chunk of each in every bite. For a Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana donut, this is flawless.