Hero Doughnuts & Buns

Yes, yes, I ate all the individual doughnuts in this post. No, no, it was not in a single sitting, but it easily could have been … they're delicious! #Yum #Yum #Yum #Nom #Nom #Nom You can tell I don't do selfies all that often … you can't even see my eye through the doughnut hole! But that's alright because this post is about deliciousness, a huge patio, and excellent service. 

The new Hero Doughnuts & Buns on Georgia Avenue in Summerhill is outstanding! And it's a lot more than just a doughnut shop.

Travis at Hero Doughnuts & Buns | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor

Pictured above is their Cereal Milk doughnut—absolutely delicious! It's reminiscent of Saturday morning cartoons and lifting your cereal bowl to drink in the cereal flavored milk, not wanting to miss out on every sweet drop. I think on my next visit I'll try the Strawberry doughnut and the Pistachio doughnut. Their mouthwatering selections are quite varied.

Hero Doughnuts & Buns is located at 33 Georgia Avenue SE, in the Summerhill neighborhood where the 1996 Olympic Games were hosted, and it's serving doughnuts, sandwiches, burgers, custard, and more in their 1,872-square-foot space with an awesome 1,664-square-foot patio.

Nick Pihakis, co-founder of Jim N’ Nick’s Bar-B-Q, Wil Drake, and Jeremy and Tammy Chambers, the Atlanta operators of the Alabama-based Hero chain, are the business partners behind bringing Hot Dog Pete’s and Hero Doughnuts to Atlanta.

Hero Doughnuts & Buns, Summerhill | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor

Spring is upon us and we Atlantans love a great patio, and I think you're going to love this one. It's shared with neighbor and sister restaurant Hot Dog Pete's, which I visited for the first time in January. The restaurant group that owns these two knows what it's doing!

The two-tier all-weather patio has an open area with umbrellas and a covered area, both of which offer some views of Atlanta's downtown skyline, including the sparkling gold dome of the Georgia Capitol Building and the 1996 Olympic Cauldron. Georgia Avenue has become quite the bustling place with more and more businesses opening all the time. In fact, renderings of some of the plans for Summerhill depict exactly what you'd expect in a futuristic, international metropolis.

Hero Doughnuts & Buns, Summerhill | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor

Fresh is the order of the day here … every day! Hero's doughnuts are made in-house, including the creamy filling in their Boston Cream doughnut, pictured above just before it met my belly. Both of my visits were later in the day, but the doughnuts were still fresh. 

I'm generally a giving person, but I'm not going to share my doughnuts with just anyone. Doughnuts are the treat of all treats! If it has chocolate on or in it, all the better. Just kidding, sort of. I'd share of course, especially when they're this good … it'd just be wrong to keep this kind of taste sensation to ones self.

Hero Doughnuts & Buns, Summerhill | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor

Okay, it's not brand new, but this was my first (and second) time there. After reading about its imminent opening for months, it lives up to every expectation I had and then some!

The menu, as the shop's name suggests, includes buns, aka burgers! And a lot more...part of their mission is to bring joy. It's "a restaurant that continues to evolve with fun, satisfying sandwiches, salads and treats."

Hero Doughnuts & Buns, Summerhill | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor

I was a doughnut fan long before Homer Simpson came onto the scene, but after the iconic Randy's Donuts became internationally famous. I should say inter-planetarily famous. Remember the extra-terrestrial visitor making "the international sign of the doughnut" in Mars Attacks!? So, am I a doughnut connoisseur? No, but I've probably had as many as have many doughnut connoisseurs. I wonder if one can actually become a certified doughnut connoisseur? I'll have to conduct more research, just in case.

These doughnuts are totally a treat, so when I find one that's this good, it becomes my go-to. I still have a few more varieties to get through before I've sampled Hero's entire doughnut menu, but I'm totally excited about doing just that!  

Hero Doughnuts & Buns, Summerhill | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor

On this visit I enjoyed a fresh, hot cup of coffee. On my first visit I had a beer. Their beverage menu has something for everyone, from the soda fan to the libation lover.

Hero Doughnuts & Buns, Summerhill | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor

I've seen some people call Summerhill a "new" neighborhood, while in fact it's one of Atlanta's oldest neighborhoods. “Before World War II, Georgia Avenue was lined with grocery markets and restaurants, shoe repair shops and convenience stores, butchers and bakers and ice cream makers, even a movie theater,” reported Marni Davis in Curbed.

Hero Doughnuts & Buns is part of a resurgence of Summerhill, making it not only a strong community, but a destination, one that will be fun and delicious for all Atlantans and those who visit her.

Hero Doughnuts & Buns, Summerhill | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor

Merch! 

Hero Doughnuts' merchandise game is a fun one. From Hero t-shirts to Hero beanies, Hero stickers to Hero coffee mugs, their merch game is strong.

Hero Doughnuts & Buns, Summerhill | Photo: Travis Swann Taylor

The next time you're craving a sweet treat, head to Hero Doughnuts & Buns and enjoy one, or a few, of their delicious doughnuts, and try it for breakfast, lunch, and/or dinner, too!