100 FREAKING LAYERS

Get Yourself 100 Layers of Fresh-Baked Goodness

If you’re looking for a regular, run-of-the-mill donut, any chain out there will do. But if you’re looking for a full-fledged donut experience, you’ve got to stop by a Five Daughters Bakery.

With three locations in Nashville, one in the Factory at Franklin, and two more in Atlanta, you have plenty of opportunities to get your hands on one of these mouth-watering croissant-style 100 layer donuts (or “cronut” as some frequent guests call them). 

What makes this place so different? The founders, to start. Isaac and Stephanie Meek, along with their five daughters (hence the name!) began their business in 2015, and they’re still the owner/operators today! 

Isaac came from a long-line of business-owning bakers (with a cake shop and pizzeria in his family’s past), and the family’s current business runs on the core values of loving one another, using quality ingredients, and offering great service. 

And then there are the donuts themselves. Let’s start with the basics: the classic yeast-raised donut which the website says you can get “stuffed with homemade jams, custards, and creams” with a selection you’ll find “nostalgic yet refreshingly innovative.” 

If you’re going paleo, there are multiple monthly-rotating options for you. December offers four distinct flavors from peppermint patty to coconut macaroon. That’s right, you can have your paleo diet and eat donuts too!

Five Daughters also has other pastries and cookies, if you happen to bring a group with someone who isn’t into donuts. (Who? Who isn’t into donuts?) And coffee to wash it all down.

And I’ve saved the best for last. That 100 layers of goodness I mentioned in the title. The signature item—the reason to get Five Daughters on your must-visit list—is this incredible hybrid of a croissant and a donut. This wonder takes up to three days to craft. And once it’s cooked up, the 100 Layer Donut is rolled in sugar, filled up with cream, and topped off with a heavenly glaze.

Five Daughters has some staple flavors (like chocolate sea salt and maple glaze), and they also offer flavors that rotate each month—so you should plan to get a few to share (or maybe a box of the mini size) so you can test out more than one. (And if you’re local, plan to come often.)

And, honestly, no matter how many new flavors they bring in, I have to say that the “Purist” is one of the best baked goods I’ve ever put in my mouth. And that’s saying a lot. 

Family values, quality ingredients, and 100 layers of unique and utter decadence: That’s what you’ll get when you visit Five Daughters Bakery. So make sure you get there. ASAP.

Hey, if you’ve already been to this spot, what did you think? Send me your thoughts! I’d love to hear.