Donuts sizzle in Anna Maria
Pat Copland | Sun
Brogan Sauls, 3, and Livia Sauls, 2,
eat their donuts covered with M&Ms.
ANNA MARIA – Owner Shawn Wampole moved fast to fill the orders of moms and kids, senior strollers and business owners who flocked into Anna Maria Donuts last week to get their fix of the cake-like delight.
Wampole, who sent samples out to fellow business owners on Pine Avenue prior to opening, said, “Everybody has been very welcoming. This is a really nice community.”
You can watch when the batter drops into the fryer and the donuts sizzle as they move up the conveyer and fall into an awaiting pan, hot and ready for embellishment. Each one is made to order, and you can choose your icing and topping.
Icings include chocolate, vanilla, glaze, caramel glaze and maple. Toppings are chocolate or multi-colored sprinkles, nuts, coconut, Oreo cookie, graham cracker, granola, Fruit Pebbles, bacon, Butterfinger, M&M and chocolate chip.
Then you can wash down your donut with premium coffee, roasted fresh every day and available in regular or a flavor of the day, sparkling water, Mexican sodas, juices and more while using the free WiFi.
“I envision this as being like an old fashioned donut shop where people gather,” Wampole said.
Wampole and his wife, Cecilia, and their three children are settling in to Island life after relocating here from Pennsylvania. Wampole, who has a master’s degree in journalism, was a newspaper page designer before becoming a police officer in Springfield Township outside Philadelphia.
“We had been looking for a business opportunity for awhile,” Wampole explained. “We came here on vacation and realized there was nowhere to get donuts except Publix.
“We thought it would be a good thing to have and started looking online for retail space. We came across the PAR (Pine Avenue Restoration) website and contacted Mike Coleman.
“Mike thought is was a good idea, and we wrote a letter of proposal for him to show to the merchants on the street. They approved it, we signed the lease in July and have been working on construction ever since.
The shop is located at 210C Pine Avenue. Hours are 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. seven days a week. The phone number is 941-896-3172.
Anna Maria Donuts
210 Pine Avenue
Anna Maria, FL 34216
Phone: 941-896-3172
7 a.m. to 1 p.m. seven days a week