Popular Donut Shop Eyeing New Location In Wethersfield

WETHERSFIELD, CT — Popular Wallingford doughnut shop Neil’s Donuts is looking to open its third location with a new store in Wethersfield, according to The Connecticut Scoop.

The Connecticut Scoop reported Neil’s Donuts is eyeing the former Rite Aid building a 657 Silas Deane Highway in Wethersfield for a 4,000-square foot shop.

A pre-application has been filed and the preliminary plans are scheduled to be heard at the Wethersfield Planning & Zoning Commission hearing on Wednesday, Feb. 18, according to The Connecticut Scoop.

According to the “Letter of Intent,” Neil’s Donuts is proposing to add a drive-thru at the site.

The lease is contingent upon the municipal approval of the drive-thru, according to the Letter of Intent.

The letter also states that if the drive-thru isn’t approved, either party can terminate the transaction without further obligation, and Neil’s Donuts can also terminate without penalty. Neil’s Donuts has made a $5,000 security deposit on the property.

Owner Neil Bukowski told Hearst Connecticut Media that the plan is "up in the air" after he learned there was another doughnut shop, The Donut Station, nearby on the same street. He said he really didn't want "to do that to them," according to Hearst.

Neil’s Donuts is a longtime Wallingford institution that also opened a second location in Middletown. It first opened in 2001 at 83 North Turnpike Rd. in Wallingford after Bukowski found inspiration for the shop while he was working as a sales associate.

“For him, the donuts at meetings were always supposed to be the best part of the job, but he eventually became fed up with the quality of them,” reads a post on the Neil’s Donuts website. “Every week, as soon as he got to the sales meeting, he'd open up the box, but rather than finding the glazed donut he was looking for, he found an undersized piece of dough with virtually no glaze on it at all.

“After experiencing this disappointment week after week, Neil decided something had to be done about it. So, shortly after his 40th birthday, Neil quit the only job he had ever known and set out to make sure that those inadequate donuts would never find their way into a sales meeting again.”

See also:

• Wallingford’s Neil’s Donuts Gets Shout Out On Kelce Brothers' Podcast
• CT’s Best Doughnut Found Here: New Ranking

Read more at The Connecticut Scoop here and Hearst Connecticut Media here.