Doughnut Vault Van

Some of the best doughnuts in the city!

Ran across the Doughnut Vault one night after dinner, and let’s face it– nobody should ever pass up a good doughnut. I’m not a big fan of old fashioned cake donuts, but the toasted almond doughnut I bought was pretty fantastic. Bonus points for selling doughnuts out of an old timey van/​truck– that was a nice touch.

Pistachio was delicious! With Butterscotch topping. That’s all I tried, but the sales lady was very nice and did a great job!

Whenever I see the Doughtnut Vault’s beat up ol’ van parked most mornings at LaSalle and Adams, I approach it as little Millicent Frastley might have approached the Insect God’s kidnap vehicle. But rest assured dear readers, the only abduction occurring from this scenario will be that of my waistline. And that’s what high tech foundation wear is made for.
Testament to this, other people get excited by these cake doughnuts too. A tall dude was standing against the wall one day, doing his own happy dance and singing praises to the lemon poppyseed version, and I say, Allelujah! with you my brother!
Fresh. Merst and just wonderful.
Cue Prince’s «Nothing Compares 2 U.»

LOVE THIS VAN. Normally it’s too far for me to track down but once in a blue moon it will park on my way to work and I always make sure to pick up a doughnut or two when I see the adorable van. Their honey buns are to DIE for. The strawberry old fashioned with chocolate drizzle is another favourite. The lady who works the van most of the time is super nice and friendly. $ 2 for a doughnut, which I think is a really good price for what you’re getting. You can never go wrong with their old-​fashioned, best of its kind I’ve had in Chicago, by far.
Don’t forget to follow them on Twitter so you can get updates on where the van is going to be + what the special menu for that day is.

Awesome food truck! It is always hard to get doughnuts from The Doughnut Vault’s brick and mortar store (gotta go early), but this truck has always ended up having donuts. At $ 2 a doughnut every flavor I’ve had has been good. Buttermilk and lemon poppyseed really have my heart — they are the perfect treat. Very fresh.

I adore the young lady that cranks the tunes and works out of this funky van. She is so cute and perky. Lemon poppyseed and triple chocolate are my favs. Not much else to say about the best $ 2 donuts eveeeeeer!

We were lucky to try out a doughnut while waiting to get seated at Au Cheval. We split the special doughnut for the day, the «Birthday Doughnut» because it just so happens that it was my husband’s birthday.
The doughnut was soft and of course fresh. The flavor was good. These are more old-​fashioned style cake doughnuts. Too bad we didn’t get to eat them right as they came out of the oven, because I do like a hot doughnut.
Unfortunately, I’m not a big fan of the cake-​y doughnuts, and so far another city doughnut place has my sweet tooth, but this doughnut wasn’t too bad.

Awesome little food truck. Great cake doughnuts! I got the buttermilk and triple chocolate. Delicious.

I am a regular to the Van on a certain day of the week which I will not divulge (can’t ruin a good thing) — I have tried many of the doughnuts and many of the specials. My favorite is the bday cake old fashioned, but in a pinch the buttermilk or toasted almond old fashioned will do. They have by far the best doughnuts I have ever had — this includes trips to stans and do rite here as well as the famous voodoo doughnut — none of those compare. I bring these doughnuts to all of my friends/​family and have even brought them across the country with me on plane trips. It is amazing how much more excited people are to see you when you have DV in tow. I will continue to eat these doughnuts weekly and share with everyone I know. You should too.

A friend recently posted a picture of the Vault Van, with a note that it should not be passed up. And while it was late in the afternoon, and I was not hungry at all, upon finding the Vault Van, I went in for the kill.
Ordering «one of each» including the daily special, I drove home with the delicious smell of freshly made, sweet old fashion doughnuts filling my nostrils. I’ll admit, I held the bag in front of my face for a while.
I will always pass on Krispy Kreme. I prefer something with density and a texture that coats your mouth in sweetness… and man alive did these goddamn doughnuts deliver.

I got the toasted almond for $ 2 and this seriously rocked my world. Haven’t had the same flavor at other establishments, so can’t really compare but so far, the doughnuts I’ve had at the Doughnut Vault and Firecakes are more memorable to me than those indulged at Stan’s and Glazed & Infused. I love them all though.
Service was also fantastic, as the girl offered the ledge of the window to set my food down, as my hands were tied while trying to retrieve some cash. The van itself is also just a sight to see.

No matter what anyone tells you about any doughnuts anywhere, they are wrong and lying to you. Doughnut Vault is the best ever, no question period.

The infamous DV Van! How I love you!!!
They run out of donuts fast, so try to be one of the first ones. It’s not going to be a wait like at the brick and mortar store, but they also won’t have as many flavors. I LOVE the Triple chocolate old fashioned. The buttermilk old fashioned is legit and ALWAYS a good choice. I usually like the pistachio, but it depends on my mood.

This is added to the list of great donuts that I should NOT have. Honestly, I can only eat half of any of their donuts at a time. Good cake donuts!

Yum!
These guys are parked right by my office most mornings, and it’s always a treat to start off my day with one of their donuts. I usually go for the special if it sounds particularly delicious or intriguing, but otherwise, the buttermilk is always good as well. Beware that they sell out within hours (and they open at 7am), so if you swing by around lunch, chances are good that most — if not all — flavors will already be gone. The only miss I’ve had here is the toasted almond one (I think that’s what it’s called). Didn’t enjoy the flavors and it was way too sweet. And on that note, I will say that in general their donuts are a little on the too-​sweet side for me, so they probably work better with a cup of coffee.
Waited until now to write this review because while the donuts are generally consistently good, it wasn’t until today that I had one that was truly exceptional. The special today was a pumpkin donut with cream cheese glaze, and it was awesome. Flavor was like pumpkin bread, but far fluffier, and for once it wasn’t too sweet. The cream cheese glaze, which I’d feared to be too heavy or sugary, was perfect.
TL;DR: Bring cash, get there early, and try the pumpkin (if they have it) or the buttermilk old fashioned.

I got the best birthday surprise today! My girl shows up to lunch and tells me she brought dessert for us. I did not realize what she brought was going to make this rainy day so much better :) Now I know I may sound like I’m over exaggerating, but for anyone that knows me knows I have a humongous sweet tooth and when I find something I like I can go on and on about it… well I like these! My co worker raves about these doughnuts and I had been meaning to check out the actual location and didn’t realize they had a truck.
My friend bought the lemon poppy seed and the Old Fashion buttermilk at $ 2.00 a piece, which is very decent compared to most doughnut shops. How do I describe them… hmmm…the outside is crunchy and the inside is soft and moist. The texture is cake like and not flakey or fluffy as I like to call it, so definitely a plus. What I really like about these is each doughnut actually taste different and not just like mounds of sugar. The flavor in the lemon poppy seed was tart and mixed with the sweetness so delicious. Since I gave all the doughnut shops four stars or less these have to be a 5 because they are the best and let’s just say… I’ve been to quite a few (Glazed n infused, Stans, firecakes, Do Rite, etc…). I will definitely be back to sample more. Shout out and thanks to Trisha for making my day :) Now let’s see if I can still fit into my bday dress still… lol

We had just arrived at Green Street Smoked Meats by way of two train transfers and a long-​ass walk (I was in heels so it felt longer). This celestial-​blue van was parked in front, and of course I had to approach the strange, unknown vehicle. No candy, ice cream, or duct tape, but even better, they had donuts! From the Chicago-​famous Doughnut Vault! They were sold out of a few types, but we got their orange old-​fashioned and coconut crème old-​fashioned, $ 2 each. Both were excellent, had a soft cakey texture, balanced glazes, weren’t overly sweet. I like my old-​fashioned donuts to have a crust though, like Do-Rite’s, but these were undeniably delicious in their own right. Like eating a cupcake, but in a more fun shape hehe. My favorite is still their salted caramel old-​fashioned, which made me weak-​kneed. Can’t wait to try more!

Not much to say other than, I’m not sure a doughnut could be any better.

These are the best doughnuts in the city, bar none. Trust me. I am addicted to doughnuts and have trekked out to just about every gourmet doughnut shop the city has to offer.
Unfortunately, the Doughnut Vault’s physical location is just a bit too far of a trek from where I work in the Loop. The thought of having to get up super early, catching an earlier train and walking over before the start of my work day just didn’t sit well with me. Granted, all that walking would burn off the doughnut (s) calories, but still.
So, needless to say, I was ecstatic when I discovered the van last fall. Better yet, one of the stops was Clark & Monroe, which was literally steps away from my old work’s building. I stalked them on their Facebook/​Twitter/​Tumbler and on Chicago Food Truck finder’s website so I could get my hands on their doughnuts.
On my first visit, they were just about to leave, having sold out for the day. There was a man giving away a powdered sugar stack. And, he gave it to another woman who had gotten there seconds before me. I was crushed at having missed it. She probably noticed my disappointment and offered one to me.
The truck always carries their six standard old-​fashioned flavors, which are buttermilk, pistachio, coconut cream, toasted almond, triple chocolate and lemon poppyseed. I’ve sampled them all save for pistachio and coconut cream. They are all amazing. And, they are fairly large and reasonably priced ($ 2).
They also carry specials, which you can find out more about on their Tumblr/​Twitter/​Facebook accounts. Earlier this week, they had the strawberry old-​fashioned as a special. It had a little crumble on it and tasted delicious.
My personal favorites are the toasted almond, lemon poppyseed and triple chocolate old-​fashioned doughnuts. The toasted almond is an old-​fashioned with almond glaze and topped with roasted almonds. The lemon poppyseed is sweet and tart. The triple chocolate is very rich, decadent and is topped with chocolate sprinkles.
The birthday cake doughnut (yellow cake with sprinkles baked inside) is another awesome choice. This one is sold as a special so check social media to see when it is offered.
To me, they are the best doughnuts since they are soft and cakey on the inside. They are also perfectly glazed and their flavors are excellent and are executed well. The doughnuts hold up very well. I’ve purchased two, ate half of each, put the other halves into a plastic zip-​top bags and taken them home for the weekend. I’ll toss them into the fridge and eat them the following morning. They still taste as fresh as when I originally bought them.
The workers slinging out the awesome doughnuts behind the truck have all been very friendly. Also, they will sometimes play some pretty decent music in the morning to get your day started.
Overall, AMAZING doughnuts and a wonderful opportunity for those who cannot visit their actual location to try their excellent products. Grab your cash (they don’t take credit cards) and go! Trust me.