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Dip and Sip Donuts

Writer's picture: Bobby WilhelmsonBobby Wilhelmson

Nostalgia. Family. Quality.


These are the three words that flood into my mind walking into 2256 W Roscoe St in the Chicago neighborhood of Roscoe Village. This is the home to Dip and Sip Donuts, and I don't mix my words when I call this place a home. The atmosphere Paul and his wife Vicki have created in this donut shop is reminiscent of small town America in every way. The converted corner pharmacy is decorated to remind you of what family and home is. Walking in and speaking with Paul, I couldn't help but remember waking up on a Sunday morning, going downstairs, and seeing a white box of donuts my Dad got for us all from our local bakery. But this family has been able to find the perfectly happy medium between tradition and innovation. It speaks to their decor, their staff, and of course their donuts.

Dip and Sip Donuts is aiming to envoke those feelings of nostalgia for the older generation and foster new memories for the younger generation. Having been in the restuarant business for over 25 years, Paul has returned to what his true passion is: The Donut.


"My Aunt had a chocolate donut every morning with her coffee until the day she died," Paul explained.


"Being Italian, you make memories at the table, whether breakfast, lunch or dinner. And with a donut, a donut can be enjoyed by a two year old, an 80 year old, eaten at the table, taken with you, whatever you wanted. It can be accessed and enjoyed by virtually everyone."


Paul and I talking "shop"

The passion for donuts is amazingly evident at Dip and Sip. So much so that Mary, their pastry chef, sought them out for employment. Mary shows up at 4AM everyday and leaves at 11AM as she and Paul pump out cake donuts in their spotless kitchen. She and Paul worked for months to perfect their cake recipe and the quality shows.


When eating a cake donut, the challenge you meet is that the texture of the cake becomes so mushy that it almost gets stuck to the roof of your mouth and you don't get to fully enjoy the donut because you are left feeling the weight and density of the cake. Dip and Sip has been able to face both of those challenges and outright demolish them by using whole and fresh ingredients that enable their cake dough to melt in your mouth, while remaining light and fluffy so instead of NEEDING a cup of coffee to deal with the dryness of a donut, you WANT a cup of Metropolis coffee as the perfect compliment to the three act play that is the Glaze, Drizzle, and Topping of a Dip and Sip Donut.



And this is where the innovation of Dip and Sip Donuts comes into play. ALL of their glazes are made from scratch. Each glaze recipe has been methodically thought out by Mary, Paul, and Vicki so they perfectly accentuate the light airy cake instead of saving a mediocre dough or serving as a "gimmick" for Instagram pictures. (Although they look INCREDIBLE) I loved when Paul told me that Vicki loves music and named each of their specials after bands, albums, or song titles. Except for the C and C which was named after their two boys and aptly dyed blue and green, the two boys' favorite colors.



But if their specials don't quite hit your pallette, you are free to fully customize your own donut that can be made to order. I've eaten at over 25 different places in the city, and I can't tell you another shop or bakery that offers this on the level that Dip and Sip does with the quality on which they pride themselves. They offer 8 different glazes, 6 drizzles, and 9 toppings to choose from which makes over 2,500 possibilities!! That's 2,500 reasons to stop in and see Paul and be your own donut Willy Wonka. Not to mention their gluten free cake option, which when paired with the Matcha that Paul let us sample, became one of my favorite donuts of the day. We never even scratched the surface of what Dip and Sip is capable of.


This gives you the opportunity to come up with your donut game plan, make a trip down, and be a part of The Dip and Sip family. You may have to stand in the long line that forms in the mornings around the corner, but isn't that always the sign of a successful shop? In a city where you can get a fine donut anywhere, Paul isn't in the business for "fine."


"I want to consistently make the experience better for you than the last time you visited. People live through their stomachs, and I always aim for that pride my family feels to trickle down to my staff and to my customers. This is their shop too."


Whether you're looking for a new donut homestead to take the family, or like me and tried the blueberry cheesecake donut (with blueberries from Paul's own orchard) and can't wait to see what comes up next, the quality, family, and nostalgia will be more than evident. Having been open for only two weeks , the public is taking notice and Roscoe Village has welcomed them in with open arms. The winner of last month's Donut Fest's "most colorful donut" award, Paul and Vicki have raised a real winner that is here to stay.


Obviously I was floored

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