A piece of California in the middle of nowhere. A small unimposing donut shop with fresh yeast donuts. Very cheap and good. An apple fritter and a glaze was $2! That's usually 2 the cost of an apple fritter! The man at the counter was nice and unassuming. If you're looking for Instagram beautiful donuts, probably not the place but if you're looking for a delicious crispy pillow soft donut to eat, go here. Cash only. read more

Carmella's Creme - three doughnuts in a paper bag - Donuts Near Me - Champaign, Illinois

A real disappointment. We arrived at 7:00am on a Monday morning and found only a handful of ordinary donuts on display. No twists, bars or cinnamon rolls. There were some packaged muffins that looked like they were from Sam's Club. The donuts we bought (a glazed raised and a chocolate glazed) were stale, and not at all what we were hoping for. read more

This is not a donut I would have again. Had one bite. Tossed the rest. Seemed like nice people. But my donut was perhaps too long in oil that had not been recently filtered. read more

My mom calls me Carmella so we had to stop in and take a picture by the sign. The owner was nice and welcoming. We got a glazed donut and a maple glazed. Both were great! read more

I do not say this lightly- these are the worst donuts I've ever had. I'm not going to be surprised if I yakk later, and I genuinely would consider submitting this place to Kitchen Nightmares. Back up... I hadn't eaten all day, just hiked, and was craving donuts. Drive to Dunkin, they were out. Went to Pandamonium, they were closed. Googled "donuts near me," found this joint. Drive by twice and missed it, it's a hole in the wall. Someone said former Taco Bell? Unsurprised. Walk in, the lights are off, the chairs are stacked on tables as if they are actively discouraging business. There's an older guy in back on his phone or something. I ask what things are and order an old fashioned and a cream filled long John. They don't take credit cards. The old fashioned.. others mentioned it.. the only taste I get out of it other than sweet is old cooking oil. I didn't even know old cooking oil was a flavor until I tasted this but the donut was stale and super greasy a miraculous feat, plus in the grease you could taste like all the shit that hadn't been cleaned out of the kitchen in years. I visualized what was going in my body and threw the rest of the donut away. My hands were covered in grease and I wiped them on my knees, looking like sun tan oil, and my steering wheel which looked freshly detailed if grease circa 2012 counts. A couple hours later I braved the long John. First bite... huzzah! Fresh dough. Redemption. And yet, I get to the cream which is ... sour. Sweet and sour. Is it lemon? Alas, it has aged much like the oil. Additionally I crack open the John and this cat has piped in two snot rockets worth of sour cream, no more. This donut also gets trashed. I wonder what is up with this owner. I hope he has a Gen Z niece or nephew who will claim his Yelp page and get in touch with Gordon Ramsay. Otherwise it's not too late to go back to night school and find a new calling dude. Just stay away from culinary arts. read more

Mmmm, donuts. A nice selection of every donut you can imagine and a majority cost less than $1. I felt like a fat kid spending all my allowance in this place. Try the raspberry jelly stuffed glazed donut. Changed my life. Thank goodness I don't live close to this donut heaven or I'd be in trouble. read more

Carmella's Creme - Donuts Near Me - Champaign, Illinois

The inside and outside of this place is not well kept very dark and dirty, not really a place I would sit at and eat, even though me and my son did. Unfortunately because of its upkeep it kind of loses its appeal. The donuts here were ok, nothing to special. Their whole menu though was a great price which was great. read more

Carmella's Creme - a young boy eating a piece of cake - Donuts Near Me - Champaign, Illinois

We went to Carmella's because of the super high ratings it's been given. Maybe we went on a bad day, but we walked into a pretty unwelcoming atmosphere. The owner was very cold and quirky, and didn't seem to really care about his bakery. There really weren't that many donuts to choose from. I got an old fashioned donut, and it was hard and crumbly- sign that the donuts were not fresh. I asked for some water and we were asked (coldly) to pay for cups. Overall it was a strange experience- mediocre donuts, stale room, limited selection, uncomfortable store owner. Sure, it's got the charm of an original (not a chain like Dunkin) but the charm was quite lackluster. read more

Carmella's Creme - customers entering the store - Donuts Near Me - Champaign, Illinois

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Delicious and moist donuts! Love their chocolate cake donut with glaze. Yum... Only 89 cents, cash only. Little place and sometimes open past 3pm. Go to fulfill that random donut craving you may have... read more

Restaurant review The reality is that this is a 3-4 star donut shop depending on what you order. After being here 3 times I realize that the cake donuts are not good. It is not because they are not fresh as Amy L mentioned, but rather the oil they used to fry the donut is old and over cooked. We had some original donuts/old fashion that were simply crunchy and had a strong greasy taste. This is the same with the chocolate donut. The real gem is the jelly filled donut. Somehow they have the softest donut surround ample amount of jelly. It is cheaper than the premium donuts in Chicago, but it can't compare to the triple valhorn donut that you can only get in downtown Chicago. The other tasty donut is the apple fitter. Not your run of the mill apple fritter, it is sort of an apple turnover but with a different consistency that is difficult to describe without trying it. Remember to bring CASH, no CREDIT CARDS ACCEPTED. Pros: One of the best jelly filled donuts and apple fritter Cons: Cake donuts fall short of expectation, greasy and weird after taste. Hidden deals: None, I don't know if there is actually a discount for a dozen, but the prices of the donuts range from .89 to .99 cents depending on what you buy read more

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Friendly donut shop on the west side of Champaign. Very typical selection of batter and cake donuts but fresh and served with a smile. I really like the chocolate glazed donut myself and the jelly-filled is really tasty as well. If you need to grab donuts to take to the office this is a good choice. read more

Absolutely loved this find in Champaign! The cinnamon swirls are huge and taste great. I've also had the opportunity to try the Bavarian creme filled and apple fritter which both also tasted amazing. The donuts are all very large for a great price. The owner also has cheap deals on weekdays, which I'll definitely take advantage of the next time I go to visit. Highly recommend this shop! read more

Extremely disappointed with my experience here. Honestly one of the most disgusting donuts I've ever eaten: so so greasy and dense. I definitely cannot recommend that anyone patronize this business read more

This donut shop reminds me of California -- it's in an old Taco Bell, full of older men chatting with one another in the mornings, and run by a sweet older Asian gentleman. The donuts are cheap and delicious; I bring a dozen to my graduate seminars to much fanfare. I much prefer these yeasty, classic donuts to their fancier counterparts. read more

They have the best donuts ever! Such a good price for the quality too! They are much cheaper than the local donut chains in the CU, and so much better too! As the other reviews mention, they are a little heavy, but its perfect from time to time as a delicious treat. read more

Very good donuts. We got 4 different kinds and all were great. The place doesn't look that great inside or out and it smells a little different inside but the donuts are delicious. The donuts are more hearty than most with a good flavor. read more

The building for Carmella's is super dirty and seemingly unhygienic, while the donuts taste like they were fried in old oil used to cook chicken. read more

These donuts could possibly upset you. They bring a heavy feeling over your entire soul, a silent reminder that life does end and all organic things return to the earth. There do exist magic elixirs; certain chemicals that offer a temporary lease on life--and that is what you will find your donuts dressed in at Carmella's Creme. read more

We just recently started going here. YUM! The donuts are flakey and delicious. They are always moist and never dried out. My husband gets four donuts for $3.50. They don't accept credit or debit, however, so keep that in mind. read more

Carmella's Creme - two donuts on a plate - Donuts Near Me - Champaign, Illinois

I was really crazed for a donut on the way down to Champaign so I looked up donut places on Yelp. Easy to get to and on the way to Memorial Stadium, let's do this. I had a glazed donut and a chocolate glazed donut. They were both good, not life altering but good. The place itself is a dive, dirtiest establishment whose food I have eaten. I can't believe there aren't any code violations because nothing has been cleaned in here in a long long time. Pretty good donuts but the cleanliness factor was quite the turn off. read more

Stale donuts that tasted funny. I come from Danville, IL and our local donut shop has closed. I've been looking for another small donut shop and found this online. I couldn't eat the donuts served here! My 15 year old son couldn't eat them! My husband tried and even he had to admit that the donuts were awful! To recap: The donuts are NOT fresh. The donuts are NOT tasty. read more

AMAZING!! Best place to get donuts EVER! They are baked fresh every night (I know because I can smell them from my house) .. Very inexpensive!! My fiance and I order 4 donuts and 2 drink for $6 every Sunday. Cash only. Seem to ALWAYS be open. I have been in at 5:30 and seen the open sign on when I pass by at 2:00 in the afternoon! Don't Dunkin' Donuts!! MAKE THE DRIVE TO CARMELLA'S (they have a drive thru, too) !! read more

This place is unclean and bad. Really bummed me out, because I love good doughnuts. The floors are filthy, the tables are filthy, the trays are covered in crumbs from last weeks customers. The doughnuts themselves are average when they're at their best and inedible at their worst. I honestly felt like my dry chocolate doughnut had been sitting for days before it got to me. read more

I used to love this place years ago. And I was super excited to try it after years and I would never come back. I took one bite into the donut and felt like I was drinking old cooking oil. Extremely disappointed. read more

OK. So better luck on my second visit and I am now here to update my review, as promised. There was no line when I arrived around 1pm. And there was also quite the selection of donuts available. I purchased four - two glazed (one for me, one for my brother), one vanilla creme, and one cinnamon sugar. Overall, I thought the donuts were OK. Nothing special. My favorite out of the three was the cinnamon sugar. Very affordable pricing! Now I have satisfied my curiosity. I wish Ye Olde Donuts was still open. *sigh* read more

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Best donuts ever.. Larger and cost less than Dunkin Donuts. Melt in your mouth. Nice people who run it, plus drive up also.

Delicious tiger tails, which are a twist of chocolate and plain dough with a thin layer of glaze. The inside is fluffy and fillilng. For 3 large donuts and a tiger tail, it was only 3 dollars. Pretty good deal! read more

Carmella's Creme - a sign for a donut shop - Donuts Near Me - Champaign, Illinois

I was hyped about Carmella's. The place wasn't what I expected. - The place was dark. No lights were on except for the lights in the display. - Service was indifferent. Before we walked in, the cashier was happily chatting with a regular. - If you like soft doughnuts, this place is for you. This place might've boomed back in the day, but it hasn't caught up. I'd rather have Pandamonium. read more

Amazing! This place has the best donuts in town. Specifically the sugar rings! Owner is awesome. This is cash only!

I miss this place. Every single donut handmade by the people who run the shop. Next time you're at Junkin' Donuts, really TASTE that bite of donut. Tastes like crap, right? Now, put the donut in the garbage (don't insult the birds by expecting them to eat it), then cruise on over to Carmella's for the BEST donuts in CU. And never darken Junkin's drive-thru again. Ok....Ok.....you can go to Junkin' for the coffee. read more

Ok. First off.... I like things clean and this place is way off of the mark. Going in was like stepping into a old basement with donuts. What? There is no lighting, something that has splattered over literally ALL surfaces, the tables were unwashed and over all nastiness everywhere! I was shocked. My son and I each had a donut. Those were fine... but I have had better at a gas station. The service was very nice to us and happy to help. But it just didn't make up for the gross atmosphere. I mean really.... really... nasty. How they are not violating health code beats me. Champaign Urbana doesn't have a real donut shop. This just doesn't count. Sorry. Clean up your act and I'll try again. read more

Besides Schnuck's glazed croissants, these are the only donuts I eat around C-U. 4 stars because: cash only, usually can get fresh if you go before 10a but it can be a gamble some days. The yeast glazed donuts are my favorite: tiger tail, cinnamon twist, whatever you call it, it's amazing. Last but not least, it's supporting a couple's business, which is always a win. read more

Beat donuts in town! Maybe better than Krispy Kreme. They only take cash buy do have a drive-thru window.

The donuts here aren't very good at all. The donut I got tasted like a big piece of stale bread with very little chocolate frosting. The person in charge seems fairly standoffish too. He was sitting in the back just reading a newspaper and was more interested in that than entertaining customers. read more

Amazing donuts for a great price! Great customer service as well! Definitely will come again!!

Carmella's Creme remains one of the little businesses in the Champaign-Urbana area that's stood unchanged for the past decade-- and that's why it's so amazing. Sure, the donuts are delicious decadent little things that spark joy, but the owners are also some of the kindest people you'll meet. I once forgot that they don't accept credit cards, and the lovely gentleman gave me my two donuts free of charge. It is difficult to imagine more humble and down-to-earth owners. I hope to see Carmella's continue to fuel my nostalgic dreamscapes of childhood with donuts and milk, and I'm they continue to thrive as a Champaign-Urbana staple. I will return to Carmella's soon, hungry for more. read more

Ever since first trying it per recommendation in high school, Carmella's Creme has been my go to place for quality donuts. I really appreciate how hearty the donuts are especially given its price. Would recommend to anyone who has not given it a try yet. read more

Not great doughnuts and the dining area was pretty dirty. I'm not too picky on that sort of thing but there were cobwebs on the windows. It's in an old Taco Bell building and it needs a good cleaning. I hope the kitchen is better. read more

The fancy doughnut places in town are overrated, overly sweet and dense compared to the classics at Carmella's. Best glazed in town as well other delicious standbys like raspberry bismarks and old fashioned twists. Not much to look at inside and cash only, but no waiting in line required. Far superior to newer, flashier places like Pandamonium which might be more creative but are poorly executed or inconsistent in my opinion. Second only to Royal Doughnut of Danville. read more

Super sketchy location, busted and broken menu in the drive thru, and cash only. This place really doesn't look very clean, and the donuts are just sort of bland and dry. There's really nowhere else to go for old fashioned yeast donuts, otherwise I'm not sure this place would still be in business. read more