As a sassy ex-NYCer, I've been angry about the lack of good yeast donuts in my area. We were headed to an event in Hickory and I of course stopped to see if I could find local good eats and Donut Life FIT THE BILL. Large, fluffy, incredible flavor-and such nice folks working there! The place itself is suited more for takeout but we snagged a table to snack. We got a plain glazed (delicious base, so fluffy and glaze that was perfectly applied), a pumpkin spice (not a hit you over the head spice-delicious!) and a pumpkin cream filled-omg this one. It was still a little warm! The donuts themselves were extremely light: as my husband said, pushed to the limits without collapsing. Worth the stop, get here early! Huge line by the time we left! read more

Donut Life - Glazed - Donuts Near Me - Hickory, North Carolina

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I would have minus stars if I could. FYI: if you want donuts DO NOT go to Donut Life. They do not open when they say. I called this morning at 7:30 after their specified listing of opening at 7 because they are never consistent with times. They told me they would open at 8:30. I specifically asked when they would have more than one type of donut and they say 9:30. I wait until 9:30 and guess what they were not open. SHOCKER. You might as well close down. You have run off all your customers and don't care what the customers say. I will NEVER go back again and I am sure other will not either. Customer service is everything and you can't keep lying to your loyal customers and expect them to stay. read more

What a shame! This place used to be my family's go to for donuts. I had no issues driving up from Lincolnton. Last 4 times this place is not open on time, minimal selection and it's just gone downhill. In the parking lot at 6:05am and the lights are off, door shut, display empty.... Someone should open competition because it wouldn't be hard to beat DL nowadays. Never coming back. Drove to Family Donuts & Boba Tea in Denver. Guess what!? They were open, plenty of donuts and were very friendly. read more

Was here when they opened at 6. Of the 16 slots for donut trays only 5 were ready. It is now 6:25 and there are now 8 slots filled. Still waiting for the long John's to come out. Just told FINALLY that it will be another 15 minutes. So I am leaving and will NEVER come back. read more

not sure why you guys are even still opened, about 4 different donuts today. a true waste of time for people driving to buy donuts

Great Donuts... loved the Apple Fritters!!!!! I've been looking for good donuts ever since I moved here from California!!! read more

Yes, I am back as the donut sommelier connoisseur aficionado with another donut review. This one is high on the list and you will not be dissatisfied. First of all the donuts are huge. You don't get any little tiny donuts like a duck donuts or Dunkin' Donuts you get your moneys worth with these donuts. The glaze doughnut is just pure heaven. You take a bite and it just melts in your mouth. It's not too sweet, it's not too dense, it is sheer perfection. This goes for all of the donuts. I took them to a tailgate and they were an absolute hit. I have now been officially assigned to bring donuts to all of the tailgates and they will be coming from donut life. I also give kudos to the young ladies that work there who are very friendly and welcoming. read more

Donut Life - I'm going to be the favorite mom at the tailgate!!!! - Donuts Near Me - Hickory, North Carolina

This place is a gem! Donuts are amazing! Several flavors and options of filling. They fill the donuts while you wait. Their Apple fritters are my absolute favorite. Bear claws and cinnamon rolls are also fantastic. Donut holes are wonderful. I've never had a donut I don't like. These are crowd pleasers at family events, for the office, or just for a quick breakfast. Super clean and extremely friendly staff. read more

we are from out of town and stopped by twice while visiting. The donuts are amazing and the owner is very nice. We loved it.

Great selection of flavors and types of donuts. Amazing service that is knowledgeable about their products

The best donuts I have ever had!! Great people with a great product for Hickory. Every single donut is worth it especially the new Samoan one! read more

Awesome ! Best apple fritters ever There is a sister bakery in Mooresville - where I live ... anxious to find out where as driving from Mooresville to purchase is a lot of time driving read more

Donut life is a great spot for breakfast if you don't want anything too heavy. The selection is perfect without it being too overwhelming. The apple fritter was superb! Possibly one of the best that I've had. The bacon maple donut was perfect! It wasn't too sweet or salty. Just enough to support the nice fluffy bread. Overall, the customer service was A++. The person at the cash register was really kind and greeted us with positive energy to kick off the day and asked us about our plans. Definitely keep up the good vibes! It makes the donuts that much better! Thank you! read more

Delicious donuts and friendly service!! Definitely will go back. Guy that checked us out was super nice!

I'm sure the donuts would be amazing but considering ive been multiple times and they never seem to have any donuts available!

As a life-long Krispy Kreme donut fan I rarely find another donut spot that tickles my fancy - but now I have! This local donut shop in Hickory is fantastic! While visiting family I bought a dozen one morning, and then the next morning, and plan to make it a tradition to visit this spot every morning when I am in town. There are all types of donuts and toppings - chocolate, strawberry, sprinkles, Oreo crumbles, Fruity Pebble crumbles, the list goes on! There are also delicious cream-filled options - butter cream, Boston cream, and a seasonal option when I was there. And, even with all those choices, the plain glazed was the best! These donuts are BIG - plan on splitting them with friends. read more

Donut Life - Donuts Near Me - Hickory, North Carolina

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I had never eaten Donut Life other than what my coworkers would bring in sometimes, today I decided to actually stop in and grab some for my family and WOW... and I thought eating my coworkers leftover donuts were good, talk about FRESH! I think they taste even better than Krispy Kreme, plus they're twice the size, and it was only around $5-6 for a half dozen... The only catch is, they only make them once a day and once they are sold out, they're done for the day. So I suggest going early! I went around 3pm on a weekday and all that they had left were mostly glazed, and a few chocolate varieties. So I ended up just getting some glazed... But wow... They were SOOOOOO good! read more

Absolutely hands down the best donut place anywhere around here in town. I am a fan of the whipped buttercream filled donut or the apple fritter always get the same girl every time I go there Hispanic girl with dark hair she is always super friendly and has a smile which I appreciate. Thank you for your customer service and your wonderful Donuts read more

We read the reviews and decided to go find donut life . Wow, this place is rockin' good. We arrived at about 930 am and I would say 80% of the inventory was sold out. I bought a glazed twist, a cinnamon roll and a pine cone (kind of a cinnamon honey bun) ; all were fresh and the pine cone was still warm. Saved the cinnamon roll and ate it the next mornin....still fresh and delicious. Kind of amazing that they only have one location but excellence is hard to duplicat. read more

This place is so good. There is usually a line and it is worth the wait. They run out of things quickly so go early when you can. Every donut I have had here is delicious. And the people are so nice! And it is really inexpensive for gourmet donutMaple bacon and cinnamon sugar are my favorites. Happy to have a great spot like this in town. Quick update: the owners have made a huge effort to increase their inventory so you can now almost always get the flavors you enjoy when you go. Still a line every time you go but it's worth it. Consistently delicious. read more

Donut Life - Donuts Near Me - Hickory, North Carolina

Donut Life is exactly what I love to see in Hickory and what can make life for locals exciting -- change. DL is a fresh, innovative donut shop that moves away from the Dunkin Donuts and the Krispy Kremes of the world by offering fresh, cheap donuts and coffee with no frills. The Maple Bacon donuts are delicious, and my favorite as a brief Colorado resident. I can't recommend them any more highly. Next time that sweet tooth comes calling, forget the chains and check out Donut Life. read more

You probably don't know this about me but I LOVE doughnuts. For a long time I just had to make do with Dunkin and Krispy Kreme. Don't get me wrong they have their place and I will most definitely eat them, but sometimes (most times) you just need something more. Something fluffy, soft, and covered in chocolate. Donut Life is the place. My favorite is the pinecone and chocolate covered long john filled with Bavarian cream. The staff is super welcoming, friendly and efficient. When I go to Hickory, I go to Donut life. Donut wait. Haha. read more

Took our grandkids to get donuts when we were in Hickory. Krispy Kreme has a long drive thru line since that's all they were offering so we decided to see what other donut places were in the area. Donuts were really good but they didn't have much of an assortment when we went due to COVID and business being slower than usual. The donuts we did buy were really good and bigger than chain donuts stores donuts! read more

The donuts are absolutely incredible. The best donut place in This region! The cream filled longjohns are worth the drive from anywhere in the country! If you are in Hickory area do not miss this place. The donuts are light and fluffy yeast and I used to perfection. If you like just a taste the donut holes would be a good go to! If there were six stars this place would get it. read more

Great service! Donuts always fresh and delicious, friendly workers I like that they are open early enough that I can go before work

Great donut. One of the best donuts I've had in a long time. Nice selection. However, the service and friendliness of the staff is what impressed me the most. Pride in the Product!!! Looking forward to my next visit. read more

Insanely nice people working there. Fresh, large, yummy donuts. Great pricing. I ordered ahead. Picked up at open. All was ready. In carrying order to the car it was a quick realization that these donuts are way bigger than most places. Several customers ordered freshly filled donuts. Several ordered for teachers since its teacher appreciation celebrations this week. Didn't matter if donut order was one or a dozen or what - everyone got pleasant service. So impressed with this place. The maple bacon was not As maple or bacon as I prefer but the flavors were good and importantly the donut itself was delicious. Coffee was good too. Didn't taste like wet cardboard. Side note - place was so so clean, too. read more

Donut Life - Strawberry, strawberry with sprinkles, cinnamon sugar and maple bacon - Donuts Near Me - Hickory, North Carolina

I was traveling and found this place! It's absolutely amazing!! My absolute favorite doughnuts they have are the maple bacon. It's such good quality for the price. I definitely recommend! read more

Wow! Now let's be fair, I will maybe only be able to get donuts from Donut Life 2-3 times every year, but you can be damn sure I will stop by any chance I get! Best donuts I have had in a very long time! We bought a large variety, and brought to the office! And everyone was raving at how good they were! Service was impeccable and everyone there was very nice! An absolute MUST if you are in the area, and even worth a bit of a drive if good donuts are what makes your day! Two thumbs up! I will be back! read more

Best donuts! Just tried Donut Life this weekend and the staff was so friendly and fast. The donuts were amazing. Better the Krispy Kreme!

Wednesday mid afternoon and Donut Life had a crowd. Menu clear as to choices and pricing. Kolache filled with sausage and cheese was very tasty. Bacon maple donut and Chocolate covered Bavarian cream were memmoriable and the filling was added at time of sale. Great quality, flavors and pricing. Dunkin and Krispy beware! read more

You don't need to read any further, just drop everything you're doing and go get some donuts from Donut Life. If you do want to read further, here are some reasons: they're fresh, they're delicious, they're huge, they're fluffy, they have a great variety, they're cheap (like a dozen donut holes for $2 cheap). The staff are always friendly, they're a small, local business and not a big corporation. Best donuts I've ever had in my entire. life. The people who run this place must be donut making wizards. Go to Donut Life. Now. read more

Such a cool variety of donuts! Not to mention they were very tasty. Probably the best little donut shop in Hickory

I was in town for the week for work and was craving doughnuts. I knew I didn't wan't a big box chain like DD or KK. I couldn't have come out happier. Everyone at the office raved over this doughnuts. They were delicious and might I add huge. read more

Great place. Huge donuts made fresh and filled right in front of you. Apple fritter was on the house and was great. read more

Donut Life - Donuts Near Me - Hickory, North Carolina

No donuts available on national donut day when that is all you sell, poor management.

Omg...we finally have a real donut shop. The best I have had since California. The glazed donuts are 5 star awesome. They don't have cake donuts, which is fine with us. You want a filled donut? They do it to order, raspberry, lemon, custard, blueberry, etc. And the size of the donuts are so large. One of the things I loved is the chocolate raised. Just chocolate, not glazed and then chocolate. 10am Saturday morning and the line was almost out the door. Oh yeah, and great prices. Really great prices. Give it a try, you will not be sorry. UPDATE They have a problem keeping up with orders. Husband has gone to pick up donuts 3 maybe 4 times and they are out of everything, even glazed. Problem is people will get tired of going when they have nothing to sell. read more

So delicious! Great variety, super friendly staff, and the donuts themselves were outstanding! Best we've had in the area since we moved here. Ever considered opening up shop in Morganton?? Would love not to have to drive a half hour for these perfect donuts... but it'd be worth it. read more

These are the best apple fritters in town. Also, they fill each filled doughnut as you order so you don't have the problem that certain national chains have where the employees are guessing what filling is inside each filled doughnut. read more

Today was the fourth and final time I have driven to Donut Life, and left with nothing. Three times because they closed early (today was at least 2.5 hours), and once because they had absolutely nothing in the store left to sell. When you offer your services to the public, you should have enough respect to deliver what you promised, including being open (and having product) for the dates and times you promised your customers. Simply putting the caveat "hours may vary" doesn't excuse this type of disrespect to your customer clientele. I'm surprised whoever manages the building allows their renters to close when they feel like it. And this is no Covid-19 special situation. This has been happening since they opened. read more