Best donuts in the city, hands down, no questions asked. Friendly staff and creative combinations.

Will travel for donuts! I was passing thru Cincinnati and stopped here on my way to Knoxville. I'm so glad I found it. There were so many creative flavors- both savory and sweet, familiar and exotic. Tangelo curd, brownie batter, pimento cheese, veggie cream cheese.... and they change seasonally. I showed up around 11, so they already had one flavor sold out (pineapple upside-down cake), but those are the breaks sometimes- you snooze, you lose! I selected a dozen and it cost ~$37 (including my tip). Pretty decent prices! If I'm ever in Cincinnati, I'll be back. Otherwise, I will list this as one of my favorite donut destinations. read more

I'm so glad I stopped into Starlight Doughnut Lab! My son loves doughnuts so I'm always looking to see if I'm near any bakeries that we haven't tried. The customer service here is excellent! I was welcomed into the store right away. They explained all the flavors and gave me some doughnuts to try in addition to the ones I purchased. We had the best time sharing the doughnuts. They were all amazing but there were some definite stand outs! My son thought the chocolate salted caramel was the best doughnut he'd ever had until he tasted the coffee crème brûlée!! I loved the butter & salt and the honey butter cornbread. The actual doughnut had so much flavor and the toppings were so original and delicious. I will definitely be back!! read more

We've been eating their donuts for years at Nine Giant and honestly they are my favorite donuts in Cincinnati. They make both cake and yeast donuts, and you can't go wrong ordering either. Ben is a mastermind and specializes in creating fun unique donut flavors. You must try their donuts and DM for recommendations. We love almost every donut they make, but their savory everything bagel donut is amazing!! They are having their GRAND OPENING today! * Their current staple menu is: churro with dulce de leche chocolate glazed with sprinkles vanilla glazed with sprinkles raspberry lemonade (vegan) brioche everything bagel stuffed with goat cheese (AMAZING, it's a must try) double chocolate with sprinkles * Their monthly special flavors are: brioche filled with raspberry jam (AMAZING, it's a must try) dreamsicle lemon poppyseed maple butternut squash brownie batter carrot cake (AMAZING, it's a must try) * They also sell cute donut themed jewelry as well * Hours Sat/Sun 9am - 3pm Thu/Fri 8am - 3pm * Address 4603 Carter Ave. Norwood, OH read more

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There was a Time I would only eat Busken (no shade) donuts! However, you can NOT beat these donuts because of all the inventive flavors. It's not fancy, you order donuts at the counter, the staff is welcoming and you choose and pay! The 6th donut is free which I didn't know but pleasantly surprised. July's flavor rock, try the root beer or the raspberry espresso. Follow them for updates on Instagram. Parking is right because its smack in Norwood neighborhood. And if you come at 9am there will be a line but can you blame them. read more

Starlight Doughnut Lab - Cookie & Cream -rootbeer- strawberry rhubarb-peaches & cream - raspberry expresso - Bakeries Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

Nom, nom, nom! Not your traditional donut shop. Flavors are certainly elevated. That savory Everything donut with goat cheese-simply amazing. I believe with the exception of the Everything donut, all are cake donuts. They are almost reminiscent of rich pound cake. All were delicious-especially the Carrot cake, though I think I have a preference for my jelly donuts to be yeast. A tiny little spot, extremely cozy, friendly owners and customers, and understands the assignment. read more

This may very well be the BEST doughnut shop in the Cincinnati area! I heard about Starlight Doughnut Lab a while ago and I don't know what took so long to check it out but I'm glad I did. Though I've only stopped in twice so far it seems that they typically offer 3 types of doughnuts which include cake, brioche and savory. They have a handful of regular flavors but they also have several special flavors which change monthly. The recently featured Zucchini Bread and Honey Bear Lattes were truly delightful. The latter of which was made with Deeper Roots Coffee. It's always great to see local Cincy companies working together. The shop itself is tiny. It can be difficult to scope out the doughnuts while waiting in line so I feel a little pressure to pick quickly so the people in line behind me don't have to wait longer for their sweet treats. But that's a me thing. read more

Starlight Doughnut Lab - Honey Bear Late - Bakeries Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

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UPDATE!! Here we, here we, go again! Yessss! I made it back to get my February experience! Boy was it an awesome experience! Once again, you've done it! The mastermind chef behind these amazing donuts has swooned me again! Where to begin? As always the Service is superb, beautiful people who support this fabulous chef are always very welcoming!! Most important part of my review: What in the heck did she buy now? Hot Honey Pimento Cheese, Jalapeño Popper, Chocolate covered Strawberry, Matcha, The Poppy, strawberry shortcake, Boston, cream, everything, but the bagel. I couldn't help it, I like to splurged. Like a mad scientist you blew me away with the Jalapeño Popper, and the Pimento Cheese. Again I want to reiterate from my first review, that I love sweet and savory. These two donuts went beyond amazing and I beg you to please make them a premium staple on the menu!!!! Because I'm a food critic, I have to say that the strawberry shortcake fell short, this was the least favorite amongst my family members. It lacked in strawberry flavor and the flavor of the cookie was off. Just didn't come off as a Strawberry Shortcake as we know it. Overall, you scored BIG on flavor and execution with the other donuts we had devoured. Hats off to you Chef, you are brilliantly talented and I hope the word spreads like wildfire because you deserve all the attention!!!! Oh and Psssssst.....I love bacon! Hint....hint.... read more

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Made a quick dash in to grab some awesome raspberry donuts. Not far off from Montgomery Road, on street parking. Back to the donuts, you have to try the apple fritters! Real fruit and a crispy bite. Yum! Friendly service and very helpful when you want to try something new. Great spot! read more

Food was great. We told them it was our first time and they explained each donut to us. Even gave us some recommendations. The people behind the counter were super helpful. Quick in and out experience. read more

Starlight Doughnut Lab - Fancy label box. - Bakeries Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

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The donuts are SO. STUPID. DELICIOUS. Get the Everything Donut - it's absolutely incredible! Highly recommended!!! read more

Starlight Doughnut Lab - Everything Donuts - Bakeries Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

We picked up half a dozen donuts of a mixed variety. Truth be told, it's challenging to find decent donuts- as a California native. Starlight's donuts are incredible and did not disappoint. You can tell how passionate these folks are about producing amazing doughnuts. The service was intentional and kind. Cute little donut shop with tons of heart and creativity. Check em out. read more

phenomenal food backed up by a great staff. I love the convenience of having such a great local place right in town.

Great donuts! Large selection to choose from. Savory and sweet! The pimento cheese donut was so good ! My children were thrilled to see all the good looking donuts to choose from. Parking was limited, street only. But overall great experience. Friendly staff. read more

Hole in the wall donut shop next to Norwood High. Total bougie. This is connoisseur shite. The brioche dough is a perfect base for some inventive toppings. Easily worth the 4 bucks a pop.... read more

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https://www.yelp.com/biz/yelp-week-at-starlight-doughnut-lab-cincinnati?fsid=QRuWVj4BEHDPFV_9XEND9A&sort_by=date_desc#reviews read more

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WTF? WTF sort of sorcery are the Starlight Donut Lab technicians utilizing? We tried this place for the first time yesterday. We drove 40 minutes to enter the thunderdome of pure amazing yeasty and cakey delights...might i add VEGAN!!!! We'll support any place laying out the vegan goods. We bought a shirt before tasting bc you could simply look at these things and know that your taste buds are gonna do a dance. They did btw. Holy salty vegan cream chees donut! WTF!?! Mind blown. Apple fritters! Oh joy. I'm still in a sugar coma, and I'm okay with that. Keep up the great work SLDL! We'll spread the gospel! Thanks for making Vegan donuts. You have no idea how grateful many of us are! read more

Starlight Doughnut Lab - Donuts - Bakeries Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

Absolutely amazing food!!! The service was phenomenal, she went though and described every donut in like 60 seconds, it was awesome! I didn't catch her name but she was super helpful! And she wasn't wrong about the savory it ended up being our favorite! My only complaint is I wish more people knew about this place because it is easily the best I've ever been to! Inside the shop was super cute too, they even had gnomes for sale! 10/10 recommend! read more

Starlight Doughnut Lab - Excuse the picture, I forgot to take one before! - Bakeries Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

Listen, I enjoyed this place so much, I made a video taste test about it. They have sweet options, they have savory options, they have tame and wild flavor combinations. PLUS: They change their donut flavors monthly. In October, The Skyline Chili donut is incredible and well worth the calories. I definitely loved all of the savory options the best, just because the flavor profiles are so complex-hot honey and pimento cheese is a sweet and spic smack int he mouth. The Everything but the Bagel tastes exactly like that, the Mexican Hot Chocolate donut was another high one on my list. I do hope they bring back that Ginger and Pear number, cuz she was ahhhhhmazing. Not only was the food :::chef's kiss::: but the service was so nice. I got a lot of donuts and asked a lot of questions and both of the staff were more than happy to have donut talk. You can tell they love what they do. The store is definitely tucked away, so be on the lookout for the sidewalk sandwich board, otherwise you may miss the front door! It really is a great place, but don't take my word for it, just get in there already. read more

Starlight Doughnut Lab - Skyline Donut! - Bakeries Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

Amazing service! Lovely staff! Chill vibe Delicious vegan donuts... unstoppable, amazing, beautiful, gorgeous read more

Starlight Doughnut Lab - Monthly vegan donuts and staples! - Bakeries Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

Hands down some of the best donuts I have ever had! If you haven't been to this place, please do yourself a favor and make the trip to Norwood. This small Family owned bakery was amazing. We all loved it. You know sometimes, a donut can sometimes be too sweet... these donuts were perfect. I was so hesitant to try the skyline donut. After some persuading from staff, I was sold. It did not disappoint. It works. Very well. My kids loved it. Next up, the everything bagel donut. This was also a huge success. Then the sweet donuts. All of them weee very good. We went for six and left so the a dozen. By the end of the day all of the donuts have been eaten! They were supposed to be for church tomorrow. Whoops. Ps... our kids got to meet Mrs. Claus and Santa! read more

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Finding this place and it happens to be close to home is a WIN WIN!!! The chef makes EVERYTHING from scratch and once you have the first bite you will know you're eating top quality!!! I missed the Yelp Elite doughnut but tried a glazed sprinkle for my niece and i got the glorious cinnamon roll!!! First the cinnamon rolls are MASSIVE and beyond amazing! Add the amazing customer service and this place will easily become my new doughnut spot!!! This small but beautiful shop is warm and inviting and will have you coming back! They sell out quickly most days so if you plan to have your pick make sure to get there early!!! You will not be disappointed read more

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What a cute little donut shop! It's tucked in a Norwood neighborhood, so you wouldn't really know it was there. There's only street parking, but it's easy and doesn't hinder people from lining up! I was able to try a special Peppermint Donut along with their Vegan Boston Cream donut and Churro donut. All were delicious! I will definitely be back. read more

Starlight Doughnut Lab - Bakeries Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

Great doughnuts and great flavors that change. The lady at the front who gets you all your doughnuts is amazing she really brightens everyone's day. Also the shop always has cute earrings for sale read more

This is an overpriced topping shop who covers up their lack of quality donut making with loads of icing, cereal, and other oddities from the state fair. Don't be fooled. The bespoke curated flavor combinations of these new school donut shops are tactics to hide that they can't make a classic donut. These donuts are heavy, wet, and under-cooked. I bought one, took a single bite and then threw it away. read more

Amazing doughnuts, savory or sweet are always incredible. The people working are always incredibly nice as well. Best doughnuts I've had in Cincinnati by far. read more

Starlight Doughnut Lab - Miso-bacon, jalapeño pepper, banana pudding, vanilla with sprinkles, chocolate with sprinkles - Bakeries Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

Amazing doughnuts! Great quick service! Cute, small, local, family owned doughnut shop read more

Starlight Doughnut Lab is becoming my fav doughnut shop in Cincy. We eat a lot of doughnuts in my house as my 2 girls love doughnuts. We've had quite a bite of the locations around and Starlight is my fav. Yes, better than Holtmans. *shrug* Also, what I love is they are right around the street from where I live, so it's convenient. I would highly recommend going early as they sell out quick. Thus far the doughnuts we've had are as follows: Red Velvet, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Churro, Chocolate with Sprinkles, Lemon Raspberry, Everything, Cookies n' Cream and Strawberry Filled. They were all delish but my favs were the Churro, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, and the Everything Doughnut (like everything bagel). The Churro is soooo good! The cinnamon-sugar with the homemade dulce de leche sauce is awesome! The cookie dough is also tasty and the scoop of dough on top is fantastic. The everything doughnut was ammmmaazzing! It was filled with a onion cream cheese and topped with everything seasoning. The perfect breakfast doughnut! Overall, you can't go wrong with Starlight Doughnuts! They are my fave and will be yours too ;) read more

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Creative and delicious donuts that make my stomach happy! They use a brioche dough that gives each donut a little more flavor and a lighter texture than a traditional donut. Each donut variety includes high quality ingredients such as chocolate mascarpone, dulce de leche, and Skyline chili. Their coffee is also quite excellent. It's in a small house in Norwood with a family business feel. Once I found it, service was quick and easy and I was on my way with a box of delicious donuts and coffee. read more

Cheryl was incredible walking us through all the vegan donuts! She was so kind, took her time explaining the flavors, and shared about Starlight's mission to give back to community. Cheryl was so kind and made our experience phenomenal! Not to mention, the donuts are so yummy! Wow! We will be back. Thank you, Starlight for considering vegans. read more

Love the variety of vegan donuts! Owners are very friendly as well. Always look forward to coming here. read more

Starlight Doughnut Lab - A variety of donuts - Bakeries Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

I was searching for Vegan donuts in Cincinnati and I found the perfect spot! Starlight Doughnut Lab has a wide variety of vegan and non vegan donuts. I found myself wanting to try all the options! Reasonable prices and friendly staff. I will be coming back! read more

HOLY COW. Run to Starlight Doughnut Lab - and get there early because the very best flavors fly off the shelf! I'm pretty particular about donuts and Starlight has it figured out! The brioche dough, unique fillings, and rotating menu make this corner shop the perfect stop on a Saturday morning adventure, hostess gift, or special occasion treat. At first, I was skeptical that the donuts weren't served hot because the best donuts I've tried have always been served warm, but Starlight doughnuts leave nothing to be desired. They think through each flavor and I was amazed at how much I loved each new donut I tried. Love supporting small businesses and the growing Norwood community as well! read more

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I really wanted to like this place it's cute. The donut seem to be extremely pretty, but the donuts that we got we're not very good. The vegan donuts were extremely crumbly and didn't have very good taste. I may go back at a later date to try it again but for right now I will pass on his very cute place. It's not me. read more

These donuts are amazing. They're basically little donut cakes. The flavors are insane which is why they sell out fast. Recommend to come as early as possible for the best selection. The first time we went, there were only two flavors left but the second time we were able to buy a half dozen. The staff is super friendly! Would highly recommend and to taste all flavors, I can't even pick a favorite. read more

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Deep in a Norwood nook, there's a cute white building with donuts inside. Me being a donut fanatic and so close, I had to try. The taste of the churro donut was outstanding, the texture was a little too doughy if that makes sense. I wanted it a little lighter a little fluffier but this place gets all the points for novelty and fun flavors. I went home with Churro, Poppy (banana and coconut), and the classic cake with chocolate icing. Very delicious and I will be BACK! read more

Starlight Doughnut Lab - Bakeries Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

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Soo freaking good! We tried for the first time this weekend and were really happy we made it over there. We've been looking for a donut similar to the Five Daughters in Nashville . Our favorites were the blueberry lemon, strawberry shortcake and my husband was obsessed with the pimento cheese donut. We will be back! read more

The BEST doughnuts in the world! The savory ones are to die for!! We Love Starlight Doughnuts read more

Flavor, Craftsmanship, attention to detail, and an explosion of flavor in every bite. The banana pudding donut is amazing. Get here early and often. They sell out quick, but it's well worth going out of your way to check out these flavors. read more

Super friendly staff, really great donuts, we got to meet Santa! This was my first visit, but it was so welcoming I felt as if I'd been a valued regular for a long time! Definitely recommend it just to say hi to these great folks, and the donuts are the amazing icing on top! read more