Harrogate donut cafe faces uncertain future after vandals attack

Doe Bakehouse in Harrogate is to close its cafe for the foreseeable and run a pre-order only service after it was targeted by vandals again last night.

The cafe, on Bower Street, was left with mud and concrete in its outdoor seating area after it was trashed overnight.

The owner, Evie Jackson, posted on Facebook today to tell customers they had been forced to close after becoming a “frequent target”.

She said the shop will now serve as a base for customers to collect their online pre-orders every Saturday, starting next week. Talking to the Stray Ferret she said:

“We feel we have to shut the cafe due to concerns from staff and customers too.”

Previously, the shop has had its door smashed and often has litter thrown into the seating area. The incident is now being dealt with by the police.

The Harrogate shop is one of four in the sweet treats chain. Others are based in York and Clitheroe, Lancashire.

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Colourful donut shop is a Harrogate ‘hidden gem’

Pink wafer donuts, Mr Whippy donuts and rainbow donuts are just some of the flavours on offer. This is far from your ordinary bakery. This bright and colourful donut shop tucked away on the back streets of Harrogate is the first of the Stray Ferret’s hidden gems.

Evie Jackson was worried about footfall when she opened her shop last year. But with an eyecatching social media presence she has managed to draw customers in.

Doe Harrogate on Bower Street serves up an ever-changing and wider range of donuts as well as bakes and speciality coffees.

A vegan friendly ‘cookie doe’ with vegan chocolate drizzle on top.

You may not have heard or seen Doe Harrogate but it is growing in popularity. So much so that the young businesswoman behind it is opening a second shop in York.

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With rainbow walls, glitter tassels, multi-coloured chairs and bright murals Evie has positioned the shop as “an Instagram dream“.

Miss Jackson told the Stray Ferret how Doe Harrogate has managed to get recognition in the town with more than 20,000 followers on Instagram:

“Obviously we are quite hidden away. But I think because we are so active on Instagram, we are constantly tagging where we are and showing our donuts. It spreads the word through social media and that is what we are built on. People like to come in and take photos of our donuts and our coffees.”

A selection of four Doe Harrogate donuts.

She is not afraid of changing things up in the shop. The latest change at Doe Harrogate is the move towards a wider vegan range. Half of the donuts are now vegan and they purposefully baked them bigger to make them stand out.

In fact, Doe Harrogate was changing the flavours up so much at one point that the shop started getting complaints from customers who were looking for donuts from the day before.

Coronavirus hit when the donut shop was still quite young. Doe Harrogate closed for a few weeks for a kitchen refurbishment and then expanded its delivery service.

“We embraced postal in a big way and it has been really positive. If something is not working then we will change it. I did not want to stay closed. I thought I could be sat at home or I could be doing something with my time. You have got to keep moving.”

This is the first in the Stray Ferret’s ‘hidden gem’ series. We are trying to highlight small independent businesses. They need to be tucked away but growing in popularity with an eyecatching and unique product. Send us an email with your nominations.