The donut trend has reached its peak and toppled over. We welcomed Nutella-stuffed donuts with salivating mouths. We accepted Dunkin' Donuts' faux-Cronut and even tipped our hats to donuts of the savory variety. Donuts have had their moment.
The currently buzzy "lobster donut" is where we draw a line: isn't this a sandwich, rather than a donut? A delicious, delicious sandwich?
Photo: Kane's Handcrafted
Boston-based Kane's Handcrafted Donuts is responsible for the lobster-filled goodness, which they call a "Dowich Sandwich." The company produces both sweet and savory donuts; the latter is made of a brioche-based dough and usually cradles not-so-breakfasty fillings like braised beef and Mediterranean chicken.
Now it's fresh lobster sandwiched between the buttery brioche roll, and the dish sounds quite tasty. In a city on the sea, it makes sense for the crustacean to crawl its way onto the menu. But let us please call a spade a spade, and call this "donut" a sandwich on donut-shaped brioche bread, or, better yet, just a sandwich.
It's the latest hiccup in the long-standing, existential debate over the term sandwich: What qualifies as a sandwich, and what's to be labeled something else? If a BLT on white bread is considered a sandwich, but beans, cheese and guac wrapped in a tortilla is strictly a burrito, where does Kane's lobster "donut" fall on the spectrum?
The case remains open, and you know where we stand. Buttery lobster rolls are a true gift from the culinary gods, but we have to beg them to keep all clawed animals at a safe distance from jelly-filled pastries. Despite donuts' recent trendiness, some things surely taste better when they aren't called a donut.
H/T Forbes
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