East Idaho Eats: Donut Bros. in Pocatello invites you to try its specialty flavors

POCATELLO — Donut Bros. is a small corner shop in downtown Pocatello serving mini-doughnuts with specialty, house-made flavors offering salvation from a “cruddy day.”

Owner Rueben Barela says in the video above that the idea behind Donut Bros. was more than just a doughnut shop, but an experience — somewhere Pocatellans can find what the younger generation calls a “vibe.”

“Come in and be greeted with a smile, have good, ‘vibey’ music playing as well as a yummy treat,” he said.

“We were really looking to, I guess, kinda build not only a doughnut business but a fun environment,” he added. “We noticed, like, a niche here in Pocatello where, I think we were lacking fun, exciting things and fun, exciting spaces, and we just wanted to go with that, and bring something to life.”

Donut Bros. serves flavored sodas and snacks, including soft pretzels, but it is known for, as the name suggests, its mini-doughnuts — specifically its specialty flavors.

The syrups and glazes used are family recipes, creations Barela recalls enjoying as a child. And the unique flavors, like chocolate-churro, available at Donut Bros. were created in the best way possible — through trial and error.

“With our specialty flavors, we just kinda threw them all together,” Barela said. “We were just like, ‘Let’s try a few different random things,’ and it worked out.”

Barela provided EastIdahoNews.com samples of the Unicorn — vanilla frosting with sprinkles — the chocolate churro and chocolate-tooty fruity. While all three were delicious, our recommendation is decidedly the chocolate churro.

“If you haven’t tried our doughnuts, you’ve got to come in and try them,” Barela said. “We cook our doughnuts fresh and hot, where they melt in your mouth. … You can’t really ever go wrong with a doughnut.”

Donut Bros. is on the corner of North Arthur Avenue and West Fremont Street, across the street from Pocatello High School. It is open Monday from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Tuesday from 7:30 a.m.. to 2 p.m.; Wednesday from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Thursday and Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Pick-up orders can be placed on its website, and schedules for its food truck are available on their Facebook page.

If you want to make a recommendation for the next destination to be included on East Idaho Eats, email Kalama@EastIdahoNews.com and include “EATS” in the subject line.