Editor’s Note: In 2021, Michael and Nicole Borrell began reviewing Lebanon Valley’s restaurants and eating attractions as the Lebanon Valley Food Critics. Since then, the couple has aimed to offer unbiased reviews of the eating and drinking establishments the Lebanon Valley has to offer. LebTown is pleased to be partnering with LVFC to share these reviews with our readers. Bon appétit!
I posed the question to our followers and the response was overwhelming: Where can I find the best doughnut in the Lebanon Valley? Thank you to all who offered suggestions and responses.
We are going to run a mini-series, The Doughnut Wars, where we will attempt to find the best doughnut in the region. We will try a vast selection from each location and pick our top three. At the end, we will write a Lebanon Valley Top 5 Best Doughnut in the Valley list.
Our fifth and final stop amongst our nominees was one spot that we received a couple of emails about: BG’s Value Market. BG’s is a grocery store located just east of Jonestown along Old Route 22 that makes their own doughnuts Thursday through Sunday. Selection drops later in the morning. But for this review, we arrived for opening.
BG’s Value Market
Address
19 Old Route 22
Jonestown, PA 17038
Phone: 717-865-2151
Website
www.bgsmarkets.com/
Hours
Mon: 7 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Tue: 7 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Wed: 7 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Thu: 7 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Fri: 7 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Sat: 7 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Sun: 7 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Today, we ordered a dozen with vanilla cream – powdered and choc iced, pumpkin filled, apple cinnamon sugar, apple fritter, lemon filled, choc iced French cruller, Oreo, peanut butter iced, cream filled ring, and croissant – glazed and choc iced.
BG’s offers a vast selection of doughnuts, so it would be hard to not find one that matches your tastebuds.
The first item of note, as anyone who has had a BG’s doughnut can attest, is that there is a lot of filling. I will admit that it was tough to get a taste of all the doughnuts due to their size and the amount of filling in them. Could there be too much filling? I would not dare to answer that question, but it did get messy after a few bites.
Our second note is the cost of the doughnuts, at $1.25 each. We felt as though we got our money’s worth. One donut would be more than enough to fill you up.
To us, the vanilla filling tasted very light at first but, as we had a few more bites, it started to grow on us. The peanut butter filling was not as fluffy as the vanilla cream, but it had a good peanut butter taste. The chocolate icing was true icing, not a sauce that was poured on top.
The LVFC Top Three
3: Pumpkin filled with vanilla icing – A unique selection that you will not find anywhere else around here.
2: Peanut butter filled with choc icing – A smooth peanut butter filling, best with the chocolate icing.
1: Oreo – A sweet vanilla cream topped with crumbled Oreo cookies, sweetness overload. Totally worth the extra calories.
Honorable Mention: Powdered vanilla cream, apple fritter, and cream filled ring.
Do you agree with our list? Let us know in the comments.
The time has come for us to name the best doughnut in the Lebanon Valley. Which doughnut will win it all? Find out on our next episode of “Doughnut Wars.”
If you have a restaurant you would like us to visit or review, whether a place you like or are nervous to try, please message us on Facebook or email lvfoodcritics@outlook.com and let us know. We thank everyone for the recommendations and the kind words we have received.