One thing in this world that has never let me down? Donuts. I love every type, every consistency, every glaze. What I love even more is being able to build my own. The coolest new spot in Lexington is making that dream a reality. Metropolitan Donuts serves doughy goodness made to order. You select the base, the toppings, and the drizzle. They also have preset donuts you can try if you’re too overwhelmed to create your own concoction.
In honor of celebrating their 6 month anniversary, I spoke with owner Drew McCoy.
Special thanks to Hartley Social for sponsoring this interview!!
Special thanks to Hartley Social for sponsoring this interview!!
Did you always know you wanted your own business? Specifically donuts?
I did — not necessarily donuts, but I knew I always wanted to open a restaurant. I have a cousin who owns an Italian restaurant and I grew up watching what he did and I just kept leaning towards wanting to create something of my own. We had some friends in Naples that owned a donut shop and after watching their operation I realized the schedule this kind of store would need really fit our family.
Tell me more…
We try to make our donuts throughout the day in small batches. This way they are always fresh. You can compare us to the way subway or chipotle works. We are a donut bar. You decide what is on it. You pick your glaze, your toppings, your drizzle and we whip it up for you.
There are similar shops to Met but according to Drew they are the only shop that does mini made to order donuts!
How did the name come about?
Evelyn [my wife] and I would much rather always live in the city and a Metropolitan vibe felt like us. I knew I wanted a simple, sleek, modern look — white countertops and subway tiles. Then one day it hit me. Metropolitan wasn’t just the vibe — it was our brand and that is how the name came to be.
Side note: People love giving things a nickname. It makes you feel close to people and brands when you are able to do so. I.E: Metropolitan Donuts as MET DONUTS.
I love that you built this donut empire with your wife. You two seem to be quite the dream team!
I know what I want but I can’t always see it. My wife, on the other hand, gets a vision. She can take my ideas and make them a reality. We walked in the space and within two minutes she was already coming up with a plan on how to achieve the look and feel we wanted.
K: So she’s the Joanna to your Chip.
D: Laughs — kind of. I don’t know a hammer from a screwdriver but she can do it all. She owns and runs a decor and design shop called Polished Interiors. Her store is off Old Lafayette. Her ability to create and make dreams a reality is evident in this space.
Do you have a favorite Donut?
Honestly I’m so simple. Cinnamon sugar. It’s my go to and if you put honey over it — it’s awesome.
What makes you stand out?
There are plenty of places that do a donut of the day. We do as well. What makes us different is that if you love that certain donut and we take it off the menu — it’s not really gone. We still have all the toppings here to make it for you.
I know you also have different types of coffee. Tell me more about how this became a part of a staple at Met.
I know people love donuts but from a business standpoint I was afraid they don’t eat them everyday. I mean I love pizza, but I don’t eat it everyday. Most of us do drink coffee everyday. I wanted to be different. I made it a point to bring in roasters from around the country. We have roasters from Canada, California, and Michigan. They are all specially roasters. We are talking top 10 roasters in the world. I was nervous to reach out to them but I thought, I might as well swing for the fences.
Clearly he hit a home run…
These roasters were really excited to get their coffee in to the heart of America — none of their beans were in Kentucky and they really loved the concept of the store. They wanted to be a part of it. Plus, a restaurant doesn’t source their wine from one vineyard or put one brewery on tap so we took the same approach. Why use just one roaster when we can offer so many others?
Drew has made people believers in his coffee selections. It can be tough to get them to try new things.
There have been people to walk in with Starbucks cups and I tell them we will give them a free cup to try if they ditch what they currently have. After they try ours they vow not to go back. So we are slowly converting our customers. More and more they come in and buy bags of coffee to take home.
Speaking of new things — you must now go try The Karaboo: my exclusive donut creation at Met.
Having a donut named in my honor is my greatest achievement in life. I’m not sure I can do better than this. Truly this is better than an Oscar, A Tony, A Grammy — it trumps them all.
It is an amazing thing to support a brand when you can get a feel for those behind it. Drew [and Evelyn] have created an amazing concept — but Metropolitan is so much more than that. The staff are fun, upbeat, and you can tell they truly love working for Drew. He welcomes the ideas of others. He listens.
However, the thing I love most about Drew is learning that he and his family have become big fans of WWE. What started out as something his son loved grew into a family affair. He plans to create donuts inspired by some of their favorite wrestlers for the next they have a show in town.
I’m rooting for Drew in more ways than one. I hope he gets to meet some of his favorite wrestlers. I hope they can see what a fabulous place Metropolitan Donuts is. Most importantly — I hope Met grows into the staple of Lexington I know it is meant to be.
Now go try it for yourself TOMORROW. It will officially be the donut of the week: THE KARABOO.
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