Who doesn’t love donuts?  I can’t imagine anyone who doesn’t love a wonderfully warm, yeasty donut.  Bill’s Donut Shop has been a family favorite of ours for a long time!  Sydney and I had the wonderful opportunity to speak with the owner of Bill’s Donut Shop and get a sneak peak behind the scenes.

One of the first things you will notice upon entering Bill’s Donut Shop is the amazing aroma!  It smells like an old-fashioned donut shop that you went to as a little kid.  It brings back so many memories just stepping a foot inside the door!  🙂

Lisa Elam-Tucker and her brother, Jim Elam, are the owners of Bill’s Donut Shop.  They are second generation owners.  Their parents opened the store in 1960.  Mr. Elam initially opened the store with a friend and then took over the store with his wife.  Lisa told us that her father has passed away, but her mother still comes into the shop daily and even helps out when they are in a pinch.

Donut Time!

Now let’s take a look at some of these delicious donuts!

 

We asked Lisa what their top three selling donuts are.  The #1 best seller is their sour cream cake donut.  The #2 best seller is their glazed donut.  The #3 best seller is the pumpkin cake donut (it is available in the fall).  Lisa’s personal favorite is the cinnamon roll.

Bill’s Donut Shop in the Community

We also asked Lisa what has made Bill’s Donut Shop so successful over all these years and she said without hesitation, “Giving back to the community!”  She said that it is so important to give back to others.  Since 1983 they have been involved with Special Wish.  They also sponsor sports teams and Girl Scouts.

Employee Friendly!

This is a true testament to how generous Lisa and her brother Jim are…they have 52 employees and all but 6 are full-time employees.  They offer medical insurance and a retirement package to these full-time employees!  How amazing is this?  Lots of smaller businesses can’t afford to offer these types of benefits; hence why so many small businesses have all part-time positions.  Sydney and I were so amazed at how well Lisa and Jim take care of their employees!

Lisa said that hands down their customers are the most rewarding part of their job!  They love their customers!  As we were speaking with her many came in and called her by name and she called them by name.  So neat to see this personal interaction between a business owner and customers!

Bill’s Donut Shop is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week!  They close every year during the week of Christmas.  Saturday and Sunday mornings are the busiest times for them at Bill’s Donut Shop.  Be prepared for a line out the door!

Lisa said that they make thousands of donuts per day!  On Sundays, many churches have very large standing orders.  And on Fridays, many local businesses have very large standing orders.

We asked Lisa what their largest, single order has been.  She said that the Wright Patterson Air Force Run ordered 1,800 donut holes.  Wow!  That is a lot of donut holes!

Here are some more pictures of their wonderful donuts and other sweet treats!

Ranked #2 Donut Shop in the Nation!

Now if this doesn’t say something about how amazing these donuts are…I don’t know what will.  USA Today has ranked Bill’s Donut Shop the #2 donut shop in the NATION for the past several years!!  What an amazing accomplishment!!

Bill’s Donut Shop is located at 268 N Main St, Centerville, OH.  We are not kidding when we say these donuts are worth the drive from anywhere!!  Period!!  If you are a donut lover like we are you seriously need to make a vacation around a trip to Bill’s Donut Shop.  We make a two-hour round-trip journey to Bill’s Donut Shop monthly (sometimes twice a month).  They are really that good!  Sydney actually had Bill’s Donuts at her bridal shower a couple years ago.  🙂

Have a great day and we truly hope that one day you get to enjoy some donuts from Bill’s Donut Shop!

Some other great Dayton, OH places to visit:
Behind the Scenes with…Dorothy Lane Market
A Day in the Miami Valley (from awesome pizza to a cute boutique gift shop, our day was packed with lots of neat stops)