Just minutes from the swarms of people herding through Borough Market, the Longboys Doughnut shop is tucked away in the more peaceful Borough Yards where I’d not previously ventured into. In fact, if you didn’t already know it was there, you could easily miss it, writes Caitlin Odell.
Long and log-like in shape, these beautifully decorated patisserie could easily be mistaken for an eclair at first glance. You could think of them as the elegant, slightly more refined cousin of the classic ring or disc shaped doughnut, the telltale dusting sugar being the only thing that reveals them as relatives.
Each one on display offered something entirely different in colour and texture, so we decided that a box of six would provide enough data to make a final judgement. Even narrowing it down to six proved difficult, but aided with guidance from behind the counter, we settled on pistachio, tiramisu, Victoria sponge, salted caramel pretzel, lemon meringue, and peanut butter jelly from the ever-changing menu.
To have such a variety of flavours packed into one box made the whole experience very exciting. But despite being distinct in look and taste, one thing all doughnuts had in common was a lightness that I can only put down to their signature brioche-based dough.
There was a unanimous vote for the salted caramel prezle and pistachio as the frontrunners, after that the votes were somewhat split. Who knew something so small as crystallised pistachios scattered on top of a generous layer of cremeux could provide a textural element that would elevate every mouthful exponentially? The other favourite, however, offered a different kind of crunch with shards of pretzel coating the top layer, providing a satisfying contrast to the thick tunnel of salted caramel creme running through the middle.
When it comes to desserts in general, I often find that people tend to sway more to one of two camps: chocolatey and nutty, or fruity. It’s pretty evident where my preferences lie, but I couldn’t not give a shout out to the lemon meringue Longboy, filled with perfectly tart lemon curd, and topped with toasted meringue and candied lemon. Elbowing its way into third place, my enjoyment of this doughnut did make me resolve to try more of the fruitier options on a return visit, the passion pavlova Longboy being highest on the list of priorities.
Next time you’re in need of something sweet after a Borough Market feast(and somewhere slightly more peaceful to digest), Longboys can offer you both.
Doughnuts: £4.50 Desserts: £6 ,
Longboys Doughnuts, 37 Dirty Lane, London, SE1 9PA.
Website: www.longboys.co.uk
