"I watched a touching moment soon after Fan-Fan opened in Bed-Stuy when Fany Gerson took a young girl behind the counter for a demonstration and the mother began sobbing — a scene that felt emblematic of the shop’s purpose. Intended originally for a big, airy Clinton Hill café, the business instead occupies Dough’s original, stripped-down industrial location, which Gerson says lets the kitchen see the joy they bring. The doughnuts themselves are globally inspired and brimming with flavor: La Donna sports an irresistibly fuchsia-hued, tart black-currant-and-raspberry glaze crowned with shards of meringue and dried rose and cornflower buds; an éclair-like oblong is piped with torched meringue and oozes yuzu curd; another pairs guava with sweet, salty cream cheese. Still, it’s the basics that win me over: her yeasted, brioche-style dough (flour, butter, eggs) fried to a honey color, feather-light like cotton candy, glorious simply glazed in Valrhona chocolate or lacquered with white icing. The chocolate drink — a rich, velvety Belgian-style blend of melted Guittard (milk and dark) — is thick enough to warrant a spoon and comes topped with doughnut croutons and house-made marshmallow. (Fan-Fan doughnuts $3–$5.)" - Hannah Goldfield
