Ever since the 1950s-era John E. Carson hotel building in Downtown Las Vegas was renovated and reopened ten years ago, the cozy space next door to anchor tenant Carson Kitchen has always been a doughnut shop. First it was the tasty local concept O Face, then Southern California transplant Donut Bar took over for nearly seven years.
Now there’s a new occupant, and guess what? Doughnut shop.
But The Donut Hole is not just any average shop. It’s actually a bit of a full-circle moment for these operators, the family behind Carl’s Donuts, which got its start in Las Vegas in the 1960s not far from this active corner of Carson Avenue and Sixth Street.
Amber and Brock Ramsay.
“The original shop our grandparents opened was on Martin Luther King, so growing up, Downtown was home to us. So we’re really excited to have this opportunity to return to our roots there,” says Amber Ramsay, who operates The Donut Hole and the Henderson location of Carl’s Donuts with her brother Brock Ramsay.
“And we both love to go out Downtown. It’s where we’ve been going out at night to eat or drink or see a show, really where we spend our free time,” she continues. “There’s really such a community here with our friends and other restaurant owners, so it’s exciting. We’ve always wanted to come back Downtown.”
The Donut Hole arrived in late January, but it’s not another Carl’s; it’s a fully developed offshoot concept designed for a different clientele. The 1,144-square-foot space has been refreshed with black and white marble tabletops, ruby red tile and neon signs reminiscent of a retro Las Vegas and a classic bakery experience, but given the high quality of coffee spots in the surrounding area, Ramsay says, elevating that component beyond the traditional doughnut shop standard was a big-time priority.
“Downtown already has so many insane coffee shops so we knew we had to be really good to even compete,” she says. The Donut Hole serves java from the relatively exclusive Onyx Coffee Lab; Bungalow Coffee Co. on East Charleston is the only other local operation partnering with the brand.
When it comes to the sweet treats, the Donut Hole mixes plenty of classics and favorites (maple and chocolate bars, jelly-filled, Bavarian cream, apple fritters, brown butter old fashioned doughnuts and more) with more creative and experimental pastries that may not be the best fit for Carl’s existing retail shop.
“The clientele we have at Sunset [in Henderson] is very family-based, or sometimes an older crowd that wants a classic experience,” Ramsay says. “They’re not as interested in super fancy stuff or experimenting with coffee, and we wanted to make this a more young, hip vibe. And Downtown people are foodies, they like to adventure and try new flavors. It’s a very innovative community.”
And now it benefits from doughnut innovations like the Croughie, the store’s take on the Cronut, made with hand-laminated croissant dough that gets deep-fried and dressed with seasonal flavors like yuzu-passionfruit or cinnamon-sugar. Other specialty pastries worth a taste: the brûlée cinnamon roll, the cannoli old fashioned, and the Asian-inspired matcha mochi doughnut.
The shop is maintaining typical hours so far, staying open until 2 p.m., but Ramsay says they’re making plans to host some special events and pop-ups as the sunny season sets in—possibly some collaborations with those cool new neighbors?—and eventually The Donut Hole should reopen in the evenings and later into the night for bar-hoppers in need of the perfect snack.
“When you’re in California and you’re going to those doughnut shops by the beach, you can go back at night and get a hot ham and cheese. That’s something we want to do here, turn it into a late-night spot.”
THE DONUT HOLE 124 S. 6th Street, 702-550-4646, thedonutholedtlv.com. Monday-Friday, 6 a.m.-2 p.m.; Saturday & Sunday, 7 a.m.-2 p.m.
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